Thousands of anti-vaccination mandate protesters gathered in Wellington and around New Zealand, some threatening violence. The country's parliament is on high alert.
As mostly unmasked demonstrators marched through central Wellington and gathered outside parliament, all but two entrances to the building, known as the Beehive, were sealed off in the presence of unprecedented levels of police and security officers.
Approximately 2,000 protesters had assembled in central Wellington as of early Tuesday. The Speaker of the House, Trevor Mallard, told local news outlet Stuff that it was the most significant boost in parliamentary security he had seen since his election in 1984.
While the protest was peaceful, many people were spotted waving signs and placards that read "Freedom" and "Kiwis are not lab rats," as well as yelling slogans demanding that the government repeal obligatory vaccination and remove limitations.
"I will not be forced to take something I don't want in my body," a protester stated outside parliament.
When challenged about the government's stance on forcing the vaccine, another protester yelled, "Treat us like people!"
There were attacks on both police and media during the early days of the protests across the country. A police officer was bitten by a protester at the border with Auckland, which has been closed for weeks because of the COVID-19 outbreak there. Police said some 50 demonstrators appeared at the border and disrupted traffic for an hour.
This year, New Zealand has struggled to contain a highly contagious epidemic of the Delta variant, leading Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern to shift from an extermination strategy based on lockdowns to a plan of living with the virus and increasing vaccinations.
In October, Ardern announced that teachers and workers in the health and disability sectors would be required to be completely vaccinated against COVID-19, and that restrictions would be lifted only when 90% of the eligible population had been vaccinated.
With fewer than 8,000 cases confirmed so far and 32 deaths, New Zealand continues to have one of the lowest COVID-19 cases in the world.
On Tuesday, it recorded 125 new cases, with a total double-dose vaccination rate of approximately 80% of its eligible population.
