Police have arrested scores of protesters who were camped out on the grounds of New Zealand’s parliament on the third day of a convoy protest against coronavirus mandates.
Thursday’s arrests came after parliament speaker Trevor Mallard took the rare step of closing the grounds.
By 8pm, police had arrested more than 120 people and had charged many of them with trespassing or obstruction.
The protest began on Tuesday after more than 1,000 people driving cars and trucks converged on parliament in a convoy inspired by protests in Canada and elsewhere.
Among the protesters’ grievances is the requirement in New Zealand that certain workers get vaccinated against Covid-19, including teachers, doctors, nurses, police and military personnel.
Many New Zealanders have grown weary of the strict restrictions and border closure the country imposed to limit the spread of the virus, which have enabled it to escape the worst of the pandemic with just 53 virus deaths reported among its population of 5 million.
More than 100 extra officers were drafted in from other parts of the country as the protest continues. Officers seemed prepared to wait it out as officers formed a line and ordered people to leave but only very slowly advanced on them.
Police wore protective vests but did not don riot gear or carry guns.
Superintendent Corrie Parnell, the Wellington district commander, said: “Police have appealed repeatedly to protestors to leave the grounds and have begun evicting people from the precinct,”
“While police acknowledge people’s right to protest, this needs to be conducted in a way that does not unfairly impact on the wider public.”
The number of protesters had dwindled to a couple of hundred by Thursday. Some of the protesters’ vehicles remained parked in the middle of streets around parliament, forcing some street closures. The National Library and many cafes and bars in the area closed their doors while the protest played out.
Parliament’s grounds are often the site of peaceful protests, although mass campouts are unusual.
Typically at least some politicians will come out to listen to the concerns of protesters, but politicians reconvening at parliament after a summer break appeared to be in rare unison by not acknowledging the protesters, who Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern said were not representative of New Zealanders.
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Ms Ardern last week said the country would end its quarantine requirements for incoming travellers in stages as it reopened its borders.
With about 77 per cent of New Zealanders vaccinated, Ms Ardern has also promised she will not impose more lockdowns.
Health officials have been reporting about 200 new virus cases each day as an outbreak of the Omicron variant grows. Sixteen people are currently hospitalised because of the virus.
