Signs supporting the Yes vote in Saturday’s referendum have been cut, vandalised and stolen according to volunteers working with the Shoalhaven Alliance for Yes23 (SAY23).
Megan Pikett, a SAY23 member reported “We have had signs in our garden during election campaigns for 40 years, and they’ve never been damaged or removed. However, our YES signs and others in Berry were slashed some weeks ago.
“It is very unsettling, because someone has gone with a knife to slash them.
“What level of anger or hostility drives someone to do that and why is it happening in this campaign?” she said.
Convenor of SAY23 Ev Pettigrew said, “We have had so many of Yes supporters tell us that their signs have been defaced or damaged, as well as many being stolen right across the region.
“Being passionate about something you believe in is one thing, but attacking a sign of someone else’s opinion is another, She said.
Ms Pettigrew said, “It is in the nature of democracy for there to be a contest of ideas when citizens vote, but there is a nastiness here that we haven’t seen before.”
“We call on all opponents of the referendum proposal to be respectful in their actions and words in the days ahead” she added.
