Activist Legal News and Updates

The MALS 2024 Annual General Meeting will be held on Thursday 14 November.

All MALS members and supporters are welcome to attend.

MEDIA RELEASE

MALS media statement:
Grossly excessive policing of anti-war protesters likely infringed on human rights

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MALS is deeply concerned by the egregiously excessive use of force by police against protesters at a Disrupt Land Forces anti-war protest at the Melbourne Convention and Exhibition Centre on Wednesday 11 September.

LOs witnessed multiple incidents of police using dangerous and grossly excessive force against protesters, medics, journalists, and LOs themselves including:
• unrestrained and indiscriminate deployment of OC spray and Kinetic Impact Projectile weapons (KIPs)
• gratuitous physical violence 
• unnecessarily violent arrests
• uncontrolled police horses

Our team is currently assessing evidence captured from various protests held throughout the week and will be releasing a full report soon.

police misconduct

Human rights organisations condemn police violence & use of dangerous weapons at anti-war protests

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Human rights organisations across Australia have condemned the violent police response to anti-war protesters demonstrating against the Land Forces military manufacturers exhibition held in September in Melbourne.

Several organisations are also calling for a ban on dangerous police weapons at protests after protesters, medics, journalists, and members of the public sustained serious injuries, including a journalist who lost part of his ear and perforated an eardrum after police shot him with a kinetic impact projectile (KIP) weapon.

• Victorian Aboriginal Legal Service made a public statement supporting the right to protest and condemning Victoria Police's response to the anti-war protests.

• The Police Accountability Project at Inner Melbourne Community Legal called for a ban on dangerous police weapons at protests and renewed their call for an independent police ombudsman to investigate police misconduct.

• Liberty Victoria expressed several deep concerns about Victoria Police's use of dangerous weapons, the Police Association's use of inflammatory and dehumanising language to describe protesters, and the Chief Commissioner of Police's description of arrestees as 'criminals' in violation of the presumption of innocence.

• In a joint letter to the Victorian Premier and Attorney General, ten human rights organisations including the Australian Democracy Network, the Human Rights Law Centre, and Amnesty International called for a ban on the use of dangerous police weapons at protests.

UN REPORT

UN Special Rapporteur urges governments to push back against global attack on civic space and right to protest

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An expert report submitted to the 56th session of the United Nations Human Rights Council (UNHRC) has called for urgent action to respond to global threats to civic space and the fundamental democratic right to freedom of assembly.

The report by Clément Nyaletsossi Voule, Special Rapporteur on the rights to freedom of peaceful assembly and of association, identifies global trends in escalating and emerging threats to the right to freedom of assembly including:
•  spread of restrictive laws
•  increased clampdowns on protest rights
•  intensified attacks on climate justice activists
•  surveillance technologies such as spyware, profiling and biometric tools
•  growing spread of hostile narratives

The report also identifies priority areas for the preservation and protection of the right to assembly including:
• dismantling systemic discrimination and barriers to inclusion to safeguard democratic participation by all members of society
•  ensuring police and courts cease using anti-terrorism and organised crime laws against activists
•  protecting environmental activism to advance climate justice
•  countering negative and hostile narratives and restrictive laws
• ensuring accountability and ending impunity for those who are responsible for human rights violations against protesters 

NB: the 57th session of the UNHRC is currently taking place until 11 October 2024.

ACTIVIST RESOURCE

Anti-protest bail conditions: a guide for activists

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Police are increasingly using anti-protest bail conditions to repress protesters and disrupt the ability of activist groups to organise and mobilise. Many of these conditions criminalise lawful activities such as organising and attending protests and associating with others.

These anti-protest bail conditions are a serious infringement on civil and political rights.

It is vital that all protesters and protest groups make plans ahead of time in case police attempt to apply anti-protest bail conditions on protesters, including understanding how you can challenge them. 

activist resource

Know Your Rights: a quick guide to police home visits and property searches

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Do you know...

• What should you do if police enter your property?
• When can police enter and search your property?
• What should you do if police have a search warrant?
• What can police do if they have a warrant?
•  Can police search your phone?

Our quick guide to police home visits and property searches will help you learn about your rights so you can confidently claim them!

mals membership

Get involved- become a member of MALS!

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MALS defends civil and political rights by training activists, creating and sharing resources on the right to protest in Victoria, training and fielding legal observers to monitor and report on police actions, and linking activists with supportive law firms and community legal centres.

Becoming a MALS member means you can contribute to shaping our campaigns, participate in planning and decision-making, and help increase our impact as we protect the right to protest!