Utilising reactionary anti-lockdown and anti-vaccine rallies in Melbourne organised this week, police forces have unveiled an array of new weapons and equipment. This includes pepper ball firearms that shoot hard pellets the size of marbles, stinger grenades, and paramilitary-style vehicles and body armour.
As the World Socialist Web Site has previously outlined, the anti-vax protests have no legitimacy whatsoever. A small layer of construction workers appear to have been involved in one of the rallies on Tuesday outside the Construction, Forestry, Mining and Energy Union (CFMEU) office (see Australian anti-vaccine, extreme right demonstrators target construction industry). Numbers of reports, however, point to the predominantly petty bourgeois layers involved in the other events, including small business owners and contractors.
Politically, the rallies are dominated and led by extreme right-wing libertarian and outright fascist individuals and organisations. Some of the administrators of Telegram accounts promoting and organising the protests have previously been exposed as admirers of Adolf Hitler. Supporters of the fascistic Proud Boys and the now defunct United Patriots Front have been involved in the rallies.
The police are exploiting widespread hostility towards the protests and their homicidal calls for an immediate end to lockdown measures as the pretext for trialling new weaponry and a massive state mobilisation.
Senior police previously expressed concern over how the population would respond to the use of new, so-called non-lethal weaponry.
In 2018, police put on a display of their enhanced firepower for selected journalists. The weapons included VKS Pepper Ball firearms, capable of firing blunt force pellets or dye markers to brand people for later arrest, baton round launchers capable of firing larger rubber or plastic bullets, stinger grenades that release nine rubber projectiles, and sound/flash bombs that release noise, light and smoke. This was accompanied by new body armour and paramilitary-style police vehicles.
An Age journalist noted at the time, we have been given a sneak preview of gear that looks more like Star Wars than regulation police equipment.
Police Chief Commissioner Graham Ashton declared: It is an ugly look to see police in riot gear in a suburban street. It will be confronting to watch. We now have some equipment that has not been seen before that may alarm people.
The Melbourne Activist Legal Support noted that the new weapons posed severe dangers.
Pepper Ball pellets, the organisation reported, can blind, maim and leave permanent injuries depending where they hit the body, while the baton round launcher has resulted in significant injuries and fatalities around the world, [including last year] a 25-year-old protester [who] was killed by a rubber bullet in Paraguay. In addition: The flash/noise distraction grenades designed to shock and disperse crowds are routinely being used in Israel/Palestine and other conflict zones and have maimed children, can burst ear drums and generate dangerous fear and panic in crowds.
For three years, this equipment has gone unused. Now, however, the anti-vaxxer rallies have provided the police with the hoped-for pretext.
The real target of the repressive build-up is not the extreme rightmany of the fascists enjoy close relations with sections of sympathising policebut the working class.
The state Labor governments bolstering of police powers and weaponry has always been driven by the fear of social unrest and working class and youth protest, fuelled by escalating social inequality and attacks on living standards and democratic rights. Labor Premier Daniel Andrews has boasted of his law and order credentials. In 2016, his state government committed an unprecedented $2 billion in additional spending to expand the police by 20 percent, with 3,100 more officers employed. The government has since boasted that its annual police spending is 35 percent higher than its Liberal predecessor.
The police operations against the anti-vax events represent a warning as to how the state is preparing to respond to a genuine movement of the working class in defence of its independent interests.
Numerous acts of police violence were recorded by witnesses and uploaded to social media. This included the gratuitous use of pepper spray on already restrained people, indiscriminate firing of plastic pellets, and one incident in which a person speaking with officers at Flinders train station was grabbed from behind by another cop without warning and body and head slammed into the concrete floor.
In another incident, a passer-by who was not involved in the right-wing protests recorded three masked men wearing khaki-coloured armour emerge from an unmarked car and aggressively force a person to the ground. These were members of the Special Operations Group police branch, an elite unit usually reserved for counter-terrorist responses and incidents involving firearms or explosives.
The confrontation recalled the police-state operations coordinated by US President Donald Trump in the final weeks of his presidency, including having unidentified police in Portland hauling protestors into unmarked vans for interrogation.
