Human rights advocates warn WA protest laws could threaten the right to assemble

The Cook Government’s proposed anti-protest laws have ignited fierce debate in WA, with fears its crackdown on “hate-fuelled demonstrations” will instead criminalise the right to gather peacefully.

Under the Public Order Legislation Amendment Bill 2026, WA Police would be given expanded powers to refuse a protest permit if it is considered “likely to promote hate”.

Human rights advocates have strongly criticised the proposal, warning it’s an “alarming overreach into basic democratic freedoms”.

“Public protest and demonstrations have a proud history in Western Australia,” said Human Rights Law Centre (HRLC), legal director Sarah Schwartz.

“From First Nations land rights to environmental rights, to women’s right to vote and marriage equality, so many of our rights have been won by protest.

“Instead of scapegoating people peacefully protesting, the Cook Government should work with communities to address the root causes of rising hate and division.”

The WA Government introduced the legislation to Parliament in its first sitting week of 2026, two months after the December 2025 Bondi antisemitic terror attack.

In a statement at the time, Premier Roger Cook said, “Giving WA Police the powers to protect Western Australians from hate-fuelled protests in our streets is central to that commitment and ensuring social cohesion.”

The laws are now before a parliamentary committee, which has until mid-June to scrutinise them and report back to Parliament.

In September 2024, the WA parliament passed laws targeting the display of Nazi hate symbols and the salute.

Premier Cook said this latest Bill would extend the prohibition to “symbols of all organisations that are outlawed under Commonwealth legislation, including flags from terrorist organisations”.

And for the first time, it will also apply to minors.

In its submission to the committee, the HRLC argued it would be more effective to invest in programs and services that address “any social, educational, housing, and health unmet needs of children engaging in this conduct”.

The laws would also ban face coverings that are worn in public to “intimidate or cause apprehension in others, with exemptions applying for health, occupational safety, religious, cultural or artistic purposes”.

The HRLC argued it risked criminalising people who want to protect their privacy and safety, including from surveillance, doxxing and retaliation.

“The proposed measures would mark a significant step in the direction of generalised criminalisation of public protest and political demonstration in Western Australia and risk having a chilling effect,” its submission stated.

Bill Browne, director of the Australia Institute’s Democracy & Accountability Program, said the laws are part of a growing crackdown on protest rights across the country.

“The Cook Labor Government’s anti-protest bill is the latest example of state governments cracking down on free speech and protest rights in Australia,” he said.

Queensland’s LNP Crisafulli Government recently passed its own hate speech legislation, drawing sharp criticism for specifically banning the use of two phrases, “from the river to the sea” and “globalise the intifada”.

“Australia Institute polling research finds that Australians overwhelmingly support the right to peaceful protest,” said Mr Browne.

He said more than two-thirds of respondents (71 per cent) believed that the right should be protected by federal legislation.

However, in a report released in July 2024, the HRLC found there had been 49 laws passed over the last two decades “eroding Australians’ right to protest”.

The HRLC said in its submission that suppressing the right to peacefully protest won’t discourage people from holding and sharing their views.

“People gather in the streets to express deeply held convictions, often in circumstances where they feel their political needs are unrepresented by elected officials.”

“This is part of the ongoing erosion of the right to protest in Australia,” said Ms Schwartz.

“The Cook Government should protect and enshrine the right to protest in Western Australia’s laws, in line with Australia’s obligations under human rights law.”