Four protesters who scaled Parliament House to hang pro-Palestine banners have been sentenced for actions previously condemned by the Prime Minister.
Will Hugh Thomas Egan-Griffiths, 28, Barry Herbert Jessup, 68, Anthony Brinton, 30, and Thea Turnball, 30, all admitted to trespassing on Commonwealth premises.
Magistrate Jane Campbell accepted the foursome had trespassed onto the glass ceiling of Parliament House's front entrance in July to protest Israel's military operation.
"I do accept you felt compelled by your own conscious to take the action that you did," she told one protester.
But Ms Campbell made clear to each of them why they protested was "not a relevant factor" in her decisions.
"The court must remain completely impartial as to what is the purpose of the protest. The court can't be seen to be supporting or not supporting a particular protest," she said.
"But I accept a protest is a particularly important part of our democracy."
However, the magistrate noted, those protests had to be carried out lawfully.
With no criminal history, Egan-Griffiths, Brinton and Turnball all walked away from the proceedings with non-conviction orders.
"It feels as if the government hasn't listened to us," Egan-Griffiths said, noting the group had aimed to not endanger anyone or cause harm during the peaceful protest.
Brinton said he took the actions "with a deep held belief in ethics and justice".
Jessup, whose criminal history included convictions for protest-related trespasses in Victoria and South Australia, was convicted for the incident and handed the equivalent of a 12-month good behaviour order.
"I decided to take the action of creating a banner implying that potentially war crimes were being committed and the Australian government was enabling the crimes to happen," Jessup said.
Addressing Parliament in July following the protest, Prime Minister Anthony Albanese said: "Those responsible should feel the full force of the law."
"Peaceful protest has an important place in our society, but this was not a peaceful protest," he said.
"These actions have done absolutely nothing to advance any cause, indeed they have hurt the cause that those engaged in this reckless activity believe they are advancing."
Opposition Leader Peter Dutton also blasted the actions and described one of the banners as anti-Semitic.
"From the river to the sea, Palestine will be free," that particular banner read.
The protesters were reportedly heard chanting "we're calling to end to Australia's complicity in war crimes" atop the iconic building, and "the whole damn government - blood on your hands" before being escorted down.
They did not receive fines for their actions. Egan-Griffiths, Jessup, Brinton and Turnball still face two-year bans from the Parliament precinct.
