“Our rally continued. It was a real festival of resistance, celebrating the incredible sacrifice that refugees have made with 100 days of round-the-clock encampment.
Victoria Police confirmed there were no arrests or reported injuries at Tuesday night’s event, which was attended by an estimated 300 refugee protesters. A police spokeswoman said: “It is understood a group of about 20 people attended the rally just before 6pm.
“Officers formed a line to separate the two groups before they were forced to deploy OC spray.
“Police will assess the circumstances surrounding the demonstration and review vision of the incident and people involved.”
The refugees and their supporters have been steadfast in their encampment, demanding the Labor government put an end to their “limbo”.
The refugees came to Australia between 2009 and 2013 when Labor was last in power, and they were denied permanent visas before they were put into a fast-track process under the Coalition, Tamil Refugee Council spokesperson Aran Mylvaganam said.
“They’ve been in this state of limbo for more than 12 years,” he said.
“From the day we started the encampment, the refugees brought so much energy to the campaign. They’re really desperate for a resolution.
“When the Nazis turned up, there was a bit of disruption, but they were chased away, the energy was maintained, and people continued on with the rally.
“[But] it’s obviously a horrifying experience for a lot of refugees who’ve fled similar sort of issues in their homeland … and they are fighting for their basic rights.”
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While it was the third time refugee protesters were confronted by neo-Nazis in the 100 days, they were not spared other racist attacks through that time, Mylvaganam said.
“My hand was dislocated as a result of a racist attack earlier in the encampment,” Mylvaganam said.
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