By Martine Haley

26 August, 2001

IT was left to Shar Molloy to be the lone voice of Tasmania's environmental movement yesterday morning.

While 150 protesters turned up to rally outside the Liberal State Council meeting at Launceston's Albert Hall, only Shar was patient enough to wait and see Prime Minister John Howard.

While some early-bird protesters had seen Mr Howard enter the Albert Hall at 7.30am, most had not.

Most had to be satisfied with knowing they had taken a stand, even if Mr Howard did not see it. But not Shar. She was determined to personally deliver her message, calling for an end to logging in old-growth forests.

Having travelled from Triabunna for the occasion, Shar was prepared to wait.

Mr Howard emerged from the meeting just before 11am, by which time the protest had moved on. But then Shar's patience was rewarded.

Just a metre away from Mr Howard, Shar was able to wave her protest sign, ask him to stop old-growth logging and issue an invitation for him to visit Tasmania's forests to see first-hand their grandeur and "destruction".

"That was good, I made my point," Shar said after Mr Howard was whisked away in his car, heading for Launceston airport.

It was a stark contrast to last year's Liberal State Council meeting at Deloraine when uniformed and plain- clothed police ran beside Mr Howard's car to keep forest protesters away.

Police may have had this in mind when they assigned more than 20 officers to the protest. Meander sawmiller Kim Booth, who spoke at the rally in support of an end to old-growth logging, remarked on the large police contingent.

"We are broadening our base. We have Doctors for Forests and now we have Police for Forests," Mr Booth said.