Police fury as riot cops sidelined in protest chaos
The move to have riot police guard Parliament House while rank and file officers were pelted with rocks and trampled on the protest frontline has sparked widespread anger in the force.
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Specialist riot police guarded Parliament House and other locations while rank and file members, including new recruits, were attacked and trampled by a mob of violent protesters in Richmond on Saturday.
The decision not to deploy highly equipped and trained Public Order Response Team (PORT) members to the frontline of the riotous rally has sparked widespread anger among members of the force.
Police Association boss Wayne Gatt is expected to shortly meet with members of Victoria Police Force Command to discuss the tactics of the day and what must happen next time protesters unleash violence on the streets of Melbourne.
Ten officers were injured during the rally, which involved frontline members being pelted with rocks, bottles and traffic cones.
Others were assaulted in a stampede of protesters, who came with violence in mind.
The force has come under scrutiny after sending police with only basic equipment to the frontline of the most volatile protest locations, while keeping specialist riot police at other locations, including Parliament House, which was not targeted by demonstrators.
The Herald Sun understands that almost 100 PORT officers were assigned to Saturday’s non-frontline operation.
A police officer who attended the protest said the decision not to deploy PORT members to the frontline was “f--ked”.
“A boss in command refused to deploy PORT to help us in Richmond while we were getting flogged because they had been reserved to guard Parliament House ‘just in case’,” he said.
“The Public Order Response Team literally sitting in their cars with a direction they are not to cross the divisional border into Richmond and not to get out of their vehicles is f--ked.”
The force will also be asked to explain why it sent some of the least experienced police to the rally.
About 50 police recruits who graduated from the academy on Friday were called in to cover the protest.
Both the force and union were flooded with messages from police angry over the protest tactics.
In a message sent to police members, the union vowed to meet with Force Command this week to ensure the next protest is better managed.
“We have received significant feedback from GD and specialist members directly involved in the operation and from those who witnessed some of the confronting scenes in the media,” the union wrote.
“This feedback includes operational and safety considerations related to the deployment, such as training, PPE and resources available.”
“TPAV has spoken to members of Executive Command to raise your concerns and seek an opportunity to quickly review circumstances that led to the injury of our members. This has been agreed and will continue over coming days.”
Members of the public order response team have special training in dealing with volatile events and are usually deployed as part of the frontline response.
They have access to better equipment than station based members, including pellet guns which were deployed to subdue violent demonstrators at the anti-lockdown rally in the CBD in August.
Protecting Parliament House is expected to have been a priority for police, especially given the violent scene that unfolded at Capitol Hill in Washington in January.
The operation to stop the protest was the biggest the force has conducted in 20 years, with 2000 police prepared to take to the streets to stop the clash feared to become a Covid-19 superspreader.
The location was changed from the CBD to Richmond at the last minute by protest organisers wary of the heavily policed response.
Victoria Police does not comment on staffing or tactics for operational reasons.
But a spokeswoman said: “Victoria Police will review its operational response to Saturday’s protest as per standard procedure.
“Member safety is always a priority and Victoria Police is engaging with the workforce to understand any concerns.”
WOMAN SPRAYED IN FACE URGED TO HELP PROBE
Police have urged a woman who was allegedly knocked to the ground and had capsicum sprayed in her face by officers during a wild weekend protest to come forward.
The incident, along with the spraying of a press photographer, is now the subject of an internal investigation.
There has been some fierce criticism of the treatment of the woman, which came as police moved towards a group of anti-lockdown demonstrators in Richmond.
A complaint about her treatment has been received from a third party but she has not come forward.
A Victoria Police spokeswoman said investigators wanted to hear from the woman, who was wearing a red top and was draped in what appeared to be an Australian flag.
“We’re reviewing it, regardless. We urge her to come forward,” the spokeswoman said.
It is unclear why the woman, who appeared shaken by the experience, has not contacted police.
One possibility is that she is concerned about being fined for breaching chief health officer directives by being at the rally.
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