German-based Worldwide Demonstration helped coordinate rallies across Australia, with their message amplified by local anti-vaxx and ‘freedom’ influencers.
German-based conspiracy group helped to drive a series of anti-lockdown protests across Australia which saw dozens of people arrested and hundreds fined after violent clashes with police. Coordinated by a loose network of conspiracy-laced groups, including some with links to the far right. While billed as peaceful protests, police said they were surprised by “the level of violence that people were prepared to use”.
Prior to Saturday, word of the protests was spread through a collection of Telegram, Instagram and Facebook posts, often amplified by large anti-vaccination and conspiracy pages that have amassed followings in the tens of thousands during the pandemic. The latest rallies have highlighted the role of a German-based group, named Worldwide Demonstration, which has helped to coordinate protests across the globe, including in various Australian cities.
The group appears to be run out of
Germany by individuals calling themselves “Freie Bürger Kassel”, or the Free Citizens of Kassel. Its main Facebook page is administered by two Germans and a third individual in the United Kingdom. An
investigation by Logically earlier this year revealed that Worldwide Demonstration was behind a wave of 129 coordinated events and protests in March. It also planned similar rallies in May. In Australia, a Melbourne-based group has helped promote protests throughout the pandemic.
The Guardian has previously revealed Harrison McLean, a 24-year-old IT programmer from Wantirna South, had become a key organiser of the protests in that city. McLean has previously denied being involved in the far-right. “I am not Far-Right. I am a Libertarian Populist, and I support Freedom of Speech,” McLean posted under an online username, Dominic, in one forum.
Like many of the organisers, those groups have a significant rightwing bent. In March the Guardian revealed McLean had outlined his
plans to introduce his “freedom” group to more radical political views, while expressing deeply antisemitic opinions.