By Jasmin Asifiwe
Demonstrators are seeking legal action and a finding of unlawfulness against police, for violence and brutality in Sydney protests against Israeli President Isaac Herzog’s recent visit to Australia.
As Israeli President Isaac Herzog arrived in Australia on the 9th of February, over 15,000 protestors led by the Palestine Action Group (PAG) lawfully gathered at Sydney Town Hall.
Reports show that NSW police rushed protesters, shouted slurs, and harassed protesters with pepper spray and chemical agents. Videos and stories of excessive force and violence continue to be shared online. 27 people were arrested that Monday night, 10 of which for assaulting police. 12 have been charged.
One video depicts five officers repeatedly punching a protestor in the torso who was already pinned on the ground and restrained before arresting him.
Officers also assaulted a group of Muslim men peacefully praying at town hall during the protest. The NSW police commissioner has apologised for their actions, while Premier Chris Minns stood firm in his support of their actions.
76-year-old Australian filmmaker James Ricketson was forced to the ground by police and arrested in an interaction that began with him tapping an officer on the shoulder. He was later released without charge.
Palestinian-Australian Eyad Shahid was charged with refusing to comply with police direction and resisting or hindering a police officer. His bail conditions stipulate that he not to enter Sydney city council areas unless for work or to attend court.
Other protesters have been banned from participating in any rallies or demonstrations while on bail. The Major Events Act 2009 legislation gives the government special powers to restrict protests and makes it difficult for protesters to sue for unlawful arrest or false imprisonment by police.
Minns told SBS News that “it was a difficult decision. I believe police were in a really tough spot.”
TVU Palestine Action group and protest organiser Josh Lees described it as “unwarranted brutality…sickening state violence in support of the sickening state violence that has been carried out in Gaza. This was a violent attack on protestors in order to roll the red carpet out for someone who has incited a genocide in Gaza.”
“Draconian” laws that upheld police’s ability to restrict protest scuppered PAG’s plans to march to Parliament. In response to the Bondi shooting, the New South Wales state parliament quickly passed legislation increasing police powers, allowing them to arrest protesters. After nearly two months, the state’s blanket ban on protests ended on the 17th of February, with NSW police satisfied that conditions had improved once Herzog had left the country.
Former Prime Minister Tony Abbott commended police who punched protesters and suggested that officers at future demonstrations should be armed with tear gas and rubber bullets to safeguard against the “pro-terrorist protests we’ve seen too often.”
Continued protests nationwide have prompted concerns about potential unrest in the country. Police and politicians were tested again on Herzog’s Thursday visit to Victoria, a state which expressly protects the right to peaceful assembly.
Queensland is to ban phrases ‘from the river to the sea’ and ‘globalise the intifada’ citing concerns of terrorism and antisemitism. Muslim leaders argue that debate over these chants only distract from the actions of police against protestors at Sydney’s town hall on Monday evening.
At the invitation of Governor General Sam Mostyn and Prime Minister Anthony Albanese, Herzog began his four-day visit by laying a wreath at the Bondi Beach mass shooting memorial. He also met with survivors and families of the deceased. Travelling through the country in tight security, Herzog ended his trip on the 12th of February back in Sydney, where he told gatherers the visit had left him “buoyed with hope”.
