Hundreds of protesters gathered to march in the city's CBD where they were confronted by police on horseback.
Hundreds of anti-lockdown protesters have clashed with police in Melbourne, as a demonstration in the city's CBD turned violent.Police made a number of arrests at the scene and used pepper spray on a number of people."It is tagged as it is a 'freedom demonstration'. It's anything but," he said.Chief Commissioner Patton said police had been unable to gauge how many people would attend the protest, as all communications had been via encrypted apps.
"I have over 700 police, on top of the police you're already seeing in the community, another 700 who are specifically tasked with this demonstration." He said five people had already been issued with infringements before the protest even started and warned all protesters who were apprehended would be given a $5,500 fine.There had been a heavy police presence around Sydney's CBD in anticipation of the demonstration.More than 2,000 anti-lockdown protesters gathered in Brisbane's Botanic Gardens before a planned march through the city.There were smaller gatherings in other cities such as Darwin.
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