Pro-Palestine protesters have dropped plans to march across Brisbane’s Story Bridge after a court ruled it posed a threat to safety.
Justice for Palestine Magan-djin wanted up to 10,000 people to cross the major bridge on Sunday as part of a national day of action.
But a magistrate backed a police bid to have the march declared unauthorised, removing legal protections for those who took part.
Rally organiser Remah Naji on Friday said the Brisbane Magistrates Court had approved a new route that would instead feature the Victoria Bridge.
“It is true that we wanted to cross Story Bridge for the visibility because of the situation in Gaza and the ongoing genocide that demands visibility,” she said.
“The truth of the matter is we did get visibility without the need to cross the bridge.
“For now we are going to cross Victoria Bridge, crossing the river for a free Palestine.”
The alternative route will proceed through the Brisbane CBD, cross the Victoria Bridge and end in a much larger park than originally proposed.
Police on Friday said the Victoria Bridge option was a well-established route where multiple previous marches had been safely overseen.
“The Queensland Police Service is confident we can facilitate this new proposed route safely and continue support people’s right to protest without posing risk to public safety or extensive disruption,” a police spokesperson said.
Justice for Palestine Magan-djin proposed the rally as part of Sunday’s nationwide day of action billed as the largest pro-Palestine demonstration in Australia’s history.
More than 20 cities and towns, including all capitals, are set to feature to highlight the humanitarian crisis in Gaza.
Chief Magistrate Janelle Brassington ruled on Thursday a march across the Story Bridge would pose a significant risk to public safety.
Acting Assistant Commissioner Rhys Wildman had testified in court he could not manage the risk to protesters while keeping access for emergency services vehicles to cross the six-lane landmark.
Commissioner Wildman said he had offered an alternative “tried and tested” route that involved starting at Queens Gardens in Brisbane’s CBD and using the Victoria Bridge to cross into Musgrave Park.
The same route was proposed by Justice for Palestine Magan-djin on Friday and approved by the court.
Australian Associated Press is the beating heart of Australian news. AAP is Australia’s only independent national newswire and has been delivering accurate, reliable and fast news content to the media industry, government and corporate sector for 85 years. We keep Australia informed.
