Trigger-happy police officers have been accused of shooting off part of a news photographer’s ear and attacking media during wild “peace” protests in Melbourne.
Daily Mail Australia correspondent in Melbourne, Wayne Flower, was among media representatives shot by police during the protests.
Footage captured by Flower seconds before he was shot with a gas-filled rubber bullet showed several police officers raising their guns and pointing them in his direction.
The allegations are now among several that will trigger compensation claims as law firms prepare to take legal action against Victoria Police.
Media representatives, many of them with multiple cameras, had positioned themselves front and center of the protest as police appeared to fire non-lethal munitions at or around them.
A photographer who provides images to pro-Palestinian groups says he lost part of his ear and pierced an eardrum after police shot him with a rubber bullet during the protest.
The 33-year-old photographer, who provides images for Free Palestine Melbourne and Free Palestine Coalition Naarm, was injured at around 10am on Wednesday, almost exactly at the same time as Flower was shot.
Jeremy King, lead solicitor and head of police misconduct at Robinson Gill, told the ABC that several people had contacted him with injuries requiring “significant medical attention”.
Guns drawn: Channel 7 fan Paul Dowsley was lucky not to be shot as several police officers can be seen in the background aiming behind him.
“We’ve had a few investigations involving the use of rubber bullets and excessive force by police where people have suffered what appear to be quite nasty injuries,” he said.
“We have made many complaints against Victoria Police in the past regarding their harsh treatment of protesters and the media, so we are very familiar with these types of issues.”
It is understood that media representatives injured at Clarendon Street will be among those joining the legal action.
Footage obtained by Daily Mail Australia revealed the journalists, who were wearing identification lanyards, holding heavy video cameras and carrying cameras, were threatened by baton-wielding officers during the police charge.
In one video, Flower, who was standing among a group of journalists at the time, was forced to his knees as an officer wearing a New South Wales police uniform attacked him with a baton raised above his head.
A Victoria Police spokesman said officers “used proportionate and lawful force” in response to the crowd and violent individuals.
“No one was attacked and media present were asked on numerous occasions to ensure they stayed away and did not get in the way of the dynamic situation,” the spokesman said.
‘Force was only used in response to violence displayed by individuals in the crowd to deter further crime.’
Daily Mail Australia correspondent Wayne Flower in Melbourne had been filming police with his phone when he was shot.
Bullet containing chilli powder left an ugly bruise after exploding in Flower
Flower, who has covered Melbourne crime for several major news organisations during his 25 years on the job, said police appeared to have “lost their cool”.
“I was shot within minutes of getting there,” he said. “It seemed like they shot anyone they didn’t like.”
“I repeatedly told them I was a journalist after I was shot, but they still approached us as if we were protesting. It’s unlike anything I’ve ever witnessed before, even during Covid-19 protests.”
The news photographer who was shot by police told The Age that He was about 25 metres from a line of police that had blocked Spencer Street.
His last photo before the incident reveals that more than 20 protesters, journalists and other photographers were between him and the police when the rubber bullet was fired.
“I felt like I had been hit by a car, I didn’t see it coming,” he said. The age.
“I had a sharp pain and a buzzing in my head. I put my hand to my ear and felt a sharp pain. I realized there was blood and that I had lost part of my ear.”
Police shoot protester at point-blank range who is also sprayed with OC foam
A New South Wales police officer approaches Flower with a baton during a charge. Flower was standing with news cameramen and wearing a press badge.
The officer had her eyes on the media while her colleagues worried about the protesters.
Photographer Luis Ascui, who was sprayed directly in the eyes by police while photographing a protest in September 2021, told the Daily Mail that Australian police desperately needed to work with media organisations to ensure the safety of media representatives doing their jobs.
Ascui, who has worked in war zones around the world, said it was only in Australia that he felt threatened by police.
“Enough is enough. What will happen next time? Only here in Australia are working journalists targeted by police,” he said.
“Media bosses need to address this issue because we need to be able to cover these jobs without being targeted.”
Ascui, who emerged unscathed from last week’s protests, was carrying three cameras and a press badge when he was pepper-sprayed in 2021.
Represented by King, he settled a legal claim with Victoria Police out of court.
