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“Melbourne University is presently managing the situation and has not asked Victoria Police to intervene or to remove these protesters,” they said.
“Victoria Police is liaising with Melbourne University to provide assistance when and if that is required.”
The students staging the sit-in said on Wednesday that they were willing to risk arrest.
The protest is aimed at the university’s long-standing research agreement with aerospace and defence manufacturer Lockheed Martin.
“This is indefinite. This is about disclosing and divesting and nothing will change until the demands are met,” said Gemma O’Toole, an arts student involved in the occupation.
A small number of police officers attended the campus just after 4pm on Wednesday, but there were no signs of violence and they did not intervene.
Some protesters inside the Arts West building were wearing Palestinian keffiyeh scarfs; others could be seen in goggles. They used megaphones to chant slogans, banners were unfurled and tents were set up inside the building.
With Alex Crowe, Chip Le Grand and Madeleine Heffernan
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