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AUSTRALIAN PROTESTERS MARCH THROUGH SYDNEY TO END LOCKOUT LAWS

Clubbers demand an end to draconian laws.

DJ Mag Staff
Monday, September 14, 2015 - 11:30

On Sunday, over 1000 Sydney residents marched through the city to protest New South Wales' lockout laws, in a free rally-cum-festival hosted by protest group, Reclaim The Streets.

The multistage mobile festival kicked off at Hyde Park at 1pm, marching through the affected areas before finishing at Taylor Square, where a free block party took place with local DJs and promoters. 

The New South Wales lockout laws, that were brought in to tackle alcohol-related violence in January 2014, have decreased footfall in Sydney's central nightlife district by 80 percent, reported the Sydney Morning Herald in July. 

The protesters are calling for the lockout laws to be repealed, arguing that late-night revellers are bring pushed out of the CBD and drawn to suburban areas including Newtown, causing an increase in alcohol-fuelled violence. 

Reclaim the Streets spokeswoman Amanda Sordes said: "The main issue is they don't solve the problem, they push it in the neighbouring suburb. The drunk people come to Newtown because they can't go to anywhere else in Kings Cross."

In June, Fairfax Media revealed violent alcohol-related crimes had increased 18 percent in the Newtown area since 2014.