Democratic Rights, Local Government, and Genocide

” … my words were elsewhere, walking along the border to Palestine and crumbling there, “falling as if they were leaves”. “What does a man do with his words if they aren’t useful for anything?” asked Elias Khoury, or as Darwish put it, “What are you writing in this war, Poet? – I’m writing my silence.” – Elina Abou-Sleiman.

Everything is illegal in Brisbane’s Queen Street Mall except making money. Commerce, or more correctly profit making by landlords that charge millions to rent out property in Queen Street to small, medium, and large businesses. Nearly every form of human behaviour in the mall is regulated for the purpose of greed.

Take free speech.

When the Brisbane City mall was a street, namely Queen Street, restrictions on free speech were contained in the traffic act. Speaking to attract a crowd was unlawful under the Traffic Act 1949-1980 (s145 of the regulations). Unless you were the Prime Minister. He could stand on a podium and speak in favour of uranium mining and export but, as soon as you stood on your soapbox and spoke against uranium mining and export, police would grab you off the street and throw you in a paddy wagon. The magistrate would dutifully convict you of ‘speaking to attract a crowd’ while Malcolm Fraser flew back to Canberra.

Then came the mall and the ‘minister-for-everything’. Russ Hinze passed the Queens Street Mall Act 1981 restricting political expression in the mall even further. People speaking out for democratic rights every Thursday night were arrested and summarily fined. All this was done while mall management piped the most appalling muzak into the street. One night a drunken magistrate came barrelling down the mall and pushed an International Socialist off a soapbox. In 1982 the Democratic Rights Organisation (DRO) ran a free speech campaign in the mall. This ended in mass arrests on 27 May 1982. Drew Hutton chained himself to a tree and was pulled down, arrested and fined.

Then in 2014 Brisbane City Council passed laws regulating the mall under the Queen Street Mall Local Laws. Of course these laws attempted to restrict democratic rights even further. Take for example making a speech in the mall: A person must not fail to obtain a consent (to speak or address a crowd) required by this local law. Political activities are not permitted in city malls, namely marches (processions), assemblies of more than 15 people, the use of loudhailers/amplified devices. Meanwhile appalling muzak from the 1980s is replaced by even more appalling muzak from the 2000s. There is a contradiction in this rule. The council regularly grants permission  for and actively promotes activities to take place in the mall which give rise to an assembly of more than 15 people. Musicians and sound engineers are paid to perform and amplify their music. Traders are happy because more people stand outside their shops.

In 2023, along came the genocide in Palestine. People began marching through the mall and sitting down in opposition appalled at the complicity of all levels government that supported and subsidised weapons factories in the suburbs of Brisbane. Traders became nervous. This could be a trend, a threat to business as usual. Lessors, developers and businesses complained to the Lord Mayor. Council ordered its officers to fine leaders of marches and sit-ins. So, the council is using its local laws to prohibit public assemblies that are routinely permitted under the Peaceful Assembly Act 1992.

Peaceful assembly act includes:
s5 Right of peaceful assembly
(1) A person has the right to assemble peacefully with others in a public place.
(2) The right is subject only to such restrictions as are necessary
and reasonable in a democratic society in the interests of—
(a) public safety; or
(b) public order; or
(c) the protection of the rights and freedoms of other persons.
(3) In subsection (2)(c), a reference to the rights of persons includes a reference to—
(a) the rights of members of the public to enjoy the natural environment; and
(b) the rights of persons to carry on business.
(4) Nothing in this section limits the power of a local authority to regulate pedestrian malls, but the power is subject to the right mentioned in subsection (1).

The Lord Mayor lit up city assets in the colours of the Israeli flag, all in for genocide. Adrian Schrinner accused Palestinians and their supporters of spreading hate. Council cancelled artists who supported Palestine. Council lawyers planned the next offensive. Then, on the day Israel attacked the sumud flotilla bringing aid to Gaza, council slapped $5000 in fines on Justice for Palestine activists for speaking in the mall on 3 October 2025.

