Police play music by James Blunt to deter Parliament protesters

The protest against the mandate outside Parliament began its sixth day on Sunday and is expected to continue until next week.

The heavy downpours and strong winds in the capital did little to deter the demonstrators who camped on the site overnight.

The protesters appeared to be in a happy mood and dancing despite the rain on Sunday.

Police played music through a loudspeaker to deter protesters, including songs by Celine Dion, Barry Manilow and James Blunt.

Blunt, a British musician, had previously tweeted that New Zealand police could contact him if the noise from Manilow wasn’t enough to drive protesters home.

The Department of Health has been scrambling to quash rumors of possible Covid-19 cases linked to the protest.

The Department’s afternoon statement said: “The Wellington Regional Public Health Unit has confirmed that there are currently no reported positive cases linked to the protest. However, we encourage everyone to be vigilant and get tested if they are unwell with symptoms of Covid -19”.

Heavy rain lashes the capital on Sunday.

There is an orange heavy rain warning with 100 to 180mm of precipitation expected.

A strong wind watch was also issued for Wellington and the Marlborough Sounds through Sunday afternoon.

Deputy Prime Minister Grant Robertson opened a Q&A on Sunday morning about his concerns about the toll the protests are taking on MPs’ families.

“What I’m thinking about in these moments, Jack, isn’t me. it’s my family And the family of other politicians. They didn’t sign up for that. And I think it’s really important as New Zealanders that we catch our breath,” said Robertson.

“I think all politicians have taken their time recently to take stock of this very issue. As anyone will have seen, the prime minister was the target of harassment and threats. All politicians have had more of it lately – I have.”

Former National Party member Matt King was among those who did spoke at the protest on Saturday afternoon with the words “We will win this”.

King plans to stay here for the next two days.

On Friday, a spokesman for National dismissed King’s actions, saying the party is “strongly pro-vaccination and does not support the actions or anti-vaccination messages of those involved in Convoy 2022.”

“Everyone has the right to protest, but people should not become aggressive and violent, break rules or interfere with the freedoms of others.”

Meanwhile, the government reacted on Saturday night after Labor MP Terisa Ngobi was in office devastated with anti-mandatory messages.

“These acts of property damage and harassment are unlawful,” a government spokesman said.

“The right to protest should always be protected, but the harm and intimidation have gone too far.

“People have a choice not to get vaccinated against Covid-19, but they must respect the rights of those who do, who represent an overwhelming majority of New Zealand.

“As a government, we remain focused on preparing for increasing omicron cases and getting more New Zealanders to be as safe as possible.”

Wellington District Commander Superintendent Corrie Parnell said in a statement on Friday that police will continue to monitor and contain protest activity on Parliament grounds.

“Police have identified a number of different causes and motivations among the protesters, making it difficult to open clear and meaningful lines of communication,” he said.

“Misinformation, particularly on social media, has been identified as a problem.”

“Some factions actively promote false advice about people’s rights and police powers that is misleading and factually incorrect.

“For example, an individual’s use of a specific word or phrase does not affect the arrest of individuals engaged in unlawful activity.”

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