Discussion
WTF? Victoria police has made the entire Melbourne CBD a 'designated area' until June 2026.
For the next 6 months anyone in the CBD can be randomly stopped and searched without cause on the pretense of a search for weapons.
This is quite an escalation in the abuse of this police power.
https://www.police.vic.gov.au/public-notice-melbourne-cbd-sunday-30-november-2025-friday-29-may-2026
Melbourne Lord Mayor Nicholas Reece said the council supported the move. "This is very much welcomed by us. We have seen a 20 per cent increase in crime in the central city over the last 12 months. That is a fact,"
A 20% increase in crime sounds like a lot and seems like a wildly different world, but when you say it's just back to the same levels as 2018 it doesn't sounds like much at all.
We didn't need to level of police overreach to respond to crime in 2018, so why do we need it now?
https://www.abc.net.au/news/2025-11-26/police-extend-search-powers-melbourne/106053990
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