How police have ended other long-term protest occupations

Tuesday, 1 March 2022

Stuff journalist George Block tours the occupation camp around Parliament, as the protest reaches day 22.

As the protest at Parliament stretches into its fourth week, campers are starting to put down more permanent facilities, including plumbed toilets and – briefly – a prefab shower block.

The more extremist fringe of protesters are more entrenched than ever and don't show any sign of leaving soon.

Protesters are well-supplied thanks to the shelter and power from vehicles parked on the street and apparently well-funded through donations and outside groups.

While New Zealand has a long history of intense and often combative protests, ending the Convoy 2022 occupation will be a challenge different from any police have encountered in this country before.

* Number of protesters' vehicles in vicinity of Parliament nearly doubles in two days

A resident in Canada holds a sign towards protesters as they participate in a counter protest to stop vehicles from driving in a convoy en route to Parliament Hill, Ottawa.

* Parliamentary protest likely to 'fizzle out', but Wellington must be patient

Police around the world have tried a range of crowd control tactics when dealing with large groups attempting long-term occupation protests – but not all methods have ended well.

How did similar protests end overseas?

Canada: Freedom Convoy

The Canadian Freedom Convoy protest was the inspiration for the New Zealand copycat protest and many organisers have been sharing strategies, resources, and funds.

A convoy of truckers and other protesters in Ottawa grew through late January drawing between 8000 and 15,000 protesters. The protesters held out for three weeks in a relatively well-organised occupation of Ottawa’s downtown complete with tents, wooden kitchens, and supply chains.

The Convoy to Canberra protest at the Australian Parliament.

Similar to New Zealand, police were reluctant to clear the blockade out of fear of the demonstration turning violent. Several towing companies refused to help tow vehicles.

On February 17, after almost three weeks of stand-off, police took action: They built a 3-metre high fence around the perimeter of the protest and installed 100 checkpoints to prevent new people from arriving.

That laid the groundwork for a significant police operation. The next day, waves of horse-mounted police and officers on foot made a slow push to gradually move protesters from surrounding streets.

It was a day-long standoff between police and protesters and led to more than 170 arrests and 21 vehicles towed. Pepper spray was used on protesters, and police reported several officers and horses were assaulted in the process.

People wave to a convoy departing for Paris, on February 11 in Strasbourg, eastern France.

The operation was successful – the protesters were initially confined to a much smaller space and eventually dispersed throughout the night.

Australia: Convoy to Canberra

A similar convoy of protesters in Australia saw approximately 10,000 people make their way to Canberra and march on the Australian Parliament House.

The group did not attempt to camp at Parliament but instead paid $25,000 to book the local show grounds, the Exhibition Park in Canberra.

Protesters were told to leave after their booking ended because the grounds were being used for the Royal Canberra Show. A group attempted to remain at the campgrounds.

Police officers removed them from the grounds by forming a line and moving through the site, dismantling tents. Three people were arrested.

Police used aggressive riot tactics in several cities across the United States in response to the murder of George Floyd by police officer Derek Chauvin.

France: Freedom Convoy

Police took a heavy-handed approach early on in Paris to prevent the protest from growing.

Ahead of the protest, French police deployed 7000 officers, armoured vehicles, and water cannon trucks.

The hard-line approach came about partly out of fear of the protest escalating similarly to the 2018 yellow vests protests, where 11 people died and thousands were injured in widespread rioting and conflict.

Several cars managed to get through the police blockade and surround the Arc de Triomphe monument.

Police fired tear gas at demonstrators on the Champs Elysees avenue.

The convoy did not stay in Paris for long – the protesters left after a weekend to head for Brussels, where the European Parliament is based.

United States: George Floyd and Breonna Taylor protests

Police in several cities used a controversial crowd management tactic called kettling to remove large groups of protesters in the aftermath of the George Floyd and Breonna Taylor shootings.

Kettling involves police officers blocking off streets and pushing people into a confined area. It prevents the crowd from growing larger and allows police to disperse small groups over time to defuse the situation.

However, Kettling requires fully containing protesters, which means people have no access to bathrooms or supplies, and sometimes uninvolved bystanders can be caught up inside police lines.

The practice also has a tendency to backfire: Rather than defusing tension, trapping a large group of angry protesters can create a pressure situation and rile crowds even further.

Police in London notably used kettling tactics to contain 10,000 protesters at the G20 in 2009 – a move which was later ruled illegal by the UK High Court.

The Occupy Auckland anti-capitalism camp in Auckland's Aotea Square.

United States: Occupy Wall Street

The main Occupy Wall Street began in Zuccotti Park, New York, and initially lasted two months before protesters were forced out of the central city park and focused on occupying other locations.

Similar to the camp at parliament, the sanitary conditions at Zuccotti Park deteriorated considerably as the protest dragged on.

Police gave protesters written notice that all tents, tarps and sleeping bags had to be removed from the park, and came in with a forceful approach to clear the area.

The New York Supreme Court ruled that while protesters had the right to freedom of expression, that did not extend to the right to have tents and other structures on site.

Police used riot gear and tear gas as part of a forceful effort to clear the area. It led to a number of violent encounters between protesters and police – more than 200 people were arrested.

There were multiple allegations of police brutality.

A similar effort to remove tents from Parliament grounds could be attempted in New Zealand, but likely wouldn’t have the same effect because protesters could retreat to their vehicles, which can’t be cleared as easily.

New Zealand: Occupy Aotea Square

The Occupy protest in Auckand’s Aotea Square is a relevant comparison to the protest at Parliament because it was overseen by the same man – Police Commissioner Andy Coster, who was then the area commander of Auckland City Central police.

Protesters occupied the square for two months over 2011 and 2012, ignoring a court order to leave.

Police mostly let the protest continue uninterrupted until a morning raid in January, where 60 police officers and about 30 security staff descended on the area to clear tents and other structures, and arrested 20 people.

A significant group of protesters returned to the square the next day, but the movement never regained the same numbers and petered out over the following weeks.