Police Commander: ‘Enough is enough’

Melbourne’s CBD descended into violence on Sunday as protesters from a group brandishing Palestinian flags attacked police during a counter-demonstration against an anti-mass immigration rally.

The counter-protest against the March for Australia demonstration, “No room for racism and fascism”, was promoted with Aboriginal and Palestinian flags.

Victoria Police Acting Commander Wayne Cheesman said counter-protesters “came to pick the fight with police” and were “the issue-motivated groups on the left”.

During a press conference, Cheesman dropped a box of rocks and said, “This is what was thrown at police today and I think Melbourne has had a gutful … really enough’s enough.”

He noted “the same people protesting every week, with the same desire to cause disruption, to cause harm to the police”.

Cheesman emphasised the strain on police resources. “We had to deploy hundreds of police, not only today, but the man hours and weeks of planning … the impact on Victoria Police resources at a time when we should be having police on the front line, looking at community safety, it appalled me.

“This type of behaviour impacts the broader Melbourne and Victorian community, and we are sick of it,” he said.

Police Association of Victoria Secretary Wayne Gatt expressed concern for police safety. “They’re coming in here with minimal protection to confront people ready to throw railway ballast at them. Jars with shards of glass, fruit, eggs, those projectiles have hit them…

“The clashes resulted in a female sergeant suffering a broken hand after being kicked, while a male senior constable sustained a deep gash to his leg,” he said.

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Victorian Premier Jacinta Allan condemned the violence as “unacceptable” but questioned whether protests were “damaging the city”. She denied they were part of a wider problem.

“I know, on a number of occasions over the last couple of years where people in some thousands have come to the streets to protest for something that they believe in, and have done so peacefully … What we saw yesterday was a different pattern of behaviour to those examples. It was a very, very different set of people coming to the city with the view of engaging in violence.”

Shadow Minister for Crime Prevention of Victoria David Southwick told The AJN, “The Premier has lost control.

“Our police have had enough, and Victorians no longer feel safe. For two years, Melbourne’s Jewish community has not felt safe visiting the CBD, with pro-Hamas protesters hijacking our city and spreading hate on our streets,” he said.

“The same left-wing extremists who threw rocks at police and burnt flags are now back, just with a different cause. It’s time for leadership that backs our police and restores order.

“The Premier has promised stronger laws for months but done nothing. We need protest permits, stronger move-on powers like every other state, and to unmask the gutless cowards who hide their identity to incite hate.”

Allan has rejected protest permits which are used in NSW, and proposed legislation against masks at protests will be before Parliament next month after being promised last year.

Zionist Federation of Australia president Jeremy Leibler remarked, “The violent scenes in Melbourne were abhorrent. Many of us no longer recognise the city we love. The Jewish community knows all too well the incitement and violence that has infiltrated our streets for two years, but yesterday made it crystal clear that what starts with the Jews, never ends with the Jews. Every effort must be put into restoring Melbourne’s social cohesion for the sake of all Victorians.”

In Sydney, around 5000 people attended the March for Australia rally. The counter protest, “Unite Against Racism”, was organised by the Palestine Action Group, the Greens, Young Labor Left and Pride in Protest, among others, with protesters waving Palestinian flags. The protests in the Sydney centre were kept well away from one another.

In Brisbane, Bob Katter MP and One Nation Senator Malcolm Roberts joined the March for Australia. Katter criticised Home Affairs Minister Tony Burke for providing temporary humanitarian visas for Palestinians.