Highlighting a couple of points from the bottom of the key findings:
A bystander was handcuffed by police for making a comment towards them as they were passing by the pub where the was sitting. The police handcuffed him in such a way that the handcuffs pierced his skin and his wrists were bleeding.
Continuing arrests of participants in the rally following the 9th of February have directly restricted the capacity of community members to provide evidence to the LECC, because participation now carries the risk that police will bring further prosecutions on the basis of relatively minor conduct.
“The report lays bare a stark and troubling reality of police conduct. What unfolded did not happen in isolated pockets, or in the heat of the moment by individual officers. Rather, across different locations and times, the same tactical pattern repeats…
These risks materialised in injuries to real people, with Legal Observers NSW documenting at least 20 incidents involving injury.
Continuing arrests of participants in the rally following the 9th of February have also restricted the capacity of community members to provide evidence to the LECC, because participation now carries the risk that police will bring further prosecutions on the basis of relatively minor conduct. Early morning raids on protest participants have created an intimidatory effect that interferes with the efficacy of the LECC investigation. (my bolding)
The events of the 9th of February are not isolated. Over recent years, Legal Observers NSW have documented a rapid escalation in the use of force by NSW Police against protesters… Well before the 9th of February, people at peaceful protests had already suffered twisted ankles, broken bones and significant bruising. This escalating rate of police violence at protests must stop.”
When the authoritarian cabal catches a cold we sneeze and sneeze.