In another precedent-setting move, on Wednesday the police had the Civil Aviation Safety Authority declare central Melbourne a no-fly zone. This aimed at preventing the broadcast of aerial footage of the anti-vax rallies. Police later permitted overhead media coverage, but insisted that video broadcasts from helicopters be delayed by at least an hour so that live police operations were not visible to protestors. The ban on live overhead coverage was subsequently overturned by the Federal Court.
Sign up for the WSWS email newsletter
Go here to read the rest:
Australian police exploit extreme right-wing, anti-vax rallies to deploy new repressive weaponry - WSWS
- Why Libertarians Are Idiots. - Video [Last Updated On: September 7th, 2012] [Originally Added On: September 7th, 2012]
- Libertarianism Vs. Socialism with Austin Petersen - Video [Last Updated On: September 7th, 2012] [Originally Added On: September 7th, 2012]
- "Libertarian" Ron Paul Exposes His True Self: a Corporate Feudalist - Video [Last Updated On: September 7th, 2012] [Originally Added On: September 7th, 2012]
- Ask a Libertarian Lightning Round: Recalls, Libertarian Paternalism, [Last Updated On: September 7th, 2012] [Originally Added On: September 7th, 2012]
- Ask a Libertarian Lightning Round: Libertarianism in Pop Culture [Last Updated On: September 7th, 2012] [Originally Added On: September 7th, 2012]
- Gary Johnson invigorates the Libertarian vote [Last Updated On: September 21st, 2012] [Originally Added On: September 21st, 2012]
- Breitbart Writer Begs Libertarians To Vote Romney — Sorry, It Ain’t Going To Work [Last Updated On: September 25th, 2012] [Originally Added On: September 25th, 2012]
- Quick Hits: Muse, Christina Aguilera, Nicki Minaj, Outasight, Interpol [Last Updated On: September 30th, 2012] [Originally Added On: September 30th, 2012]
- Philip Pilkington: The 19th Century Long Depression: How it Fostered Oligopolistic Capitalism and Serves as a Model ... [Last Updated On: September 30th, 2012] [Originally Added On: September 30th, 2012]
- Muse singer rips Glenn Beck for liking his music [Last Updated On: September 30th, 2012] [Originally Added On: September 30th, 2012]
- Myth and Truth About Libertarianism [Last Updated On: October 3rd, 2012] [Originally Added On: October 3rd, 2012]
- What Is Neoclassical Liberalism? [Last Updated On: October 3rd, 2012] [Originally Added On: October 3rd, 2012]
- Glenn Beck's extraordinary open letter to Muse [Last Updated On: October 3rd, 2012] [Originally Added On: October 3rd, 2012]
- Lord Wood of Anfield:the crisis of Conservative values [Last Updated On: October 6th, 2012] [Originally Added On: October 6th, 2012]
- Libertarians are wrong about smoking bans [Last Updated On: October 10th, 2012] [Originally Added On: October 10th, 2012]
- Anonymity and its limits: Reddit v Gawker [Last Updated On: October 15th, 2012] [Originally Added On: October 15th, 2012]
- Friedman on Intolerance: A Critique [Last Updated On: October 16th, 2012] [Originally Added On: October 16th, 2012]
- Libertarianism not likely to yield third party [Last Updated On: October 31st, 2012] [Originally Added On: October 31st, 2012]
- Ayn Rand Institute Bigwigs Piss on Libertarianism, Libertarians Fight Back! [Last Updated On: October 31st, 2012] [Originally Added On: October 31st, 2012]
- 2 comments [Last Updated On: October 31st, 2012] [Originally Added On: October 31st, 2012]
- The Hard Truth About Libertarianism - Video [Last Updated On: October 31st, 2012] [Originally Added On: October 31st, 2012]
- Ayn Rand's First Appearance on The Tonight Show with Johnny Carson, 1967 - Video [Last Updated On: October 31st, 2012] [Originally Added On: October 31st, 2012]
- FDR 960 - Why Libertarianism Fails: Part 1 - Video [Last Updated On: October 31st, 2012] [Originally Added On: October 31st, 2012]
