Blockade IMARC refers to a

protest A protest (also called a demonstration, remonstration or remonstrance) is a public expression of objection, disapproval or dissent towards an idea or action, typically a political one. Protests can be thought of as acts of coopera ...

against meetings of the International Mining and Resources Conference (IMARC) on the 29, 30 and 31 of October 2019 in

Melbourne Melbourne ( ; Boonwurrung/ Woiwurrung: ''Narrm'' or ''Naarm'') is the capital and most populous city of the Australian state of Victoria, and the second-most populous city in both Australia and Oceania. Its name generally refers to a me ...

, Australia. The Blockade IMARC Alliance also refers to a protest movement which has the same goals of opposing IMARC.

Events of 2019

Protests had taken place for several years prior to 2019 in opposition to IMARC - however these protests had been small for the most part. The 2019 blockade of IMARC was the first such protest that drew mass participation, mass media attention as well as a heavy handed crackdown by the Victorian Government. On the 13th of August 2019, the

Yarra City Council The City of Yarra is a local government area (LGA) in Victoria, Australia in the inner eastern and northern suburbs of Melbourne. It is the second smallest LGA in the state with an area of , and in June 2018 it had a population of 98,521, ...

passed a resolution unanimously supporting the IMARC protest. In addition, the Moreland and Darebin City Councils also passed motions endorsing the protest. In addition, the

Victorian Greens The Australian Greens Victoria, commonly known as the Victorian Greens or just as The Greens, is the Victorian state member party of the Australian Greens, a green political party in Australia. History Early years The Australian Greens Vict ...

State Executive also endorsed the protest. On Tuesday the 29th of October 2019, the protests commenced. According to ''

The Age ''The Age'' is a daily newspaper in Melbourne, Australia, that has been published since 1854. Owned and published by Nine Entertainment, ''The Age'' primarily serves Victoria, but copies also sell in Tasmania, the Australian Capital Territo ...

'', "Police pushed protesters down the stairs, used their batons on those who refused to follow orders and repelled the crowd with capsicum spray, while activists harassed mining delegates, spat on them and dragged them to the ground". A protestor named Camila was severely injured after being pushed by police onto the floor, where she was trampled by police horses. By the end of the first day, 47 protestors were arrested by police. The protest continued onto the following Wednesday. The police reportedly "used capsicum spray at least four times" and 17 protestors were arrested, one for climbing up the building to put up a banner "charged with conduct endangering life". On the 31st, the protestors moved to protest outside

Rio Tinto Rio Tinto, meaning "red river", may refer to: Businesses * Rio Tinto (corporation), an Anglo-Australian multinational mining and resources corporation ** Rio Tinto Alcan, based in Canada ** Rio Tinto Borax in America *** Rio Tinto Borax Mine, ...

and

PwC PricewaterhouseCoopers is an international professional services brand of firms, operating as partnerships under the PwC brand. It is the second-largest professional services network in the world and is considered one of the Big Four accounting ...

's Melbourne offices. By the end of the final day, a total of 107 protesters had been arrested. According to a Blockade IMARC organiser, the aim of the blockade was to protest the mining companies "exploiting workers, dispossessing

indigenous people Indigenous peoples are culturally distinct ethnic groups whose members are directly descended from the earliest known inhabitants of a particular geographic region and, to some extent, maintain the language and culture of those original people ...

and violating

human rights Human rights are moral principles or normsJames Nickel, with assistance from Thomas Pogge, M.B.E. Smith, and Leif Wenar, 13 December 2013, Stanford Encyclopedia of PhilosophyHuman Rights Retrieved 14 August 2014 for certain standards of hu ...

". Prior to the blockade, the event was planned to be the " S11 but for climate". The blockade was attended by "more than 20 splinter groups". The police were criticised for their use of

pepper spray Pepper spray, oleoresin capsicum spray, OC spray, capsaicin spray, or capsicum spray is a lachrymatory agent (a compound that irritates the eyes to cause a burning sensation, pain, and temporary blindness) used in policing, riot control, ...

against protestors, and former Greens senator

Lee Rhiannon Lee Rhiannon (formerly O'Gorman, ''née'' Brown; born 30 May 1951) is a former Australian politician who was a Senator for New South Wales between July 2011 and August 2018. She was elected at the 2010 federal election, representing the Austr ...

reported that she "witnessed a number of examples of

police violence Police brutality is the excessive and unwarranted use of force by law enforcement against an individual or a group. It is an extreme form of police misconduct and is a civil rights violation. Police brutality includes, but is not limited to, ...

Aftermath

A day after the blockade completed, the Australian Prime Minister

Scott Morrison Scott John Morrison (; born 13 May 1968) is an Australian politician. He served as the 30th prime minister of Australia and as Leader of the Liberal Party of Australia from 2018 to 2022, and is currently the member of parliament (MP) for t ...

stated that the government would implement laws against "environmental groups targeting businesses or firms involved in the mining sector". On the 2nd of November 2019, ''

ABC News ABC News is the journalism, news division of the American broadcast network American Broadcasting Company, ABC. Its flagship program is the daily evening newscast ''ABC World News Tonight, ABC World News Tonight with David Muir''; other progra ...

'' reported that a Victorian Police officer was under investigation for having "EAD hippy" written on their

body camera A body camera, bodycam, body worn video (BWV), body-worn camera, or wearable camera is a wearable audio, video, or photographic recording system. Body cameras have a range of uses and designs, of which the best-known use is as a part of poli ...

. The following day, a police officer was criticised for having "

alt-right The alt-right, an abbreviation of alternative right, is a far-right, white nationalist movement. A largely online phenomenon, the alt-right originated in the United States during the late 2000s before increasing in popularity during the mid-2 ...

material" on their personal social media page after performing an

OK gesture The OK gesture or OK sign or ring gesture (symbol/emoji: "👌") is performed by connecting the thumb and index into a circle, and holding the other fingers straight or relaxed away from the palm. Commonly used by divers, it signifies "I am OK" ...

at the blockade, "a symbol frequently used by members of the far right". On December 6, 2019, Melbourne Activist Legal Support compiled and published a 45-page report on its observations of the protest, saying "legal observers witnessed, recorded and documented multiple incidents of excessive, unnecessary and potentially unlawful uses of force, either as a coordinated crowd control tactic or by individual police members using excessive force within a police maneuver or tactic. This policing had a series of obviously harmful physical, emotional and psychological effects on the individuals affected."

References

{{reflist, 2 2019 in Australia Protests in Australia 2010s in Melbourne October 2019 events in Australia

Events of 2019

Aftermath

See also

References