The Australian Government should legislate to protect the right to peaceful assembly and protest, so the rules no longer change at a state border.
Transparency & AccountabilityThe Right to Protest
Transparency & Accountability · The Democrats' planPeaceful protest changed Australia. Protect it in law.
Female suffrage, the eight-hour working day, the preservation of the Franklin River, the recognition of Aboriginal land rights — Australians pushed for every one of them by gathering in public. Since 2019, five state governments have passed laws carrying fines of up to $50,000 and jail terms of up to two years for peaceful protest, and in NSW police can declare blanket bans on authorised protests in certain areas, including city centres and religious sites. The Democrats want one federal law that protects peaceful assembly and protest.
5 States with new anti-protest laws NSW, Victoria, South Australia, Queensland and Tasmania.
50,000 Dollars in fines in South Australia The steepest of the five. NSW reaches $22,000; Victoria over $21,000.
2years Maximum jail term In NSW for protesting on roads, rail, tunnels and bridges; in Queensland for locking on.
1day Between the protests and the bill South Australia's laws were introduced the day after protests around the APPEA annual conference on 17 May 2023.
Could you afford to protest?
Pick a protest and watch what today’s laws could charge you for it.
Penalties as legislated in NSW, 2022–2025.
The case in three beats
- The set-up
Australia changes when Australians assemble.
The right to peaceful assembly and protest is how Australians express their views and push for legal, political and social change. It is not a fringe activity: this country has a proud record of protest leading to change, and that record is the reason the right is worth protecting.
- What changed
The penalties now depend on which side of a state border you are standing on.
NSW penalises protest on public roads, rail lines, tunnels, bridges and industrial estates. Victoria penalises interfering with timber harvesting operations. Tasmania penalises obstructing access to a workplace, and can fine an organisation over $45,000 for supporting members of the community to protest. Queensland bans devices that let protesters lock themselves on to a location. South Australia penalises conduct that obstructs the free passage of a public place. NSW police can also issue declarations creating blanket bans on authorised protests in certain areas, removing legal protections for participants.
- The fix
One federal law, so the right stops depending on a postcode.
The Australian Government should pass legislation protecting the right to peaceful assembly and protest, so that someone who turns up to a peaceful gathering has the same standing in Adelaide as in Sydney: able to use public space, not watched long after the crowd goes home, and not punished because a footpath or a road was briefly harder to use.
The plan at a glance
The right to peaceful assembly and protest in public spaces is preserved, rather than left to a police declaration.
Peaceful protesters are not subject to ongoing surveillance for having turned up.
Peaceful protesters are not penalised for inconvenience or disruptions to everyday life.
Who decides when Australians can gather?
In NSW and South Australia, these laws passed with the support of both major parties.
Today
- Fines up to $50,000 in South Australia, $22,000 in NSW and over $21,000 in Victoria
- Jail of up to two years in NSW and Queensland, and up to 12 months in Victoria and Tasmania
- NSW police can issue Public Assembly Restriction Declarations creating blanket bans on authorised protests in certain areas, such as city centres and religious sites, stripping legal protections from everyone who attends
- No safeguard against peaceful protesters being placed under ongoing surveillance
Our plan
- No fines for the inconvenience or disruption that peaceful protest causes to everyday life
- Peaceful assembly protected in law instead of punished with a prison term
- The right to peaceful assembly and protest in public spaces preserved, with no area-wide bans
- No ongoing surveillance of people who protest peacefully
The change that matters most
Five states, five sets of rules, and no federal protection for the right to assemble
One federal law protecting the right to peaceful assembly and protest, everywhere in Australia
It takes three guarantees, not a rewrite of the statute book: preserve peaceful assembly and protest in public spaces, keep peaceful protesters free of ongoing surveillance, and stop them being penalised for inconvenience or disruption to everyday life. As David Mejia-Canales of the Human Rights Law Centre puts it, the right to protest is a cornerstone of a robust civil society that holds the powerful to account.
The full policy
Word for word — the platform as our members wrote it.
The Issues
Five state governments have passed new laws with powers to put protesters in jail and face large fines, as well as to enable police to effectively ban public congregations.
The right to peaceful assembly and protest allows Australians to express their views and push for legal, political, and social change. Australia has a proud history of protest leading to change, including for female suffrage, the eight-hour working day, the preservation of the Franklin River, and the recognition of Aboriginal land rights.
Our Plan
The Australian Government should pass legislation to protect the right to peaceful assembly and protest. This should include:
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Preserving the right to peaceful assembly and protest in public spaces.
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Ensuring peaceful protestors are not subject to ongoing surveillance.
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Ensuring peaceful protestors are not penalised for inconvenience or disruptions to everyday life.
The Evidence
State governments have passed a number of laws in recent years that put significant penalties in place for peaceful protest:
NSW: The NSW Government passed laws in 2022 and 2025 introducing fines of up to $22,000 and jail for up to two years for protesting on public roads, rail lines, tunnels, bridges and industrial estates. The laws passed with the support of both major parties. Police can issue Public Assembly Restriction Declarations (PARD) that create “blanket bans” on authorised protests in certain areas (e.g. city centres, religious sites), removing legal protections for participants.
Victoria: The Victorian Government passed laws in 2022 introducing fines of over $21,000 and jail time of up to 12 months for interfering with timber harvesting operations.
South Australia: The SA Government passed laws in 2023 introducing fines of $50,000 and prison sentencing of 3 months for “conduct that obstructs the free passage of a public place”. The laws were introduced into the SA Parliament by Premier Peter Malinauskas the day after protests were staged around the Australian Petroleum and Exploration Association (APPEA) annual conference on 17 May 2023. The laws passed with the support of both major parties.
Queensland: The Queensland Government passed laws in 2019 banning devices which allow protestors to lock themselves on to a location, with prison sentences of up to 2 years for the use of such devices.
Tasmania: The Tasmanian Government passed laws in 2022 introducing potential sentencing of 12 months in prison for obstructing access to a workplace as part of a protest. Additionally, an organisation supporting members of the community to protest could be fined over $45,000.
The right to protest is a cornerstone of a robust civil society that holds the powerful to account.
— David Mejia-Canales, Human Rights Law Centre
References
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The Conversation — With more restrictive laws across the country, how can we protect the right to protest? (Feb 2026).
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The Mandarin — What Australia gets wrong about the right to protest (30 Aug 2023).
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Sydney Morning Herald — Supreme Court overturns NSW’s tough anti-protest laws (13 Dec 2023).
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The Guardian — Victoria passes laws raising penalties for environmental protesters at logging sites (5 Aug 2022).
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ABC News — South Australia’s Protest Laws are Changing. Here’s How (2 Jun 2023).
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Human Rights Law Centre — Explainer: SA’s proposed anti-protest laws.
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Human Rights Law Centre — Declaration calls for governments to protect protest.
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New Republic — Meet the Shadowy Network Vilifying Climate Protestors (Sep 2023).
Make it happen.
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