Police arrest 19 people at 11 small lockdown protests across the country

Tuesday, 31 August 2021

Nineteen people have been arrested following small anti-lockdown protests at 11 different locations across the country.

Police Commissioner Andrew Coster said protesters gathered in small groups outside government and local council buildings, which resulted in the 19 arrests for failing to comply with alert level 4 restrictions.

The protest was organised on social media by Northlander Karen Brewer, who was one of two arrested in Northland outside council buildings in Kaikohe and Whangārei.

In Auckland, four people were arrested at a small protest outside Government House in Epsom.

Government House spokeswoman Nerina Bennett said a small number of people also showed up to Government House in Wellington, but didn’t stay.

Additional police officers had been stationed at the gates, she said. Two infringement notices were also issued.

Three people were arrested in Hamilton, for failing to comply with the Health Order, after a protest in Civic Square.

Six people were arrested at a gathering outside the Tauranga City Council building, and one arrested was made in Taupō at a small gathering.

Police were called to protests outside council buildings in New Plymouth, Whanganui and Manawatū and two were arrested in Whanganui.

Protests took place outside council buildings in Nelson and Christchurch, with one arrest in Christchurch.

No arrests were made in Wellington, after police and security guards were seen patrolling the grounds of parliament.

A police spokeswoman confirmed police were on site to monitor activity, but no enforcement action was necessary.

More than a dozen officers were seen speaking to people who had arrived in their vehicles and were doing laps around parliament.

Protestors were instructed on social media by Brewer to remain silent, but wear yellow if they wished, and to enter parliamentary buildings and occupy them.

The protest was also organised to take place at parliamentary buildings and the homes of state governors and the Governor General in Australia.

Since alert level 4 came into place, 118 people have been charged with a total of 126 offences nationwide and 341 formal warnings have been issued to 338 people.

More than 2400 infringement notices have also been handed out.

So far police have received a total of 13,531 online breach notifications and 8399 Covid-19 related calls through the 105 phone-line.

On the first day of lockdown on August 18, eight people were arrested across the country at anti-lockdown protests.

This included four people at a protest in Auckland outside TVNZ, which was attended by about 100 people and caused violence between protestors and police.