'Freedom' protestors demand audience with PM at National Press Club

Anti-vaccine and mask mandate protestors swarmed around the National Press Club building in Barton today after hearing that Prime Minister Scott Morrison would make his first address of the year.

The ‘Convoy to Canberra’ began with a meagre number of protestors in a car park in Reconciliation Place on Monday morning (31 January) before a group 800-strong moved on Parliament House yesterday afternoon.

Protestors settled in makeshift camps throughout the National Triangle overnight and began surrounding the National Press Club this morning, waving Australian flags and demanding the Prime Minister speak to them.

The group then began heading towards Parliament House in preparation for a rally on the lawn at 2 pm, where former QANTAS pilot Graham Hood spoke to the crowd. Mr Hood was one of the airline’s longest serving employees before he resigned last year over the vaccine requirement.

The Prime Minister arrived at the National Press Club this morning without incident. He began his address at 12:30 pm by acknowledging that the country’s way of life had been turned upside down by COVID-19.

“For so many Australians, I know it has been exhausting, physically and emotionally,” he said.

“I understand and acknowledge the frustration, especially the way the pandemic has panned out. You’ve had to put up with a lot. It’s fair enough this disappointment leads you to ask, ‘Couldn’t you have done more?'”

He says the government has strived to satisfy the two objectives of saving lives and livelihoods throughout the pandemic and that health mandates have not “suspended the Australian constitution”.

“We must respect the virus, but we must not live in fear of it.”

The rally comprises several factions, including the so-called Sovereign Citizens movement, which has been linked to the fire at Old Parliament House on 30 December. Others are touting conspiracy theories regarding private ownership of the Australian Government and “depopulation”.

The official position is stated on their Facebook page and reads that the protest is “for the people who want their lives back”.

A GoFundMe page associated with the convoy was frozen yesterday after racking up about $160,000 in donations over four days. The anonymous organiser, operating under the name ‘Ironbark Thunderbolt’, won’t be able to access the funds until GoFundMe is provided with a detailed spending plan.

However, it continues to gather funds and now stands at more than $175,000. The goal is $300,000.

The group’s official Facebook page has also garnered close to 160,000 followers.

The convoy is inspired by similar action in Canada and driven primarily by the effect of COVID-19 restrictions and isolation requirements on the trucking industry. Action in Canberra, however, primarily involves lighter vehicles.

Shelly Boyle drove from Tweed Heads in her campervan to join the convoy. She says there aren’t many trucks in the protests as few trucks are privately owned in Australia and instead belong to companies.

“They have GPS tracking and other technologies that mean drivers can’t just take them where they want.”

Shelly is a primary school teacher and says she lost her job earlier this year when she refused to take the jab. She is also a keen surfer.

“I just want to go to the beach,” she told Region Media yesterday.

“What sort of country are we if we can’t even do that?”

Others spoke about job losses due to vaccine mandates and adverse reactions to the COVID-19 vaccine.

The arrival of the convoy yesterday coincided with an announcement from the ACT Government that all low-level COVID-19 restrictions, including density limits, the mask mandate and the requirement to be seated while eating and drinking in public venues, will remain in place until 25 February.

Similar restrictions apply in NSW.

Chief Minister Andrew Barr said yesterday that increased movement and activity across the community is expected in the coming weeks as schools reopen and many workers return to the office.

“The extension of these measures is a sensible step to mitigate virus transmission during a period of increased activity,” Mr Barr said.

More cars and trucks are expected to roll in from Victoria, South Australia, and Western Australia over the coming days. Protestors maintain they will stay in position until they “take back the country”.

Road access to Parliament House is closed and police are directing traffic around State Circle. Police officers remain in place at Parliament House.

Parliament sits for the first time this year next Tuesday (8 February).