Beyond Social Control Conference
Sydney 1989

Dear people,
I'm not sure if you recall a decision taken at the Beyond Social Control Conference last year to set up a communications network, but this is the result. .... For the sake of convenience we decided to give ourselves a name, and have chosen the "Collective Awareness Network," or C.A.N. We must point out that we see ourselves only as a way for anarchist and radical groups to keep in touch and perhaps informed, and we do not have nor want to have any organisational or advisory powers.

We've decided to send this out .... to give you the list of decision and proposals taken or suggested at the conference last year before it becomes irrelevant. The following are those lists of proposals.

• Anarchists - Yesterday's People
  Proposals:
  1. Present anarchists as up-to-date.
  2. Change from traditional leftist jargon.

• Revolution
  Proposal:
  Challenge revolution as an ideal end.

• Social Ecology - Problems with Practice
  Proposals:
  1. Change the self, then the society.
  2. Get away from jargon.
  3. Implement social responsibility - individual and collective.

• State Control
  Proposals:
  1. Establish independent state research group.
  2. Open up police decision making.
  3. Independent permanent groups to investigate deaths in custody.

• Intellectual Activity
  Proposals:
  1. More practice, Less theory.
  2. Equal student say in what is taught ?

• Work
  Proposals:
  1. Award restructuring.
  2. Our own agenda for awards etc.
  3. Look closer at occupational health.
  4. Talk to people we work with.

• Military Control
  Proposals:
  1. Non-violent action
  2. Self-love and respect.
  3. No alliances with military groups or countries
  4. More positive input about anti-bases, and anti-military. not just negative.

• Reproductive Engineering
  Proposals:
  1. Spread information.
  2. Support FINRRAGE.
  3. Form a group to monitor what is happening Australia.

• Ecology.
  Proposals:
  1. Form co-operatives for ethical investment.
  2. Join ranks between radical groups.
  3. Look into disempowerment of grassroots people in radical groups.
  4. Invest ethically ? (This proposal debated hotly.)

• Anti-racism
  No Proposals

• Media
  Proposals:
  1. Look into Community Arts / Co-operatives for Arts.
  2. Be rational with the media.
  3. De-mystlfy the media.
  4. Look at censorship of public media.
  5. Look at complete deregulation of media.
  6. Look at alternative media: Microfiche, use faxes to empower alternative views.

• Hilton Bombing
  Proposals:
  1. Support campaign against frame-up of Tim Anderson.
  2. Use alternative media to do this, inter- and intra-state.
  3. Meetings: 391 Sussex St. Monday nights. 6.3Opm

Proposals for Improvement of Conferences

1. Less academia at conferences.
2. Talk to audiences, don't read.
3. More discussion time.
4. Open meeting.
5. Buy food for conferences that agrees with ideals.
6. Set up our own communication networks and infrastructures.
7. Include discussions of animal liberation, and homosexuality.
8. Organised exchange of views over what is happening in other states.
9. More action, less talk.
10. Not so many things all at once.
11. Problems with architecture.
12. Papers in advance for people who want it, commonsense talk on the day.
13. Incorporate analysis of power.

All these proposals are suggestions made at the Beyond Social Control Conference by those participating, and are not necessarily the views of C.A.N. or the organisers of the conference.