Five people have been charged with trespassing after they climbed to the top of the Sydney Opera House to protest against the treatment of refugees on Manus Island.
Two men and three women all aged in their 20s will face court next month after they scaled the sails of the harbour landmark and unfurled banners calling for the government to bring refugees held on Manus Island to Australia.
The activist group Whistleblowers, Activists and Citizens Alliance claimed credit for the protest, writing on Facebook that “Australia has become a world leader in cruelty” over its handling of refugees.
It also took aim at the Labor party, demanding it “end the cruelty they started, by breaking bipartisan endorsement of offshore detention”.
“Bill Shorten MP and the Australian Labor party must show leadership by providing our nation with a way out of this humanitarian crisis,” the group wrote on Facebook. “We will not stop until we see justice for refugees.”
Police climbed the sails of the Opera House to arrest the five protesters and bring them back to the ground. They also appeared to stop the group’s attempts to unfurl a larger banner on the west-facing sail pointing towards the Harbour Bridge.
It was the latest protest action against the treatment of refugees on the Papua New Guinean island, who are resisting efforts to move them to new accommodation.
On Tuesday the same group climbed a crane at the Melbourne Cup and unfurled a banner above the Flemington racecourse calling for Manus Island refugees to be evacuated. Protesters also drove a car on to train tracks near Flemington, causing delays to racegoers and resulting in the arrest of one woman.
Protests and sit-ins have also been staged at government offices across the country.
Last week three women were arrested after they chained themselves together outside the immigration office in Sydney. Protests also took place in other parts of Sydney and Canberra.
The PNG government has begun ramping up its warnings to the refugees who remain on Manus, warning that force may be used to move them. On Thursday, the prime minister, Peter O’Neill, said the centre had closed and those refusing to leave it must go.
“Those involved in disruption have been identified and appropriate means will be used to apprehend individuals who are causing unnecessary anxiety and violence,” he said.
