SYDNEY (AUSTRALIA) – The police on Tuesday detained one person and ordered 50 others to disperse after they assembled in Sydney to take part in a Black Lives Matter protest defying a ban on such gatherings because of the pandemic.
The protest march was called to invite attention to the custody deaths of Aboriginal people.
Despite the court upholding the ban on people gathering, the organisers of the protest decided to go ahead with it, pledging to comply with social distancing norms.
The police detained organiser Paddy Gibson in a park just before the event was scheduled to take place and told other protesters to vacate the area.
Only 50 people had gathered for the event in which organisers had expected 500 to take part.
Health Minister Greg Hunt had made a last ditch plea to citizens urging them not to attend the protest. Instead, he told them to resort to social media platforms or arrange a silent vigil outside their residences.
“Don’t. You could take somebody’s life. It’s as simple as that,” Hunt told Sky News.
(Photos syndicated via Reuters)
This story has been edited by BH staff and is published from a syndicated field