Keep Sydney Open defends rally in Supreme Court

Keep Sydney open will head to the Supreme Court of NSW to defend attempts by the NSW Police Commissioner to block tomorrow night’s rally. The case is set to be decided today, with the outcome determining the fate of the scheduled rally in Kings Cross at 9:00pm.

The reasoning behind the attempt to prohibit the rally is largely due to the evening setting of the rally, and the temporary closure of Darlinghurst Road.

“We are a nightlife advocacy group, so clearly rallying at night makes sense, and there is no doubting that Kings Cross is central to the lockouts issue so it’s highly pertinent we stage our protest there,” said Keep Sydney Open Campaign Director Tyson Koh.

He added: “We have continually made it clear to NSW police that we are happy to work with them to find a time, location and duration for the rally that is suitable, but they have failed to reciprocate this offer of collaboration and not attempted to find alternate solutions.”

Keep Sydney Open received a ’Form 1’ Notice of Intention To Hold a Public Assembly back on January 9, however, the Commissioner only filed proceedings against the group at 4:00 pm yesterday.

Representing the anti-lockouts group in court are Levitt Robinson Solicitors, Tristan Bors of Queen’s Square Chambers and Mark Robinson SC.

“Particularly off the back of Mike Baird’s resignation, it’s more important than ever to protest Sydney’s draconian and damaging lockouts. The incoming Premier needs to know how unpopular these laws are.”

Operating on the belief that positive change can be brought about through constructive and rational discourse, Keep Sydney Open will head to court knowing that a successful challenge will set a dangerous precedent for similar legitimate protests to be staged in NSW.

“Keep Sydney Open has been filed against despite its history of safe protest, collaborative relationship with police, track record of effective crowd control and previous statements from police that note the good behaviour and compliance of our supporters, ” Koh said in a statement.

Former NSW Premier Mike Baird quickly fell out of favour with licensed venues in Sydney’s CBD after imposing laws that forced certain establishments in the targeted vicinity to deny patron entry after 1:30am and cease the serving of alcohol at 3:00am.

Baird announced his resignation yesterday citing illness in the family as the primary reason behind his departure from the position.