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  World   Oceania  05 Sep 2020  Anti-lockdown protests erupt in Australia just as cases start to come down

Anti-lockdown protests erupt in Australia just as cases start to come down

AP
Published : Sep 5, 2020, 2:15 pm IST
Updated : Sep 5, 2020, 2:15 pm IST

Four men were arrested and charged with incitement over the so-called 'Freedom Day' protests planned for several Melbourne locations

Police arrest a protester at the Shrine of Remembrance in Melbourne on September 5, 2020 during an anti-lockdown rally protesting the state's strict lockdown laws as a preventive measure against the COVID-19 coronavirus. (AFP)
 Police arrest a protester at the Shrine of Remembrance in Melbourne on September 5, 2020 during an anti-lockdown rally protesting the state's strict lockdown laws as a preventive measure against the COVID-19 coronavirus. (AFP)

Melbourne: Police in Australia’s hardest-hit Victoria state made several arrests among a crowd of about 300 people protesting the lockdown in Melbourne, as the country’s death toll rose to 748.

Victoria reported 11 more deaths and 76 new infections.

The Melbourne restrictions, including a night curfew, were put in place in an attempt to reduce a huge spike in infections and deaths.

Police earlier urged people to adhere to restrictions on community movement. But four men were arrested and charged with incitement over the so-called “Freedom Day” protests planned for several Melbourne locations.

Police, many of them on horseback, later made a number of arrests among protesters, some of them for not wearing masks.

Government officials are expected to announce on Sunday how and when Melbourne and regional Victoria will come out of respective stages of lockdowns.

Tags: melbourne protests, anti-lockdown protests, victoria state