Resources
Background Research
Below is a list of reports and documents from other organisations or events that can inform and contextualise various aspects of activist legal support, legal or human rights observing, or other types of police accountability work.
Occupy Policing: A Report into the Effects and Legality of the Eviction of Occupy Melbourne from City Square on 21 October 2011
Report from Occupy Melbourne Legal Support (which later becomes MALS) that documents the personal experiences of those who participated in the Occupy Melbourne protests and their stories of policing and the forcible removal of Occupy Melbourne protesters from City Square on 21 October 2011. The stories demonstrate the effects that the forcible removal of Occupy Melbourne protesters and the manner in which this was carried out had on an emerging political movement and the individuals participating in it.
Human Rights Observer Report on the G20 Protests In Melbourne 2006
This report critically examines the largest and most public policing operation in Victoria since the protests against the World Economic Forum (WEF) in September 2000. By going beyond the media coverage and drawing information from a team of trained, independent observers as well as people who directly witnessed or were subjected to police action, this report aims to provide a comprehensive and accurate overview of the G20 protests and the police response to them.
Legal Observer Report: No-WTO Protests, November 2002
This public report details the observations and conclusions of the Legal Observer Team that worked at the protests held against the World Trade Organisation (WTO) meeting in Sydney, November 2002. Based on a plethora of witness statements and incident reports taken by the Legal Observer Team, the report details actions by NSW Police that consistently and systematically breached protesters’ legal rights during the two days of protests. The report also makes clear recommendations for changes to NSW law and policy to prevent these rights from continued abuse.
Safeguarding Democracy
This report published by the Human Rights Law Centre, documents the unmistakable trend of governments at national and state level steadily chipping away at free speech, a free press, peaceful assembly, open government and the rule of law—some of the foundations of democracy.
Punishing Protest: Government Tactics that Suppress Free Speech
Since the 1999 World Trade Organization protests in Seattle, law enforcement has aggressively used a range of tactics to intimidate protesters and to silence lawful expressions of dissent in the United States.
Ground Safe: Assessing the digital security needs and practices of human rights defenders in Africa, MENA, South Asia, and Southeast Asia
Human rights defenders (HRDs) are being targeted by growing numbers of digital attacks, making effective digital security practices more important than ever. Ground Safe Report identifies key threats HRDs are facing and makes recommendations for improving digital security knowledge and practice on the ground.
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