Hundreds of demonstrators have gathered below South Australian parliament's upper house to voice opposition to the government's proposed changes to the state's protest laws, which have been labelled by one crossbench MP as "the worst move ever by a South Australian Labor premier".
Current and former Labor MPs were among a crowd of about 200 people in Festival Plaza behind Parliament House, in response to the controversial Summary Offences (Obstruction of Public Places) Amendment Bill.
The bill, which is scheduled for debate in the Legislative Council this afternoon, would leave anyone found guilty of "intentionally or recklessly" causing an obstruction in a public place at risk of up to three months in jail or a $50,000 fine.
Today's rally point represented a departure from the traditional protest site on parliament's front steps, and was deliberately in earshot of MPs inside, with protesters chanting "kill the bill" to the sound of drums and sirens.
Crossbench MPs from the Greens and SA Best were in attendance, as was Labor MLC Irene Pnevmatikos, and former long-term Labor MP Steph Key addressed the crowd.
Representatives from civil society groups and unions, including the South Australian Council of Social Service, Conservation Council SA and SA Ambulance Employees Association also gave speeches.
"We've got so many people here today — we've got so many cross-sections of different community groups," Amnesty International SA president Adelaide Xerri said.
"We're right outside Parliament House and we actually want the Labor members of caucus who are meeting upstairs to hear us and to respond, [because] this is an appalling attack on our fundamental rights of freedom of assembly," Conservation Council chief executive Craig Wilkins said.
The bill, which passed the lower house a fortnight ago, was introduced with the backing of Premier Peter Malinauskas in response to highly disruptive Extinction Rebellion protests in the heart of Adelaide.
"This is the worst — the worst — move ever by a South Australian Labor premier," SA Best MP Connie Bonaros, who attended today's rally, said.
"Mali better take a good hard look at what he's done today, because this is his rank and file out here.
"I'm hoping that this afternoon in parliament, common sense will prevail and that he'll either kill this bill or rein back some of the terrible measures."
Former MP and disability care advocate Kelly Vincent said the bill was being ushered through both chambers without adequate opportunity for consultation and debate "about what this means for our right to protest".
"South Australia has always been a leader in human rights and that's only been achieved through protest, so I really don't want to see that diminished," she said.
Earlier today, SA Unions Secretary Dale Beasley told ABC Radio Adelaide's Stacey Lee and David Bevan that, despite passing the lower house in "22 minutes flat", the bill's ramifications were potentially far-reaching.
"These laws could be used on all sorts of activity, from people handing out pamphlets in Rundle Mall to protesting on the footpath outside state parliament all the way through to picketing a worksite in the wake of a workplace death," he said.
"What we are asking for is for the government to slow down."
Ms Pnevmatikos told the ABC she attended Tuesday's protest to hear people's concerns about how the new laws will affect them.
She said voting and protesting are "essential elements" of a democratic society.
"Protest and the right to vote are two cornerstones of democracy," Ms Pnevmatikos said.
"We have a process within our party. There was discussion about the issue. There were varying views expressed. The reality is that I did not hold a majority view."
'No change' to fundamental rights, premier says
Despite the opposition from its own side of politics, the government has doubled down on its commitment to turn the legislation into law.
"We're open-minded to potentially looking at a few of the amendments in the upper house process, just as long as it preserves the government realising our objectives because there is a problem that needs to be fixed here," Mr Malinauskas told ABC Radio Adelaide.
"All the government is seeking to do is address the issue of people who with impunity repeatedly break the law, crowdfund the fine so they effectively don't have to pay it, and then can shut down the city in an unreasonable way.
"We want to provide courts the ability to administer more than just a $750 fine."
Mr Malinauskas adamantly rejected suggestions the legislation "is somehow seeking to curtail the right or ability for people to protest".
"The law that governs people's ability to protest in South Australia is the Public Assemblies Act 1972," he said.
"[It] explicitly confers the right on people to be able to protest, including obstructing the streets, including to demonstrate, disrupt — all lawfully.
"There is no change to any of that."
When asked for his opinion about the proposed changes, Prime Minister Anthony Albanese said he had "every faith that Peter Malinauskas will act responsibly".
"I have marched many a time, as have I'm sure most members of political parties, it's important that people be able to express their views," he told ABC Radio Adelaide.
"[But] when I see depictions of people throwing food and paint and various things, smearing great works of art for example, I just shake my head and think, 'I'm not quite sure how that assists the cause which the advocates are pushing'.
"It is of course important that people be able to express their views, but it's important at the same time that they don't endanger emergency service personnel, that they don't disrupt in a way that completely alienates people from their causes."
