Another fundamental liberty of the people of New South Wales took a hit on July 1.
On that day a new regulation under the Crown Land Management Act 2016 took effect, granting the NSW government wide powers to disperse or ban protests, rallies and virtually any public gathering across about half of all land across the state.
The powers apply on any Crown Land — land owned by the state government, including town squares, parks, roads, beaches, community halls and more.