Photos: Sydney protesters gag on internet filter plan

Gagged anti-filter activists hit the streets of Sydney tonight in protest at the Federal Government’s plans to filter the internet (see photo gallery right).

Around 20 protesters attended a “flash mob” at Hyde Park North before dispersing into the city to distribute “no internet censorship” flyers to shoppers and passers-by.

Protest organiser Simon Frew believed it was “important people stood up for what they believed in”.

“If we don’t get out and protest, they [the Government will] think we’re apathetic and they can get away with [filtering the internet],” he said.

“It’s important for people to stand up and be counted [on this issue].”

In a statement posted by the Pirate Party Australia  - of which Frew is a member - Frew said the idea for this action was “to bring attention to how censorship is going to affect our lives once the mandatory internet filter is in place.

“Hopefully some people will end up with a flyer in their hand and their interest sparked,” Frew said.

"We hope to create an action that is fun for the participants, as well as a bit of a spectacle that gets people talking."

Protesters made their way to the central Town Hall area of Sydney where they regrouped and handed out large numbers of flyers.

Participants also engaged with a number of members of the public over the course of the protest.

It was the latest in a long-running protest campaign by various groups against the filter plan.

Anonymous ran several small protests in February, including Sydney.

A separate series of educational gatherings and picnics, backed by Electronic Frontiers Australia, were held in March.