NSW Police unfairly targeting football fans
In the lead-up to the start of the A-League season in October, Western Sydney Wanderers football club has been handed a swath of proposed draconian measures against “active supporters” that will severely hamper the atmosphere and the freedoms of fans.
NSW Police handed the team, and active support group the Red and Black Bloc, a list of restrictions, including a ban on the traditional pre-game march, a ban on banners and flags and a ban on the raising of arms above head height to clap (because the police deem that aggressive behaviour).
If there are breaches of the new protocols, the police have threatened to hold up or stop games.
The restrictions also include the continued presence of the police Operation Support Group riot squad, which last season pepper-sprayed a number of fans, including a 13-year-old boy who was hospitalised as a result.
Despite media and police accusations of anti-social behaviour by fans, it has consistently been the NSW Police that have instigated aggression against fans at the behest of the Football Federation of Australia, which use images and footage of active fans to promote the game but over a number of seasons has worked with police to restrict the freedoms and movement of fans. The federation even hired undercover anti-terror private security firm Hatamoto to spy on fans and hand out bans for spurious reasons.
The Red and Black Bloc has vowed to defy the new restrictions and has attracted support from rival supporter groups because restrictions against one group of fans are often instituted against those of other clubs.
