A New South Wales court has ruled a weekend rally about refugee rights in Sydney should be prohibited.
Key points:
- Police went to court to stop a refugee rights protest on Saturday
- A second rally on Friday evening has been organised by Black Lives Matter protesters
- The protests follow last week’s march, which 20,000 people attended
Hundreds of people were expected to attend Saturday’s gathering at Town Hall in the CBD, which was organised by the Refugee Action Coalition and registered with authorities.
NSW Police asked the Supreme Court for an order declaring it prohibited due to COVID-19 restrictions.
Justice Michael Walton ruled in favour of police, saying the risks of coronavirus remained despite low transmission rates.
“In my view the balancing of those public health risks, even in their now-mitigated form as a result of governmental public health measures, outweighs the rights of public assembly and free speech in the current context,” he s