Victoria Police have a duty under the Charter of Human Rights to protect and promote human rights including the right to freedom of assembly and freedom of expression.
By following the directions of the Mayor to remove protesting people from a public place, who were causing no fear and damaging no property, Victoria Police have failed to protect and promote human rights.
We as a nation watched the people of Egypt protesting against their government and condemned government attacks on them. We condemned the Syrians for attacking the people's right to protest. We condemned Libya for attacking its protesting people.
And now, here in Melbourne, we have witnessed a violent attack on the rights of the people to protest. Regardless of our opinions on the politics of the protesters, this action clearly is a serious and shameful erosion of human rights. The reported level of violence only demonstrates more clearly the harm and damage caused by what is potentially an unlawful police intervention.
The police should not interfere with legitimate peaceful political communication between a people and its government. In fact it is their role to protect and promote the capacity of people to exercise their democratic rights.
A wide inquiry must be held, not only into the reports of violence, but the role of police in intervening at all.
Comments
UN Charter of Human Rights not enforceable under Australian law
The UN Charter of Human rights is not enforceable under Australian law and unless domestic legislation is passed is again not enforceable. Ergo Victorian Police aren't obliged to follow it. You bang on about basic human rights that are universal but they are not adopted universally by all people.
Can you please point to Australian law that governs the right to protest. I'm sure you'll find that there isn't much in Australian law governing this so called right but were the occupy Melbourne protester in breach of civil law when asked to move on and they didn't do so. I thought an activist said that they would move on when asked. They were asked and didn't do so.
I don't see them hurrying back to City Square to clean up the mess that was created.
Law provides for a right to protest in Victoria
Have a look at sections 15 & 16 of the Victorian Charter of Human Rights and Responsibilities Act. These two sections are closely associated and read together provide for a right to protest in Victoria. There is also an implied constitutional protection for the right to political communication: See for example Lange v Australian Broadcasting Corporation and Coleman v Power.