a silent yellow vigil
All four sat together, laughing and sharing a bottle of wine. One looked up and noticed that two lines of cabs had formed silently, two abreast on the opposite side of the street.
“Must be some show finishing soon”, he said with a shrug. And returned to the telling of this week’s tale.
Quietly they came. Row upon row. A silent yellow vigil converged in the dark of the night, in the heart of the city.
“What’s happening?” she said, “My car is blocked in”. Her eyes follow the silhouette of groups of men, their uniforms disheveled from hours of sitting; gradually walk away from their familiar yellow shells.
At 2am on Wednesday morning, a young man named Rajneesh Joga drew his last breath. He was 27. He wouldn’t finish that accounting assignment, will never graduate and will never again clock in his hours as a part-time cab driver to make ends meet.
On Tuesday night Rajneesh picked up a job. Whilst driving, the job attempted to steal his cab causing the car to crash into a tree. The injuries to Rajneesh’s head and chest were fatal.
Last night hundreds of cabs converged on Spring Street, quiet ranks that grew.
Their drivers gathered on the steps of Parliament. Banned from using their radios, they passed the message on, one at a time.
They came to gain the attention to the perils of their occupation before it happens again. They have families; friends; loved ones.
A chance encounter, which is their business, is all it could take.
The nature of the task of the cabbie is fraught with risks.
Who are you going to pick up next? Will your passenger entertain you with a lively chat? Will they ignore you, wrapped in their own lives? Or will they do as Rajneesh’s job did?
They are not asking for much, Mr Bracks – just a little safety in the workplace.
Surely they deserve that.
Rest in peace Rajneesh Joga, let’s hope your life was not lost in vain.
Incidents like these are like shark attacks. They are very rare but when they do happen it the results are catastrophic.
In other big cities, there are protective screens between the driver and the passengers. Maybe its time for upgrades.
Its so sad. He was just a student trying to complete his studies so he could improve his life as well as those of his family. I wonder if there is a collection organised for his family? Would people know?
By now, most of you working in the city would have seen the protest move to Flinders street station. From all reports there is no compensation for his family – if someone is in town – could you ask one of the protesting cabbies if there is a collection going round? thanks.
Regarding changes in safety, Bracks has been quoted to say “We’ve already installed video cameras”, he’s refused to meet with the protestors thus far.
With the state election coming up on the 25th of November…one has to wonder if yet to be announced pre-election sweetners have cleaned out the coffers.
Interesting…
Yes, there is a fund collection going on from his State Community Association – Telugu Association of Australia Inc (www.taai.asn.au), to be sent over to his family in need.
You can find the details on the webiste under “Urgent Appeal”
Please do your part to help out…thanks.
Guru