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Help defend civil and political rights ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏
Activist Legal News & Updates!
All the latest from Melbourne Activist Legal Support (MALS). Get involved and help defend civil and political rights.
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TRAINING
Legal Observer training
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Train as a MALS Legal Observer and help protect the right to protest! Our practical workshops are led by experienced trainers.
Legal observing is suitable for all persons and abilities. Date: Sunday 6 August, 2023 Time: 1pm-5pm Where: Amnesty International, 7/134 Cambridge Street, Collingwood 3006 Bookings are essential and spaces are limited, so get in quick! Register online here.
If you miss out on a ticket, please get in touch to be placed on our wait list: [email protected]
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monthly meeting
Monthly organising meeting
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Help build stronger human rights protection for Victoria's social movements.
We'll be meeting online and in person at 6pm, Thursday 10 August.
RSVP for location and online links here.
Please contact us at [email protected] if you have any questions.
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legal guide
UPDATED: Legal Guide for Forest Protectors in Victoria
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Environmental Justice Australia (EJA) and Lawyers for Forests Inc. (LFF) have published a new legal guide for climate justice activists in Victoria. Incorporating amendments made to the Sustainable Forests Timber Act 2004, the new Legal Guide for Forest Protectors in Victoria includes important information about your rights, outlines of offenses potentially faced by activists, and responses to common legal questions and issues arising from forest actions. Download the guide and a short fact sheet here.
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POLICING
Ground-breaking report finds Victoria Police engaged in racial profiling when issuing COVID-19 fines
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Inner Melbourne Community Legal (IMCL) has called on the Victorian Government to waive all COVID-19 fines after revealing Victoria Police engaged in racial profiling when issuing infringement notices. The report, Policing COVID-19 in Victoria: Exploring the Impact of Perceived Race in the Issuing of COVID-19 Fines During 2020, found: ● relative to their population size, African, Middle Eastern and First Nations people were more likely to receive a COVID-19 fine
● African and Middle Eastern appearing people were more likely than white people to be issued with a fine that required questioning to determine whether an offence had taken place
● the total number of COVID-19 fines issued increased by 11% for every 10% increase in non-English speaking people within a Local Government Area (LGA) Calling the report a 'wake-up call' for the Victorian Government, Ilo Diaz from the IMCL's Police Accountability Project said the findings of the report pointed to systemic issues that cause racialised communities to be targeted, and called on Victoria Police to eliminate racial profiling: "The report proved what black, brown and First Nations communities have known for years. Our communities will be targeted the most when police are given extra powers... Victoria needs a Police Ombudsman so our communities have a safe and independent complaints body to investigate the impact of everyday policing on racialised communities."
Sign the petition calling on the state government to introduce a Police Ombudsman now!
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ALTERNATIVE PLACES OF DETENTION
Federal Court finds hotel detention inhumane but lawful; Government rejects human rights report recommendations
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Federal Court Justice Bernard Murphy has found that the Immigration Minister has the power to approve hotels as Alternative Places of Detention (APODs) to detain refugees despite known concerns about the morality and human rights impacts of the practice.
In a noteworthy departure from Federal Court norms, Justice Murphy commented on refugee Mostafa (Moz) Azimitabar's compensation case against the Australian Government, telling the Court on July 6: “I can only wonder at the lack of thought, indeed the lack of care
and humanity, in detaining a person with psychiatric and
psychological problems in the hotels for over 14 months,
...Primarily, in hotel rooms with windows that only opened
10 centimetres and for most of the time, without access to
an outdoor area or to breath fresh air or feel the sun on his face.”
Justice Murphy's judgement comes after the release on June 21 of the Australian Human Rights Commission's assessment of the human rights impact of hotel APODs, along with 24 recommendations to better protect the human rights of detainees.
Following interviews of detainees and inspections of hotel APODs in Melbourne and Brisbane in 2022, the Commission found serious human rights impacts on people being detained in hotel APODs including exacerbation of pre-existing trauma, enforced social isolation resulting in entrenched loneliness, intrusive monitoring by staff, the use of physical restraints and handcuffs, insufficient access to legal assistance, and difficulties accessing appropriate and timely medical and specialist health care.
In its official response to the report, the Department of Home Affairs agreed with only two of the Commission's 24 recommendations.
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documentary
The Trust Fall: Julian Assange
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The Trust Fall: Julian Assange examines the meaning and significance of the insights that WikiLeaks shared with the world, the resulting behaviour of the governments involved, the extraordinary personal risk taken by Assange, and the wider fundamental issues around press freedom that affect all of us and our right to know.
The Trust Fall: Julian Assange is showing at Cinema Nova, Carlton from Sunday 30 July.
Watch trailer here.
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performing arts
How To Save A Tree
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"It takes courage to stand up
for what you believe in. It also
takes steadfast determination, unwavering conviction, and the willingness to do something a little unorthodox... Because that’s the point,
isn’t it? To make the world sit up and take notice?" Rich in history, this theatrical showcase will bring to life some of the more memorable moments that have shaped these protesters. It will also give you a rare insight into the mission that drives each one... with guaranteed laughs along the way.
Date: 22-26 August
Venue: Gasworks
Tickets: email Clare and tell her you saw the show in the MALS newsletter!
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mals membership
Join us - become a MALS member!
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Get involved!
MALS defends our civil and political rights by providing training for protest movements, resources on the right to protest in Victoria, training and fielding Legal Observer Teams that monitor and report on police actions and linking activists with supportive law firms and community legal centres.
Becoming a MALS member means you can help shape our campaigns & help increase our impact. Apply here!
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