The police did not have their required body cameras turned on so there is no independent record. Police say the man failed to stop when asked for a permit check. on September 3 alleged that Victoria police tackled, assaulted, and racially abused him.

The case will return to the courts in January 2021.Īn Indigenous man riding his bike to work at about 5:30 a.m. They have since asserted that their actions were proportionate. Police handcuffed the woman in front of her children and ignored her offer to delete the post. Gatherings have been banned under regional Victoria’s Stage 3 stay-at-home orders, yet arresting, handcuffing, and taking someone to the police station solely for planning a protest is a seemingly disproportionate response. On September 2, in Ballarat, police were recorded on video as they arrested a pregnant woman on incitement charges for organizing an anti-lockdown protest on Facebook. The majority of these cases resulted from the second outbreak, most of them residents of aged care homes, which led to the second lockdown. The total number of Covid-19 cases in Victoria as of September 22 was 20,076, with 766 deaths. Victoria faced a severe Covid-19 outbreak after a mismanaged hotel quarantine effort in May. and residents only allowed to leave their homes within a five kilometer radius for a limited time to buy food, provide care, exercise, or attend approved work that requires permits. Metropolitan Melbourne has been living under a strict second lockdown since the first week of August, with a daily curfew, currently from 9 p.m. “Several recent incidents raise serious concerns that Victoria’s police are taking excessive or disproportionate action against suspected lockdown violators.” “Rights should be upheld and reinforced during a pandemic, not abandoned,” said Elaine Pearson, Australia director. Premier Daniel Andrews said on September 12, 2020, that imposing curfews was about giving law enforcement “the easiest set of rules to enforce.” He asserted that the curfew would remain in place “because it was not about human rights, but rather a matter of human life.” A bill passed by Victoria’s lower house would expand the authority to detain people during the pandemic crisis.

Victorian police have engaged in abusive practices during the pandemic that raise concerns about their commitment to upholding human rights. Victoria’s parliament should reject a new attempt to broaden police powers. (Sydney) – Victoria’s police have used harsh measures during the Australian state’s Covid-19 lockdown that threaten basic rights, Human Rights Watch said today. © 2020 Speed Media/Icon Sportswire via AP Images. Police Public Order Response Teams respond to a small group of protesters who appeared at a shopping center and quickly dispersed before any arrests could be made during pop-up protests on Septemin Melbourne, Australia.

Australian lockdown measures