Protester twists banned phrase as crowd rallies for hate-speech accused

A large crowd of pro-Palestine activists have rallied outside a Brisbane court in support of the first person to be charged under Queensland’s new hate speech laws, as one man was warned by police for holding a sign saying “from the sea to the river”.

Liam Parry, 33, was arrested in March at Speakers’ Corner outside parliament for allegedly uttering a banned phrase during what police say was an unauthorised pro-Palestine protest.

Dozens of supporters rallied for Parry outside the Brisbane Magistrates Court on Wednesday morning before his hearing.

Several police and court security staff stood nearby, before officers surrounded a man, Mark Gillespie, who was holding a sign that read “from the sea to the river”, a twist on the banned phrase that swapped the order of the words “sea” and “river”.

The crowd circled Gillespie and the officers, as they yelled about free speech, while Gillespie appeared to question officers over the law.

Speaking to media after his warning, Gillespie said he agreed to put away the sign.

“The legislation as far as I understand, it says the phrase ‘from the river to the sea’ is outlawed,” he said.

“I questioned them on that and they showed me something in the legislation that if it resembles the symbol … anyway, I’ve agreed to put it away for the time being.”

Gillespie said the laws were an attack on free speech, and that was why he had made the sign.

Parry waited inside court as supporters shouted, “this is not a police state, we have the right to demonstrate”.

Lawyer Ella Scoles, representing Parry, asked for the case to be adjourned to a later date. Parry remained on bail.

Parry’s supporters cheered for Parry when he exited the court. He thanked the crowd, and said the matter was ongoing, explaining that the group needed to keep speaking up for Palestine.

“We need to keep speaking out against our government complicity.

“The people of Gaza are still under attack and our government is still complicit, and we will not remain silent as long as that is the case,” he shouted.

He told reporters he would contest the charges, and it should not be a crime to speak out for Palestinians.

“I think it’s really important for people to continue speaking out about the genocide in Gaza. We need to keep speaking up for the Palestinians,” he said.

“I think it’s an important moment in Queensland right now. The government is trying to criminalise pro-Palestine advocacy.

“We can’t accept that, and I think the protest today is an indication that people won’t accept their civil rights and civil liberties being taken away.”

When asked how he felt facing a possible jail term, Parry said: “It feels surreal, and I think it’s a dangerous moment in Queensland politics that you could face two years’ imprisonment just for saying six words.”

He said he did not believe there was any justification for his charges, and he would not stop protesting.

When asked if he would use the phrase again, Parry said he would not invite further charges on himself.

He said there would be a weekend of resistance on April 18 in opposition of the hate speech laws.

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