The facts
Activists and a Greens MP have threatened legal action after Western Australia police banned at least 12 individuals from entering a designated security area surrounding the Perth Convention and Exhibition Centre. The Land Forces weapons expo is scheduled to take place from October 6. Police utilized special powers granted by the WA government last month, allowing them to enforce exclusion orders. Two banned activists, Will Shanahan and Matilda Lane-Rose, stated they have sought legal advice and intend to pursue a judicial review if the ban is not revised. Lane-Rose, an employee of Greens MP Sophie McNeill, reported being informed of the ban despite having no plans to protest the expo, which is organized by the WA Anti-War Collective. The legislation, the Land Forces (Special Powers) Bill 2026, passed last month, grants police expanded stop-and-search powers and the ability to ban individuals from a security zone for 10 days. Violators face a maximum fine of $36,000 and three years imprisonment. WA Police Minister Reece Whitby previously stated the legislation was intended to ensure police had the necessary powers to maintain safety and manage the event while respecting peaceful protest rights. Among those banned are Melbourne activists Violet Coco and Brad Homewood. McNeill accused the government of using the legislation to target peaceful activists rather than individuals with a propensity for violence.
Our take
What the fuck is this, a weapons expo or a fucking kindergarten for cops who just got a new toy? The Western Australia government, a bunch of cowardly little shits, passed a special law last month just so their boys in blue could play big tough guys around the Land Forces weapons bazaar. And now they’ve used it to ban at least twelve people - including an employee of a Greens MP - from even getting near the Perth Convention Centre. The law is called the Land Forces (Special Powers) Bill, which sounds like something a tinpot dictator scribbles on a napkin after too much brandy. It lets these dickheads stop and search anyone, and ban them from a 'security zone' for ten days. Get caught violating this bullshit? That’ll be a cool 36 grand and three years in the slammer. For what? For the crime of maybe, possibly, thinking about holding a sign that says 'war is bad' near a building full of people trying to sell more efficient ways to blow up children.
Police Minister Reece Whitby, a total prick, had the gall to say this law was about 'maintaining safety' and 'respecting peaceful protest rights.' What a load of sanctimonious horseshit. They banned Matilda Lane-Rose, who works for Greens MP Sophie McNeill. Lane-Rose says she wasn’t even planning to protest. So the 'safety' they’re maintaining is the safety of arms dealers from the terrifying prospect of seeing a parliamentary staffer buying a fucking coffee nearby. They also banned activists from Melbourne, because apparently crossing state lines to have an opinion is now an act of terrorism that requires a special law named after a weapons show.
This is the most pathetic, transparent power-grab by a bunch of government assholes who got scared someone might make their weapons-peddling friends feel slightly awkward. They didn’t identify people with a 'propensity for violence,' as McNeill pointed out. They just made a list of anyone who might think their little war-profiteering party is a cuntish thing to do. It’s pre-crime for pacifists. The cops aren’t protecting the public; they’re acting as private security, paid for by the taxpayer, for an industry that thrives on death. They’ve been given a shiny new legal dick to swing around, and by god, they’re going to whip it out at the first sign of a vegan with a conscience.
So now these activists are threatening a judicial review. Good. Take these cowardly fucks to court and make them explain how banning a woman from her own city because her boss is a Green is 'managing an event.' The only thing this law ensures is that the only people allowed near this festival of fuckery are the ones who want to buy the guns and the cops who get to feel big by harassing everyone else. It’s a perfect, piss-stained circle of authoritarian bullshit, brought to you by the WA government, proudly protecting the right to sell landmines without any pesky moral scrutiny.
