#protest-restrictions

#protest-restrictions

A man in a white button-up shirt and suit trousers puts his hands in the air as a police officer grabs him. He appears to steady himself on the officer's shoulders. He's then punched multiple times by multiple officers. People watching on scream. It's one of the first violent acts that take place as New South Wales police attempt to disperse protesters demonstrating in central Sydney on Monday against the visit of the Israeli president, Isaac Herzog.

A constitutional challenge has been launched against controversial laws in New South Wales that restrict protest actions for up to three months after terrorist incidents, introduced following the December Bondi attack. The groups the Blak Caucus, Palestine Action Group (PAG) and Jews Against the Occupation 48 filed the challenge in the NSW supreme court on Wednesday, arguing in the court summons that the laws are invalid because they impermissibly burden the implied constitutional freedom of communication on government and political matters.

When a political party gathers for its annual conference, the host city (or at least the political and security bubble that surrounds the conference centre) becomes home to feverish and partisan political chat. What is different about the next few days is Manchester is also a city in mourning after the horrific attack on Thursday. There is, of course, still sharp political argument here but the emotional and practical backdrop is one of grief, fear and an ongoing police investigation.