Thousands in Australia march against mass immigration

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Thousands of Australians turned out for anti-immigration rallies across the country yesterday — demonstrations that the federal government has slammed as hateful and linked to neo-Nazi groups.

The “March for Australia” rallies were staged in Sydney, Melbourne and other cities, with organisers claiming mass migration is putting pressure on housing, wages, hospitals, infrastructure and even water supply. On social media, the group said they were doing “what mainstream politicians never have the courage to do: demand an end to mass immigration.”

But the Labor government was quick to push back. Senior minister Murray Watt told the rallies were not about unity. “We don’t support rallies like this that are about spreading hate and dividing our community,” he said, adding that neo-Nazi groups were behind the events.

Australia has one of the world’s most multicultural populations - half of all residents are either born overseas or have at least one parent born abroad. Authorities say that alongside this diversity, there’s also been a worrying rise in far-right extremism, including a string of antisemitic incidents since the Gaza war began last year. That’s led to new laws banning Nazi salutes and extremist symbols.

In Sydney, crowds of between 5,000 and 8,000 people gathered draped in Australian flags, not far from the Sydney Marathon route where 35,000 runners were pounding the streets. Police deployed hundreds of officers but said the rally ended without major incident. Nearby, a counter-rally organised by the Refugee Action Coalition drew hundreds of people, with organisers saying their turnout showed “the depth of disgust at the far-right agenda.”

In Melbourne, riot police were called in and pepper spray was reportedly used on protesters, while in Townsville, maverick MP Bob Katter made an appearance and was “swarmed by supporters,” according to local media.

Back in Sydney, protester Glenn Allchin summed up his concerns in simple terms: “It’s about our country bursting at the seams. Our kids are struggling to get homes, hospitals have seven-hour waits, and our roads can’t cope - yet the government keeps bringing more people in.”

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