NSW Police Arrest Three Persons At George Pell Funeral Protest In Sydney

NSW Police detained two men and a woman at a protest by LGBTQI community members and child sexual abuse survivors outside Cardinal George Pell’s funeral, which was held at Sydney’s St Mary’s Cathedral. 

Trigger Warning: This story discusses comments, which might be distressing to some readers. For 24-hour crisis support and suicide prevention call Lifeline on 13 11 14. For Australia-wide LGBTQI peer support call QLife on 1800 184 527 or webchat.

On Thursday morning, while former Prime Minister Tony Abbot hailed Pell as a “saint” inside St Mary’s Cathedral, protestors outside held up signs saying “Pell burn in hell”. 

The protests by Community Action for Rainbow Rights (CARR) and other groups went ahead after NSW Police withdrew a last-minute legal challenge in the Supreme Court to the protest march. 

Shame!

Pell, Australia’s highest-ranking Catholic cleric convicted on child abuse charges before he was acquitted, died at the age of 81 in Vatican City on January 10, 2023. In 2017, a royal commission found that Pell knew of child sexual abuse by Catholic priests in Australia as early as the 1970s but had failed to take any action against them. Pell, had in the past opposed LGBTQI rights and denounced same-sex marriage. 

“While Peter Dutton, Tony Abbott, John Howard and their ilk went inside to praise George Pell, hundreds of people took to the street to reject this disgraceful celebration of a notorious right-wing bigot,” CARR posted on Facebook. “Significant sections of the establishment loved Pell because he fought openly for their right-wing conservative agenda.”

Some protestors marched up to the barricades outside the Cathedral and kept a steady stream of slogans against, Pell, Dutton and Abbott going. Dutton and Abbott arrived at the Cathedral to attend the requiem mass, to shouts of ‘Shame’. At the end of the funeral, when clergy streamed out of the Cathedral, protestors shouted ‘Shame on the Catholic Church’.

Survivors of child sexual abuse and their supporters singing "Highway to Hell" at the funeral of Cardinal George Pell as his coffin is driven off pic.twitter.com/L97ZTC5ytX

— Zac Crellin (@zacrellin) February 2, 2023

According to CARR, some Pell supporters “many associated with the far right, tried to smash their way through a line of cops to attack our protest.”

No Charges Laid, Say NSW Police

There's been an angry clash outside #GeorgePell’s funeral between protestors and some mourners as the rally passed near to the St Mary’s cathedral courtyard @abcsydney @abcnews pic.twitter.com/LhH4uJ8OOB

— Kathleen Calderwood (@kt_calderwood) February 2, 2023

NSW Police, in a statement to Star Observer, said that three people were detained at the protest. 

“Three people were detained during the operation for breaching the peace; the two men and one woman were moved-on from the area and no charges were laid,” an NSW Police spokesperson said. 

“Officers also seized one offensive sign from a woman,” the Police said.