But all the activists were doing was speaking out against Israeli attacks on the Sumud flotilla, bringing aid to Gaza.

Business and local government complicit in genocide
Brisbane’s mall business managers and Lord Mayor Adrian Schrinner are suspects in complicity by imposing fines on activists’ right to organise against genocide.

On 22 October 2025, the ICJ ruled that Israel’s blocking aid from UNWRA into Gaza is unlawful*.

The infringement notices issued to the three activists claim they made:

1. FAIL TO OBTAIN CONSENT TO DELIVER A PUBLIC ADDRESS IN A MALL

2. FAIL TO OBTAIN CONSENT TO OPERATE NOISE EMITTING TOOLS, MACHINERY OR AMPLIFYING DEVICE IN OR ABUTTING A MALL

One of the activists was trying to bring people’s attention to the complicity of Australians in the IDF murdering people bringing aid on the Mavi Marmara in 2010. Similar actions were taken by Israel just a couple of weeks ago blocking the Sumud flotilla.

Given that none of this has found itself into the mainstream media surely it is important that people raise it in the only way possible out on the streets in the mall so people can understand the depths of Australian complicity.

Attacks on free speech in the Brisbane Mall are as old as the mall itself.

Free Speech in Queen Street Mall
The first person jailed was Sean O’Reilly in October 1982. His “community decided on a daily vigil outside the prison. They also decided to commit themselves to a daily vigil whenever a dissident was imprisoned for exercising free expression. Over the following year, this was to amount to 14 weeks of daily vigils involving many libertarians, as there were 12 occurrences of dissidents being imprisoned. The vigils included a “Free All Political Prisoners” banner and a plea to passing traffic to “Honk for Free Expression.”

These attacks must stop. This recent action underlines the deep complicity of business and politicians in Israel’s genocide.

Surely there must be some authorities who will not stoop so low as to support murder and starvation of Palestinians in Gaza?

Does the BCC officer who wrote the infringement notices have a personal animus against Palestinians and their supporters? She may be of the pentecostal faith and may even believe her salvation depends on Israel? I don’t know. There have been counter demonstrations by groups like these during the genocide. But that does not absolve the BCC worker or Adrian Schrinner of complicity in genocide. Just who is this Lord Mayor, openly Zionist, is he attempting to make BCC a theocracy in support of ‘chosen people’? What are his real beliefs? Or is he just the landlord and developers stooge?

How bizarre the Liberal Party has become, so estranged from the electorate that they had the largest ever landslide against them in the last federal election when their leader, Dutton tried to import the Maga movement into Australia. How dump was that, whatever Australians are, they are certainly not Trumpists.

Today I received a reply from Adrian Schrinner in response to my letter asking Council to light up the Story Bridge in the Palestinian colours as a mark of respect of the suffering of the Palestinian people over the past two years. In refusing my request, he claimed that that the Palestinian flag didn’t meet ‘eligibility requirements’. He went on to say: ” I’m pleased to share that on Tuesday, 14 October 2025, Council assets across Brisbane were lit white to recognise the momentous peace deal in the Middle East and the hostages returning home.” No mention of the 10,000 Palestinian prisoners being tortured in Israeli prisons!

It is real hypocrisy for the Lord Mayor to talk of peace while he is trying to impose penalties on Palestinian activists and their supporters seeking justice for people suffering starvation and genocide at the hands of Israel.

You can help Justice for Palestine activists by donating to the following:
Justice for Palestine Brisbane
BSB: 084034
Account number: 156703212
Ref: BCC Fund

Ian Curr
26 October 2025

Notes

OBLIGATIONS OF ISRAEL IN RELATION TO THE PRESENCE AND ACTIVITIES
OF THE UNITED NATIONS, OTHER INTERNATIONAL ORGANIZATIONS
AND THIRD STATES IN AND IN RELATION TO THE
OCCUPIED PALESTINIAN TERRITORY