Watching Brief 22-4, titled Anti-Protest Laws in Australia, was published in July 2022. The purpose of this material is to update Watching Brief 22-4 so as to reflect changes in Australian law since the publication of that Watching Brief.
Background
The right to peaceful assembly and association is set out in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, adopted by the United Nations General Assembly in 1948 and the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR), adopted in 1966.
The ICCPR provides, among other things, the right to freedom of expression, peaceful assembly and the freedom of association. Australia is a signatory to the ICCPR. However, a treaty does not form part of Australia’s domestic law unless it has been specifically incorporated into Australia’s law through legislation.
By definition, the right to peaceful assembly cannot be exercised using violence. However, pushing and shoving, direct action, civil disobedience or temporary disruption to roads, cars, pedestrians or daily activities does not, on its own, amount to violence.
In recent years, the Australian States and Territories have enacted a number of concerning anti-protest laws seeking to control the actions of protesters (see for example: https://www.hrlc.org.au/news/2024/03/25/protest-police-permit).
The Human Rights Law Centre has prepared a Declaration of Our Right to Protest. (declaration-right-to-protest-pdf-af6a7d.pdf) The declaration sets out the principles of the right to protest, and contains information about practical steps to safeguard the right. The Australian Democracy Network encourages individuals to support the Declaration by signing a petition at https://australiandemocracy.org.au/protest-rights-declaration.
The current Watching Brief is intended to complement and, where applicable, update the contents of Watching Brief 22-4 in relation to State and Territory laws concerning the right to protest. It appears that Right to Protest Laws have become more restrictive in some states and territories.