Melbourne will again come to a standstill on Friday afternoon, as protesters rallying against the closure of Aboriginal communities across the country stage another sit-in.
With up to 10,000 protesters expected to turn out to the intersection of Flinders and Swanston Streets from 3pm, Victoria Police have told commuters to brace for heavy traffic and public transport delays on Swanston, Elizabeth and Bourke Streets.
Protesters march through the streets of the Melbourne CBD on May 1.Credit:Scott Barbour
Lord Mayor Robert Doyle, who has previously labelled the peaceful protests "self-indulgent", criticising it for causing major disruption in the city, said he now had "sympathy" for the movement.
"I have sympathy for the cause but I don't think this is the right way, or the smart way, to go about raising awareness and engendering support," he said.
Mr Doyle said he requested a meeting with the organisers of the protest in Melbourne to come up with an "alternative proposal that doesn't disrupt the hundreds of thousands of people trying to get home on a Friday night."
The sit-in on Friday night will coincide with protests, forums, and gatherings in cities and towns across the country over the weekend.
Victoria Police will be in the CBD on Friday to maintain the large crowds, which have remained peaceful to date. Previous protests in the city this year have drawn thousands of supporters.
"Police respect the right of the community to express their views peacefully and will not tolerate those who break the law," Senior Constable Melissa Seach said.
Melbourne organiser of the protest, Meriki Onus, said the Victorian community wished to stand by Aboriginal communities in other states, who were losing their communities.
"Aboriginal people in Victoria are standing up against all Aboriginal dispossession. It's our responsibility because nobody else will," she said.
The protest's organisers, Stop the Forced Closure of Aboriginal Communities in Australia, posted a statement on their Facebook page, denouncing what they described as the Government's "nation-wide agenda ... the steady winding back of Indigenous services and community and cultural protections."
"Cultural heritage sites have been deregistered in WA and Indigenous communities in the Northern Territory are now on notice after the Federal Government's proposal to pay out the NT Government to absolve themselves of future financial responsibility as has happened in WA and SA," the statement read.
Transport Reporter at The Age