Key facts
- A report by the Australian Democracy Network and Deakin University highlights concerns about local councils imposing insurance and permit requirements on protests.
- One protest organizer was asked for a $20 million public liability insurance policy by Bathurst Regional Council to hold a rally in a park.
- The report recommends that permit systems for protests should be for notification, not authorization, and should not require insurance.
- New South Wales carries a $2,200 fine for public gatherings on council land without a permit.
- A community group opposing a data center project proceeded with a rally without a council permit after being told they needed insurance and an eight-week assessment period.
Local councils in Australia are creating bureaucratic obstacles that hinder the right to protest, according to a report released on Wednesday by the Australian Democracy Network (ADN) and Deakin University’s Centre for Law as Protection. The report highlights instances where councils have demanded exorbitant public liability insurance policies and lengthy permit processes from protest organizers.
One such case involved Mariella Gussoni, who planned a protest against the culling of brumbies in a local park. Bathurst Regional Council responded by requiring her to obtain a $20 million public liability insurance policy, a condition that led Gussoni to hold the protest on a nearby footpath instead, attended by an estimated 120 people. She stated that the insurance requirement "scared me that I would be liable."
A spokesperson for Bathurst Council declined to comment further on the matter. Anastasia Radievska, a co-author of the report and protest rights campaigner for ADN, expressed concern that such "red tape" could discourage community groups from speaking out on local issues.
The report argues that in most Australian jurisdictions, protests are "unlawful or unprotected" without permission from authorities, and it calls for permit systems to function as notifications rather than authorizations, with no insurance requirements. New South Wales has a default fine of $2,200 for public gatherings on council land without a permit.
In a more recent incident, a community group opposing a proposed data center on Sydney's Cooks River was informed by Bayside Council that they needed public liability insurance and an eight-week assessment period for a rally. The organizers, after seeking legal advice, proceeded with the protest without the application. A Bayside Council spokesperson stated that the planned activities constituted an "organised event" subject to approval requirements.
Tim Roberts, president of the Council for Civil Liberties, described council demands for insurance and permits as "unhelpful" and a "blatant contravention of the right to protest."