- FDR 961 - Why Libertarianism Fails: Part 2 - Video [Last Updated On: October 31st, 2012] [Originally Added On: October 31st, 2012]
- FDR 962 - Why Libertarianism Fails: Part 3 - Video [Last Updated On: October 31st, 2012] [Originally Added On: October 31st, 2012]
- FDR 672 - Minarchism, Libertarianism and Logic - Video [Last Updated On: October 31st, 2012] [Originally Added On: October 31st, 2012]
- FDR 614 - Political Libertarianism: Part 2 - Video [Last Updated On: October 31st, 2012] [Originally Added On: October 31st, 2012]
- FDR 613 - Political Libertarianism: Part 1 - Video [Last Updated On: October 31st, 2012] [Originally Added On: October 31st, 2012]
- FDR 235 - Libertarianism for the Young: Freedom for the tweens - Video [Last Updated On: October 31st, 2012] [Originally Added On: October 31st, 2012]
- FDR 86: Top Ten Myths About Libertarianism - Video [Last Updated On: October 31st, 2012] [Originally Added On: October 31st, 2012]
- FDR 37: What is Libertarianism? - Video [Last Updated On: October 31st, 2012] [Originally Added On: October 31st, 2012]
- THRIVE! 30.1 - Video [Last Updated On: October 31st, 2012] [Originally Added On: October 31st, 2012]
- Norman Barry: Differing Foundations in Libertarian Thought - Video [Last Updated On: October 31st, 2012] [Originally Added On: October 31st, 2012]
- Ron Swanson's Libertarianism - Nothing The Government Does is Important - Video [Last Updated On: October 31st, 2012] [Originally Added On: October 31st, 2012]
- Libertarian Transhumanism - Wiki Article - Video [Last Updated On: October 31st, 2012] [Originally Added On: October 31st, 2012]
- THE CORRECT VIEWS HIT SHARE! I AM SPEAKING AT CONESTOGA NOV 19 - Video [Last Updated On: November 2nd, 2012] [Originally Added On: November 2nd, 2012]
- Parks and Recreation - Ron and Andy Bonding over Politics - Video [Last Updated On: November 2nd, 2012] [Originally Added On: November 2nd, 2012]
- More hypocrisy from the MRAs. - Video [Last Updated On: November 2nd, 2012] [Originally Added On: November 2nd, 2012]
- CONSTITUTION PARTY EXPLAINED! HD - Video [Last Updated On: November 2nd, 2012] [Originally Added On: November 2nd, 2012]
- Dr Stephen Davies: British Individualism and Libertarianism the Past and Today - Video [Last Updated On: November 2nd, 2012] [Originally Added On: November 2nd, 2012]
- Vallentyne and Zwolinski on 'Libertarianism' | Jan Lester - Video [Last Updated On: November 4th, 2012] [Originally Added On: November 4th, 2012]
- Libertarianism Is Simple To Describe But Not Simple To Argue For - Video [Last Updated On: November 4th, 2012] [Originally Added On: November 4th, 2012]
- Watch Wayne's World (1992) Full Movie Free Online - Video [Last Updated On: November 4th, 2012] [Originally Added On: November 4th, 2012]
- American History with George H. Smith, Part Three - Video [Last Updated On: November 4th, 2012] [Originally Added On: November 4th, 2012]
- American History with George H. Smith, Part Two - Video [Last Updated On: November 4th, 2012] [Originally Added On: November 4th, 2012]
- American History with George H. Smith, Part One - Video [Last Updated On: November 4th, 2012] [Originally Added On: November 4th, 2012]
- Liberty conference comes to UNC [Last Updated On: November 5th, 2012] [Originally Added On: November 5th, 2012]
- Libertarianism in Ancient China | by Murray N. Rothbard - Video [Last Updated On: November 5th, 2012] [Originally Added On: November 5th, 2012]
- Ron Paul, Rothbard and Race 2 of 2 - Video [Last Updated On: November 5th, 2012] [Originally Added On: November 5th, 2012]
- Ron Paul, Rothbard and Race 1 of 2 - Video [Last Updated On: November 5th, 2012] [Originally Added On: November 5th, 2012]
- Voting: The Seen and the Unseen [Last Updated On: November 7th, 2012] [Originally Added On: November 7th, 2012]
- Gary Johnson at the LAST third party debate on RT - Video [Last Updated On: November 7th, 2012] [Originally Added On: November 7th, 2012]
