By Tyler Durden
Social unrest surged Saturday across Melbourne and Sydney, as hundreds of protesters took to the streets, defying arcane coronavirus lockdowns that have been in effect for nearly five weeks following a spike in virus cases and deaths.
Anti-lockdown groups gathered at the Shrine of Remembrance, a war memorial in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia, with some demonstrators wearing no masks, holding signs, and were heard chanting “freedom” and “human rights matter,” reported Reuters.
Police were dressed head to toe in riot gear, as footage from social media shows clashes between demonstrators and police.
“It is not safe, it is not smart, it is not lawful. In fact, it is absolutely selfish for people to be out there protesting,” Victorian Premier Daniel Andrews told reporters after the demonstrations.
Dozens were arrested at the protests in Melbourne and Sydney; hundreds of others were issued violations for breaching the stay-at-home public health order.
“As a result of the protest, a police officer received lacerations to the head after being assaulted by an individual who was in attendance,” Victoria Police said in a statement.
The statement continued, “Our investigations into this protest will continue, and we expect to issue further fines once the identity of individuals has been confirmed.”
Australian Broadcasting Corporation (ABC) quoted one woman at the Shrine of Remembrance who said, “there’s no epidemic — it’s just a pretext to keep us in lockdown.”
Reuters reported several other protests in Sydney and one in Byron Bay in the state of New South Wales. All demonstrations were in breach of local restrictions on large gatherings, which prompted local police to respond with riot police units.