“Occupy” protests, inspired by demonstrations on Wall Street, have started in Australia and begun to spread around the world.
In Sydney, hundreds of people occupied a site in front of the nation’s central bank headquarters in the heart of the financial district, declaring it as “only the start” of their protest.
Elsewhere in Australia, about 100 people moved in to the city center of Brisbane for what they say is the start of their occupation. “Occupy Brisbane” organizer Thomas Brookes said the group was expecting more than 2,000 people to participate in the demonstration.
“We’re not moving, we’re occupying Brisbane and we’re occupying cities all around the world, it’s happening in Australia and New Zealand first,” Brookes said.
In New Zealand, between 500 and 600 people joined marches in the cities of Wellington, Auckland and Christchurch, Radio New Zealand reported.
“People like myself who work every day and at the end of the week I still have to make the decision whether to pay the bills or eat for the forthcoming week. I don’t see that as being right or fair,” Rob Read, from “Occupy Aotearoa,” told the station.
About 600 people have joined rallies in Tokyo and marched on the headquarters of TEPCO, the company responsible for Japan’s devastated nuclear reactor, according to Sky News Australia.
The protests, which loosely target the global financial system, are also expected to reach London, where demonstrators plan to occupy the heart of the capital’s financial center Saturday.
A number of campaign organizations have said they will support the “Occupy London Stock Exchange” protests, Sky News UK reported. A Facebook page on the protest has more than 13,000 followers, with more than 5,000 saying they will attend.
In a public statement “OccupyLSX” declared, “More than a million people have lost their jobs and tens of thousands of homes have been repossessed, while small businesses are struggling to survive. Yet bankers continue to make billions in profit and pay themselves enormous bonuses, even after we bailed them out.”
Supporter Kai Wargalla said, “We want to stand with the 99 percent — the overwhelming majority who value people over profit. We want to make our voices heard against greed, corruption and for a democratic, just society.”
On Wall Street, where the growing movement began, protesters at the make-shift “Occupy” encampment are planning a march from Lower Manhattan to Times Square on Saturday.
Other members of the group plan to march on a Chase Bank branch to close their accounts, myFOXny.com reported.
The protesters say they are concerned about what they call the financial sector’s lack of public accountability in light of the billions of dollars it received in public bailout money.
Photo: Jono Searle