Gay protests at University of Wollongong

THREE Wollongong University students campaigning for a safer space for gays on campus have described as "overkill" an operation by 10 armed riot police to eject them from a room they had occupied for 47 hours.

The students, the remainder of an original group of 16 who entered a booked function room on Thursday and locked it down hours later, were evicted on Saturday afternoon.



Spokeswoman Annaliese Constable told the HES that about 20 officers, including armed riot squad police, members of the police rescue squad and regular police officers either burst into the Belmore Room or were on hand outside to arrest the three.

Ms Constable and two others, Daniel Brown and Dominika Grossy, were charged with trespass.

A university spokesman said the eviction was a "hygiene issue".

"If it was a hygiene issue, why didn't they send up a bar of soap?" Ms Constable said.

The students, from the Allsorts gay and lesbian group, had been campaigning for "a couple of years" with letters to and meetings with the university for a safe space on campus.

Earlier this year, a female student was trapped in the queer space by a man who blocked the door with his bike and threatened to "burn the woman to death" for being a lesbian, Allsorts said in a statement.

The students want the university to move them on to campus and to provide security patrols and better health and safety standards.

SOURCE - The Australian newspaper
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