Encouraged by Liberal premier Gladys Berejiklian and Prime Minister Scott Morrison, the New South Wales police have used COVID-19 as cover to dramatically escalate attacks on the right to protest.

Small bands of peaceful protesters, vastly outnumbered by riot police, were dispersed by officers on horseback and sonic crowd control weapons. Veteran activists were singled out and visited by police in their own homes or targeted at demonstrations and subjected to intimidation, arrests, and fines. Courts banned safe, responsible, socially distanced protests while politicians and the media vilified protesters. All the while, mass sporting events and luxury cruises have been given a free pass by the same authorities.

These are just some of the scenes from the past few months in Sydney and elsewhere in NSW. It’s part of a long-term push to crack down on dissent. COVID-19 infection rates remain relatively low in Sydney. No cases have been traced to protests, either in NSW or elsewhere. Despite this, Scott Morrison has used the pandemic as a pretext for what amounts to a ban on public protest.