Warning: This item contains strong language
TRANSCRIPT
“The group of Nazis started to sort of push them, and then it got pretty ugly. A lot of people got smashed on the curb. And so there's quite a few of head injuries and concussions, and there's definitely a couple of broken bones.”
That's Nathalie Farah, an eyewitness to attacks on a significant Aboriginal site known as Camp Sovereignty.
She says it started on Sunday morning.
“Before the March for Australia started, a small group of neo-Nazis walked through camp, and they were headed by Thomas Sewell.”
He's a proud and prominent neo-Nazi, who was at the forefront of the city's anti-immigration demonstrations.
Nathalie says he was asked to leave when he threatened to extinguish the sacred fire - and that he did, but not before warning a larger group from the National Network might be back later.
“They were gathering nearby camp, that's where they had their cars parked. That's actually where they changed their clothes from civilian clothing to the full black. So they gathered just at the base of the hill, the camp is actually on top of the hill, so we can see them gathered there, and we were a little bit scared.”
A group of people from Camp Sovereignty went down the hill to keep guard.
Nathalie says they were badly outnumbered, and when the violence started, several people were bashed to the point of being hospitalised.
“So that happened in the morning, that's before 10:30 AM. So the police were involved in that. The police used pepper spray to break up that fight, and they escorted the neo-Nazis to do the tram stop where they took a tram to go into the city for the march.”
Those that weren't injured stayed at the camp - a significant place for Aboriginal people that was initially set up to act as a hub for Aboriginal protest movements during the2006 Commonwealth Games.
Gunnai, Gunditjmara and Djab Wurrung Senator Lidia Thorpe explains how the camp was established.
“We held a protest, which I was a part of. I was in front of with my mother, actually, and, you know, Camp Sovereignty was where we gathered to share stories, to tell the truth about what's going on here and to inform our international visitors of the truth about you know what, we were still dealing with as a people, death in custody, child removals, all of the effects of genocide, if you like.”
After some time unattended, Uncle Robbie Thorpe restarted the camp after Invasion Day protests in 2024, reinstating its role as an important gathering place.
“It's also where there are remains of 38 nations. There's quite a significant burial remains of those nations. And that means it's a sacred spiritual place for us.”
She says the camp is about yarning, peace, and finding ways to move forward together.
But speaking to a crowd of thousands in front of Victoria's parliament on Sunday, Thomas Sewell shared a message of conflict.
“When you're in a fight with people who hate this country, sometimes you've got to learn to make friends.”
Organisers had tried to distance the rallies from neo-Nazis, but Multicultural Affairs Minister Anne Aly says those attending should have realised the type of people involved.
She's talking here with SBS Spice.
“They distanced themselves from them and then invited them to speak, and not just any neo-Nazis, known neo-Nazis. People who proudly wear the badge of racism and who proudly stand up and speak at length in openly racist tones. So, you know, I think that anyone who attended that march or argued that they attended that march because of homelessness or whatever, needs to really, really stop and think about what exactly was happening at those marches and what exactly they were supporting.”
After Thomas Sewell spoke at the rally, Nathalie says he returned to the camp, this time with larger group of people.
“A large group of men, our comrades, had just left, and around the corner we see about maybe a hundred or so men dressed all in black marching to the rhythm of a drum and heading straight towards us.”
The people at Camp Sovereignty jumped to their feet.
“And I thought, surely they're not going to just come and attack us. But then at the bottom of the hill, they started chanting Aussie, Aussie, Aussie, and they ran up the hill with flagpoles with metal bits, rocks, bricks, whatever they had gathered along their journey.”
She says the attack lasted about 16 minutes, with the attackers trying to tear down the camp sign, along with the Aboriginal flag.
“I only got three kicks and then I was able to get up. So yeah, I didn't bleed.”
Nathalie says three people went to hospital later ...
“So there was one person who had a minor concussion and was bleeding from the back of the head. And one person had a possible fracture on the nose, so they were punched in the face and one person had been hit with a pull on different parts of their body and their guts.”
.. and more than 30 people suffered more minor injuries.
“There were split lips, there was blood everywhere. There's definitely bone fractures, nose fractures, things like that.”
Ambulance Victoria confirmed to NITV that a woman in her 30s was taken to hospital with upper body injuries.
The attack has been condemned by the Deputy Premier of Victoria, Ben Carroll, Police Minister Anthony Carbines, and the First Peoples Assembly of Victoria, among others.
Lidia Thorpe says this was more than an attack on Camp Sovereignty, describing it as a hate crime, and calling for an inquiry at the federal level.
“It's an attack on our people. It's an attack on who we are and what we stand for. It's an attack on our sovereignty and it's an attack on peace. It's an attack on what this nation should be about and should be proud of. And that is the oldest continuing living culture on the planet.”
She says it shows how weak the men who attacked the camp are, coming in armed against a group she says was comprised mostly of women.
“The fact that they walked through the city armed and dangerous, intoxicated without the police being anywhere to stop them is a very big question in my mind as to why the police allowed to happen.”
Nathalie Farah shares these concerns.
She says it's a clear failure on the part of police that the men involved in the first attack were allowed to go and join the anti-immigration march.
“To allow people to continue on their path when they've just assaulted and bashed a group in front of them is disgusting and it's appalling. It's also just, I don't understand how that can happen. The police are there to protect us, to protect the whole community.
She also says the men should have been monitored after the march, especially knowing the camp had been a target that morning.
“Or is it that maybe they just didn't really care about us? This is kind of how I feel after being bashed by Nazis. I don't think that the police really cared that much. They arrived after they left. This is in the afternoon, I'm talking. So we resisted with everything that we had. We put the Nazis out.”
On Monday, Victorian Police Minister Anthony Carbines was asked about the police handling of violence surrounding the anti-immigration rallies, after six arrests were made at the CBD rally.
“Oh, there was clearly people intent on attending to cause violence, and they did that. Then the disgusting scenes of Camp sovereignty, town of the main Police are investigating all those matters. There have been arrests, there may well be more, as they review CCTV footage.”
He was also asked whether he was concerned the attackers were able to reach Camp Sovereignty with no police present.
“Well, just come from meetings with the Chief Commissioner police, both through counter terrorism and their criminal investigation unit investigating those matters to see what NSN involvement there was and other matters. So we'll leave police to do their job, but our focus clearly was around the protests in town yesterday. Can't always predict where these things will go, but clearly it's appalling behaviour, and that's being investigated for what criminal acts have occurred.”
In a statement Victoria Police say they are keen to speak to anyone who was involved in the incident, or who has footage.
