Victorian Premier Condemns Left-Wing Protest Violence, Stands by Safety of City

Victorian Premier Jacinta Allan has described incidents spurred by agitators at a counter-rally in Melbourne on Oct. 19 as unacceptable.

A group from a counter-protest crowd who were opposing the March for Australia rally against immigration policy were allegedly responsible for pelting police with rocks, glass, and fruit, leaving two officers injured.

North West Metro Commander Wayne Cheesman delivered a withering assessment of their actions on Oct. 19, “The people that came to pick a fight with police were the issue-motivated people on the left.”

He said the March for Australia group were peaceful and listened to police instruction, but among the counter-protest rally were about 40-50 “hardcore protestors” who were organised and aimed to harm officers.

“What concerns me though, is they are standing with the larger group, and the other group are not intervening, they’re not telling them to stop, so in a way, they’re offering their support which is unacceptable,” he said.

A day after, Premier Allan took a strong stance against the agitators.

“It was violent. It was unacceptable. It’s not tolerated,” she told reporters.

“We’ve had some significant size protests in cities, in Melbourne, in Sydney, around the country, that have been peaceful, that haven’t seen this level of violence. What we saw yesterday was a very different pattern of behaviour,” Allan said.

Amid questions of safety in Melbourne CBD, the premier said the state had the resources to deal with violent protest activity.

“I will repeat that yes, Melbourne’s CBD is safe, and I think it would be wrong and misleading to conflate the behaviour of a very small number of people yesterday who came to the city to bring violence, and they were dealt with swiftly by Victoria Police,” Allan said.

“And whilst that very important tenet of our democratic society is the right to protest, what comes with that is an obligation to do so safely,” she said.

The tactics adopted by the protestors—like coordinating to counteract riot police tactics—echo those deployed by Antifa members in the United States.

Crime in the CBD a Pressure Point for Allan

The Victorian premier has faced pressure for a string of violent incidents notably a recent stabbing of a bystander walking through the city—the state opposition has pressured the government on the issue ahead of next year’s November election.

Crime rates in Victoria are at the highest rate in more than 20 years, according to the opposition.

Liberal Opposition Leader Brad Battin, a former police officer, said Victorians were right to be angry about the incidents.

“Our police are being attacked, injured, and abused for simply doing their job protecting Victorians,” he said on X.

“This was a disgraceful attack on our police officers. Being pelted with rocks and bottles isn’t free speech, it’s criminal violence.”

Meanwhile, federal Victorian Liberal Senator Sarah Henderson also weighed in.

“The Allan Labor government has lost all control. Victorians are right to be very angry about today’s protests including the attacking of police,” she said on X.

Arrest Made

In a statement on Oct. 19, Victoria Police said they were “appalled” by the behaviour of some protestors.

“Officers were patrolling the planned protest on Swanston Street when a small group of counter-protestors began to throw projectiles towards officers about 12.30 p.m.,” they said.

“Two police officers were injured and have been transported to hospital. They include a female Sergeant, who is suspected to have sustained a broken hand, while the other male Senior Constable sustained a non-life-threatening laceration to their lower leg,” Victoria Police said.

“Other officers have been struck by projectiles with such force that their protective shields have been cracked.”

A 30-year-old Brunswick West woman was arrested and investigations are continuing to identify other offenders.

Commander Cheesman stood by his officers’ response.

“We make no apologies for officers having to use force to separate and safely disperse crowds during protests where police have been presented with an extremely volatile and violent environment,” Cheesman said.