Overview
- Justice Anna Mitchelmore found the provision impermissibly burdens the constitutionally implied freedom of political communication and ruled it invalid.
- The law let police order people to move on if they were in or near a place of worship, even when a protest was not directed at that site.
- Joshua Lees, acting for the Palestine Action Group, argued the vague wording created a chilling effect on protests at central Sydney locations such as Town Hall and Hyde Park.
- The state, represented by Solicitor-General Michael Sexton SC, said the powers served a legitimate protective purpose, but the court rejected that justification and found exemptions did not save the law.
- The powers were rushed through in February after reported antisemitic incidents, with the AFP later calling the Dural caravan case a con job, and an upper-house inquiry into the episode and ministers’ knowledge remains under way as the full judgment is awaited.