The Activist Rights Manual is designed to help activists change the world. It is focused on activism in Sydney, Australia.
This Manual is a response to an increasing tendency to police protests in an authoritarian manner, which can infringe important human rights.
It is intended for a non-legal audience, yet it should also be of assistance to lawyers who have an interest in this area of law.
One strength of the Manual is that it will be continually updated as legal changes occur, as well as by collecting information from activists on what happens in reality. This includes sentences received as they are handed down by the courts.
The Manual welcomes contributions from activists who can update areas of policing practice, as well as lawyers and law students who wish to expand or add new sections. We are keen to add sections on environmental protests.
Organisers of events may want to first read the sections on giving police notice under the Notice of Intention procedure and public order law and public order practice. The other sections are relevant to individuals and organisers. Lawyers may want to consult common criminal offences, as this section will be updated with recent sentences for public order offences as they become known.
Contact Dale Mills at dalemills (at) cantab.net for queries.
The Activist Rights Manual is for educational purposes only and is not a substitute for legal advice specific to your circumstances. For legal advice, see the contacts on the Going to court page. This Manual discusses the law in New South Wales, Australia. We are happy to link to similar sites around the world.
This site was last updated in June 2009.
This website is a project of Redfern Legal Centre, a non-profit community legal centre dedicated to promoting social justice and human rights. Funding was given by the Law and Justice Foundation of NSW. Any opinions endorsed on this website are not necessarily endorsed by either organisation. This site does not necessarily endorse all the information on linked third-party websites.
