A disgrace Melbourne protesters condemned for gathering at Shrine of Remembrance

Chanting "every day", hundreds of mostly men without masks, some still wearing high-visibility clothing like in days earlier, marched through the city to the Shrine of Remembrance war memorial on St Kilda Road. 

People are now marching on the Shrine of Remembrance - a war memorial in Victoria.

Huge crowds on a day the state has recorded 628 local coronavirus cases and three deaths. pic.twitter.com/whUZKnGvo2

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The Returned & Services League (RSL) Victoria condemned those who it says effectively occupied the Shrine, saying the site is "sacred, not a space of protest". 

"Under no circumstances, ever, should the Shrine be a place of protest," it said in a statement on Wednesday afternoon. 

"If any individuals or groups choose to express their political views, positions or ideological theories in the grounds of the Shrine at any time, they are completely disrespecting the sanctity of this time-honoured space."

RSL Australia President Greg Melick called the protesters' actions a "disgrace to the nation" and said they "must be condemned in the strongest manner."  

“The Shrine of Remembrance honours those who have served and made the ultimate sacrifice for their country and the protesters’ actions are nothing short of desecration of this revered site,” he said. 

“Those involved in this lawless mob not only dishonour the men and women who fought and died for our country, they shame themselves, their families and all those involved in the protest."

Riot police move protesters on at the Shrine of Remembrance in Melbourne on 22 September, 2021. Source: AAP

Demonstrators, mostly men dressed in hi-vis workwear, have taken to the streets in the last three days voicing their distrust in the COVID-19 vaccine and anger at the state government.

While some attendees have been there to protest mandatory vaccinations for the construction industry, authorities say the demonstrators are not all union members or construction workers.

“We have seen groups that contain people from the construction industry but they contain a range of other people - people are being encouraged to put on high-vis gear, to put on workwear, to come in under the cover of a crowd,” Victoria Police Chief Commissioner Shane Patton said on Wednesday morning.

CFMEU Victorian construction secretary John Setka has previously blamed "neo-Nazis and right-wing extremists" for hijacking the events.

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Heavily armed police surrounded the Shrine on Wednesday afternoon, with officers slowing moving in on the mob, reportedly making arrests. 

The stand-off lasted for more than three hours as police tried to negotiate with protesters to peacefully exit via St Kilda Road.

By 4:30pm, some of the mob started to disperse but dozens remained behind and became rowdy before police fired what appeared to be rubber bullets.

Flares were thrown in retaliation as the riot squad took control of the site and cleared the crowd.

Victoria Police has been granted temporary restricted airspace over Melbourne CBD by Australia's Civil Aviation Safety Authority, in the interest of public safety.

It has grounded all aircraft, including news choppers.

Police are also permitted to use crowd control force against anyone trying to repeat the seven-hour "cat and mouse" game seen on Tuesday, when a violent mob of thousands brought Melbourne and the West Gate Bridge to a standstill. At one stage, police fired rubber bullets and smoke rounds to keep them under control.

Victoria Police arrested 62 protesters, some for assaulting police, but most for breaching public health orders.

"I implore you to stay home," Mr Patton said in a press conference on Tuesday night. "Our tactics tomorrow will be different."

Daniel Andrews condemns demonstrations as Melbourne braces for more protests

Fronting another press confeence on Wednesday, he added: “I’m not going to talk about the tactics we’ll deploy today but I’d be very surprised if you see any cat and mouse games today.”

Police Minister Lisa Neville called for the "thugs" to stay away from the city.

"If you're thinking about coming into the city today to cause violence and harm, just know that Victoria Police will deploy whatever tactics they need to in order to ensure that you are held accountable," she said.

Victorian Police Chief Commissioner Shane Patton Source: AAP

'There for a fight'

Premier Daniel Andrews has launched a strident defence of construction workers, saying the people who have been turning up to "riot" were “there for a fight”. 

“I have met hundreds and thousands of builders, hundreds and thousands of tradies who build this state … they're fine people, hardworking people. What we saw yesterday is an insult, an insult, to the vast, vast majority of tradies or people in the building industry who are not about wrecking, they're about building,” he said on Wednesday morning.

“They did not reflect and should not be seen to reflect an entire industry. That would be unfair. That would be wrong.”

The state government has shut down the construction industry for two weeks in metropolitan Melbourne, City of Ballarat, City of Greater Geelong, Surf Coast Shire and Mitchell Shire.

Mr Andrews said he was “gutted” to shut the industry for two weeks, but the move was forced due to the high number of COVID-19 cases in the sector.

“There are more coronavirus cases in construction than there are in aged care, more cases of coronavirus in the construction sector than there are patients with coronavirus in hospital across the whole hospital system,” he said.

Victorian Premier Daniel Andrews looks on during a press conference in Melbourne. Source: AAP

Mr Andrews said nearly 90,000 people were vaccinated on Tuesday.

“The real demonstration yesterday was the demonstration of a state going and getting vaccinated,” he said.

“Vaccination is our pathway out of this.”

The ambulance union on Tuesday evening pleaded with protesters to think of others.

"The fight against COVID-19 is not in the street. For our health workers the fight is very real, very exhausting, very painful and very dangerous," the union said in a statement.

"You are thinking of yourself only. There has never been a more important time to match the selflessness of health workers, with your own."

Victoria on Wednesday reported 628 new COVID-19 cases - its highest daily tally in the current outbreak - and three deaths.

With AAP.

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