Jacinta Collins (Victoria, Australian Labor Party, Parliamentary Secretary for School Education and Workplace Relations) Share this | Hansard source

The government does not believe the Senate should condemn the press, even the Green Left Weekly, for views expressed in its pages. It is self-evident that all senators support forms of democratic expression. The chamber itself is the embodiment of our democracy. The Prime Minister made the government's views about the protest activity clear on the weekend: violent protest is never justified. Further action is in the hands of the New South Wales police and, if warranted, the courts.