- Puerto Rico Will Be The 51st State - Video [Last Updated On: November 9th, 2012] [Originally Added On: November 9th, 2012]
- Pro-Market Intervention vs. Free Market Volatility (Libertarian Dilemma) - Video [Last Updated On: November 9th, 2012] [Originally Added On: November 9th, 2012]
- Robert Poole and Samuel Konkin: What is a Libertarian? - Video [Last Updated On: November 9th, 2012] [Originally Added On: November 9th, 2012]
- Kokesh 1of4 - Video [Last Updated On: November 9th, 2012] [Originally Added On: November 9th, 2012]
- Republicans Must Focus on Social Libertarianism to Win Back Voters [Last Updated On: November 11th, 2012] [Originally Added On: November 11th, 2012]
- Do You Have a Duty to Vote? - Video [Last Updated On: November 11th, 2012] [Originally Added On: November 11th, 2012]
- Free Speach The Non Aggression Principle Voluntaryism Adam Kokesh - Video [Last Updated On: November 11th, 2012] [Originally Added On: November 11th, 2012]
- Peter Schiff, Austrian, Libertarianism, Right Wing, FOX Logic. - Video [Last Updated On: November 12th, 2012] [Originally Added On: November 12th, 2012]
- Part 4 - Prof. Anderson on Liberalism vs. Libertarianism - Video [Last Updated On: November 12th, 2012] [Originally Added On: November 12th, 2012]
- Part 6 - Prof. Anderson on Liberalism vs. Libertarianism - Video [Last Updated On: November 12th, 2012] [Originally Added On: November 12th, 2012]
- Part 5 - Prof. Anderson on Liberalism vs. Libertarianism - Video [Last Updated On: November 12th, 2012] [Originally Added On: November 12th, 2012]
- Part 2 - Prof. Anderson on Liberalism vs. Libertarianism - Video [Last Updated On: November 12th, 2012] [Originally Added On: November 12th, 2012]
- Part 7 - Prof. Anderson on Liberalism vs. Libertarianism - Video [Last Updated On: November 12th, 2012] [Originally Added On: November 12th, 2012]
- Part 3 - Prof. Anderson on Liberalism vs. Libertarianism - Video [Last Updated On: November 12th, 2012] [Originally Added On: November 12th, 2012]
- Part 1 - Prof. Anderson on Liberalism vs. Libertarianism - Video [Last Updated On: November 12th, 2012] [Originally Added On: November 12th, 2012]
- What Happened to Conservatism? - Video [Last Updated On: November 12th, 2012] [Originally Added On: November 12th, 2012]
- Praxis, Praxis, Praxis - a lecture by Patrick M. Byrne - Video [Last Updated On: November 14th, 2012] [Originally Added On: November 14th, 2012]
- Milton Friedman: The Future of Freedom - Video [Last Updated On: November 14th, 2012] [Originally Added On: November 14th, 2012]
- ExplainIng Obamacare to simplefolk. - Video [Last Updated On: November 14th, 2012] [Originally Added On: November 14th, 2012]
- Barrack Obama - The Food Stamps President - Video [Last Updated On: November 14th, 2012] [Originally Added On: November 14th, 2012]
- Why Obama Beat Romney - Video [Last Updated On: November 14th, 2012] [Originally Added On: November 14th, 2012]
- Templeton, Craig, Shermer, and Rand - Nov. 12, 2012 - Video [Last Updated On: November 16th, 2012] [Originally Added On: November 16th, 2012]
- Penn Jillette - On Atheism, Libertarianism, and 9/11 - Video [Last Updated On: November 16th, 2012] [Originally Added On: November 16th, 2012]
- The GOP’s Libertarian Problem [Last Updated On: November 18th, 2012] [Originally Added On: November 18th, 2012]
- Ron Paul Farewell Speech: What Did He Get Right Over The Course Of His Career? [Last Updated On: November 18th, 2012] [Originally Added On: November 18th, 2012]
- National Liberation - Video [Last Updated On: November 18th, 2012] [Originally Added On: November 18th, 2012]
- How I Stopped Spanking My Kids: A Fathers' Roundtable - Video [Last Updated On: November 18th, 2012] [Originally Added On: November 18th, 2012]
- +Dolan on the Elections [Last Updated On: November 20th, 2012] [Originally Added On: November 20th, 2012]