Australian parliament hit by second dramatic protest

The protesters poured red dye into a pond in front of parliament./BBC
The protesters poured red dye into a pond in front of parliament./BBC

Protesters campaigning against the Australian government's treatment of asylum seekers have breached parliament security for a second day.

Two protesters abseiled down Parliament House in Canberra, unfurling a banner saying "close the bloody camps now".

Metres away on the ground, 13 more demonstrators held placards in a pond they dyed red to symbolise blood.

This comes a day after parliament was suspended when protesters glued their hands to railing in the public gallery.

The protest banners on Thursday called for an end to offshore detention and the controversial policy of boat turnbacks.

The Australian government believes its tough policy of offshore detention for asylum seekers prevents deaths at sea. The policy is also supported by the opposition Labor Party.

Last month, the Australian government rejected a human rights report comparing its asylum seeker camp on the Pacific island of Nauru to an open-air prison.

The same group, Whistleblowers Activists and Citizens Alliance, was responsible for forcing the suspension of parliament for 40 minutes on Wednesday.

In heated scenes, the group of about 30 demonstrators shouted the detention policy was "separating families" and "killing innocent people".

Security guards used hand sanitiser to remove six protesters who glued their hands to railing in the public gallery.

"We are here today because you have become world leaders in cruelty," the protesters said.

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