Peak union body SA Unions, the Construction Forestry Mining and Energy Union (CFMEU), Australian Nursing and Midwifery Federation (ANMF), the Australian Manufacturing Workers Union (AMWU), the Public Service Association (PSA), United Workers Union (UWU) and Communications, Electrical and Plumbing Union (CEPU) attended this morning’s protest at Festival Plaza behind Parliament House.

Maritime Union of Australia, Rail Tram and Bus Union and National Tertiary Education Union members also rallied.

The Ambulance Employees Association (SA), which ran a sustained media campaign during the state election backing Labor’s focus on health, spoke against the “alarming breadth” of the Summary Offences (Obstruction of Public Places) Amendment Bill 2023, to be debated in the Upper House this afternoon.

The Bill, introduced by the government in the Lower House two weeks ago and passed with bi-partisan support in 22 minutes, will increase the penalty for obstructing a public place from $750 to $50,000, or three months jail.

Unions rallying at today’s protest. Photo: Brett Hartwig/InDaily

SA Unions secretary Dale Beasley, flanked by AEA secretary Leah Watkins, addresses the rally. Photo: Brett Hartwig/InDaily

The laws were introduced on May 18, a day after a traffic-stopping Extinction Rebellion protest against an oil and gas industry conference at the Convention Centre.

Besides increasing the maximum fine 66 times, the legislation will make defendants potentially liable for emergency services costs responding to a public obstruction, and broaden the offence’s scope to include indirect obstruction of a public place.

The broadening of the offence’s scope has prompted concerns from legal groups and Amnesty International that the legislation could be used to target homeless people, for example.

The state government has repeatedly said the legislation does not make any changes to the Public Assemblies Act 1972 which governs the right to protest in South Australia.

Ambos’ union secretary Leah Watkins today highlighted the then-Opposition Labor Party’s support of an AEA-organised protest on April 1, 2021, which called for greater ambulance resourcing.

“We blocked both sides of North Terrace. Labor, the Greens, SA-Best and many independent MPs stood with us in protest of the then-dismissive Liberal government,” Watkins told the rally.

“Later that year on the 17th of November, we rallied on North Terrace again, as we tabled our petition calling for adequate ambulance resourcing and an end to ramping.

“Again, they rallied with us. Our rallies were big, they caused disruption, they closed roads and they stopped trams… obstructing a public place to peacefully protest for a safer community for all.

“This amendment bill fundamentally threatens our ability to take action like this in the interests of our members and the safety of the South Australian community – shame.”

Watkins said the SA Labor Party’s strength in government and opposition was its “willingness and openness to listen to the community and to the workers”.

“Listen to us now: down with this bill,” she said.

Unionists at the protest rally. Photo: Brett Hartwig/InDaily

Today’s protests  – the second rally against the Bill since Friday – comes as the Labor caucus met this morning to discuss the day’s parliamentary agenda ahead of the Upper House voting on the contentious legislation in the afternoon.

It also emerged today that the Labor’s state council passed a motion after the new laws passed the Lower House to call for consultation on the Bill.

The motion states that the council “supports the fundamental right to protest and the right of citizens to exercise this” and “notes that citizens have a right to safety within our community”.

“State Council therefore requests that the State Labor Government institute a process to ensure consultation with the community so that all implications of the Summary Offences (Obstruction of Public Places) Amendment Bill 2023 are duly considered by the Parliament prior to its implementation to ensure that the right to protest is not unreasonably curtailed,” the motion states.

Former Labor Minister Steph Key told protestors that the motion passed by the state council meant there was “really no excuse for this legislation”.

Key, who was an MP from 1997 to 2018, also noted the presence of sitting left-faction Labor MLC Irene Pnevmatikos at today’s protest.

Pnevmatikos also attended the first rally against the legislation. She told InDaily yesterday her reason for going along was to understand the views of the protestors.

“I noticed that Irene Pnevmatikos is here, and she is a true champion for labour rights and rights for people in general,” Key said.

“She’s in a very difficult position, but I also understand at the ALP council last week that the members wanted to make sure that the ALP Council had a position to say that this Bill wasn’t on either.

“I think that was unanimously supported by the people that are supposed to advise the Labor government and the Labor Party about what our policy is.

“So, really, there is no excuse for this legislation. The only ad I can give them is they’ve got no experience of campaigning except for themselves.”

Steph Key addresses the rally. Photo: Brett Hartwig/InDaily

Greens and SA-Best MPs also attended the protest today in shirts that said “arrest me Pete”. Both crossbench parties have indicated they’re opposed to the legislation but don’t have the numbers to vote it down.

One Nation MLC Sarah Game has also raised concerns about the legislation and has called for “thoughtful deliberation” about the Bill’s contents.

Premier Peter Malinauskas told ABC Radio this morning the state government remains “open minded” to calls for change to the laws “if there are concerns out there that it somehow results in scope of the government to somehow capture people who aren’t currently breaking the law”.

He said he was happy for the Upper House to look at the legislation to ensure there is no “scope creep”.

He said on the weekend he had decided to read more about how another act, the Public Assemblies Act 1972, was introduced by former Labor Premier Don Dunstan after a Royal Commission, that Malinauskas claimed had more impact on the right to protest.

When asked about whether there was room to review the new amendments, Malinauskas said: “We’re open minded to potential for the government realising our objectives because there’s a problem that needs to be fixed there and I think in the minds of many South Australians.”

The changing of the wording in the legislation from “indirectly” to “directly” was also discussed.

Malinauskas said the change was to ensure incidents like when an Extinction Rebellion protestor abseiling from Morphett Street Bridge was captured by the new amendments.

“The offence of obstructing has been in place for decades, in fact, I think it’s been in place pre-Federation because you just can’t get in the middle of a road or hang yourself from a bridge that shuts the city down unreasonably,” he said.

“But if you’re doing it as part of a demonstration or a protest and you give warning, you let people know, then it all becomes lawful and everything’s okay and no one gets issued with a fine.

“It only happens if someone wilfully breaks the law, if someone recklessly breaks the law.”

Malinauskas was also asked if he was influenced by oil and gas company Santos in introducing the amendments after Extinction Rebellion protestors threw paint on the front of its headquarters building in Adelaide, given that his brother works for the company.

“No, I’ve had zero representation from Santos… this is not about Santos,” he said.

This morning, when Prime Minister Anthony Albanese was asked about the anti-protest legislation on ABC Radio he referenced his own past protesting at Sydney University and attending other marches, but had no criticism of the new amendments.

“It’s important that people are able to express their views but it’s also important they don’t alienate the public when they do it,” Albanese said.

Opposition leader David Speirs today said the new protest laws were supported by “everyday South Australians in the mortgage belt”.

“We know the Labor Party are tearing themselves apart over this one,” he told reporters.

“We’re calling for Peter Malinauskas to show some guts here, don’t give in to your left wing colleagues, don’t give in to the extremists, don’t give in to the unions.

“Stand firm, listen to every day South Australian punters, keep these penalties and see them passed through the Legislative Council today.”