Thread by @Voice4Victoria

Feeling like this standoff, if resolved peacefully, will go a decent way to repair police relationship with public. Really hoping this opportunity isn't wasted by them or the crowd.

Looking a lot like the cops are struggling to know what to do.. the crowd is so large they can't just rush them without being at risk. The crowd has clearly clicked that if they do nothing the cops can't do anything. Most insane Mexican standoff.

Things get tense for a bit. Members in crowd control a few rowdy others. Police are trying to ask ppl to leave out the side. Some in the crowd trying to negotiate with police as they're claiming some people who tried to leave did get arrested. Cops claiming they won't. Shitshow.

Worth mentioning if everyone did leave at once, not a chance in hell the cops could arrest even 1/4 of a crowd that size.

Man with a mic addressing the crowd trying to keep it calm.

Ex-serviceman asked people to please not sit on the shrine. Very nice man.

Many in crowd refusing to leave. Still very peaceful. Some have chanted "they leave, we leave".

Likely if the cops just backed off a bit they'd very likely just leave on their own. Unlikely to happen.

Police have actually symbolically moved back. Holy shit.

The lack of clear leadership in the organic crowd is proving difficult to get consensus but this level of cooperation by cops by moving back is certainly new.. we are now at the point the crowd have had hours of standing around, with the cops there, without incident.

People moving into the centre. Looks like they want the cops to break rank in the middle and move to the sides so they can leave.

In fairness, there seem to be very open & calm negotiations happening between the cops & crowd to resolve this in finding a way for them to leave peacefully.

Older gentleman has taken control of negotiations. Has told cops they will not break into smaller groups, crowd happy with that. Crowd only wants to leave via the middle. They've now gone back to the cops to negotiate the ability to do so safely & peacefully. More to come..

Cops saying they can't do centre as there are equipment and vehicles set up down that way. From all accounts this looks to be true. Negotiations continue.

Oh dear. Cops saying on speaker "you are free to leave via St Kilda Rd". They moved in extra close obviously hoping to provoke the crowd to move. Many refusing to leave & sat down. It's now still a standoff, just closer now. Crowd telling cops to go home then if they're tired.

Crowd has reduced but is still quite large. Certainly large enough to be problematic for the police as they're also spread out a fair bit. They're inching closer to crowd.
Realistically if the cops just let them leave down the middle they've repeatedly said they'd do so..

Cops right up to crowd. Usual situation where some people start screaming at them.

Self appointed members of the crowd are actually self policing, as in standing between police & crowd, to stop things escalating. Going around trying to calm anyone escalating the situation.

Crowd now chanting "walk through the middle". Police saying they can't given the path is blocked by their vehicles (Rukshan showing it actually is, by at least a half a dozen cars/a bus).

So, cops say left.
People say middle.
Useless but peaceful standoff continues.

Cops are promising safe passage and just trying to clear the site. Clearly want this over. The lack of trust by the public now really coming back to bite them because they don't believe them, which is the only reason they're not leaving.

The trust has been so badly destroyed between vicpol & public that the cops are telling the crowd to just leave & they either totally don't believe them or are refusing on principle based on how vicpol have treated them in the past.

Ah fuck, now they're open firing on people who are running and yelling. No warning. This is bad. They know there are animals & young children in the crowd.
Cops are openly shooting towards the shrine at the protesters.

It's gone to shit. They're still occasionally firing. Someone lit a flare again (not cool on the shrine).

Police now actively clearing the grounds. Crowd has now largely scattered, it seems down the side they wanted them to go anyway.

(Rukshan is fine)

Huge bangs ringing out. Sounds like they fired a gas cannister or something similar. Can also still hear shots ringing in the background occasionally.