Police claim they capsicum sprayed protestor to protect him!

Oliver Ball the protestor who was capsicum sprayed twice by police at the rally against mandatory detention at the Broadmeadows Detention Centre on April 2nd has spoken extensively to the mainstream media about the police violence used against him. He has also brought the video footage of this disgusting attack on a peaceful protestor to the attention of the media as well receiving coverage on John Faine's 774 show, ABC online, the Herald Sun, The Age and the report by AAP has also been circulated widely.

In a defence that would be laughable if it wasn't so serious, the police have issued a statement that "Victoria Police's primary concern is that of the safety of the public and we make no apology for the tactics used in the circumstances." The secretary of Victoria's Police Association, Greg Davies, went further and stated "Had the police not removed him from there immediately, and he'd been tipped from his wheelchair, he would have been garrotted on his own bike chain,"

Undermining this claim ever so slightly is the footage of the incident that clearly shows Oliver being capsicum sprayed to prevent him locking onto the gate and then again whilst on the ground. The claim that this was to prevent him being strangled because the fence was being rocked is patently false. The incident where the fence was rocked occured earlier in the rally when protestors saw a group of male teenage detainees trying to escape the centre and they rocked the gate for a very short period of time. Three detainees did actually manage to break out of the centre before returning voluntarily.

Oliver was quoted in the mainstream press about the incident:

"I was trying to conduct a peaceful protest when I was sprayed four times without warning," he said. "I have spina bifida, I can't use my legs, I am no risk to anyone or myself and that is just ridiculous to say otherwise.

"I was in a bad way yesterday and it was a very aggressive and extreme response to a peaceful protest."

"The police provided no after-care. It was only my friends that provided any after-care. "They had to pull my eyelids open to pour water, and then they made me snort water because I was vomiting from the pepper spray down my throat," he said.

Oliver has stated he is seeking legal advice in terms of holding the police accountable for their actions. Previously in Victoria protestors have received pay outs for acts of police brutality such as in the case of the Richmond Secondary College dispute and when people were bashed at the S11 demonstration in 2000.

Bizarrely, Pamela Curr is quoted in The Age as backing the story about the fence shaking happening at the same time as the capsicum spraying - I would suggest that she watch the video rather than read police press releases before she comments on such matters! Perhaps Pamela like some of the other people at the protest was just angry that Oliver did not allow himself to be controlled by either the police or the protest organisers and instead of just listening to speeches took the next step to actual resistance to the detention of innocent people in prisons.

Read an account here of how the different approaches to activism played out on the day.

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Comments

What a ripper straight in the face thats a good way to make the smelly protesters have a wash

HA HA HA HA good on the police now the smelly protester will have to bring his bath day forward by two weeks to get rid of the spray,they got him right in the face HA HA HA HA I would of just shot him if I was the police