Police have charged a man who threw an “improvised explosive device” into a crowd at an Invasion Day Rally in Perth, Western Australia, on Monday.
On Thursday, WA Police said they are seeking public assistance in investigating the incident.
Kacey Teerman, Indigenous Rights Campaigner at Amnesty International Australia, has called it “a deliberate attack on First Nations people”.
What happened?
On Monday, an Invasion Day rally was held in the Perth CBD. Police say about 2,500 people were in attendance.
Police allege that a man removed an item from his bag and threw it into the crowd, before fleeing the scene, just after midday.
Police were alerted to the device and dispersed the crowd.
The man was taken into custody and has since been charged.
Police confirmed it was a “homemade improvised explosive device containing a mixture of volatile and potentially explosive chemicals, with nails and metal ball bearings affixed to the exterior”.
The device failed to detonate.
The 31-year-old man has now been charged with making or possessing explosives under suspicious circumstances, as well as an unlawful act with intent to harm.
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Response
Teerman said: “This rally was attended by thousands, including Elders, children, and babies.
“It is a miracle the device didn’t explode. This was a deliberate attack on First Nations people, designed to cause maximum harm and fear, it comes amid rising racist and hate-fuelled attacks.”
One of the rally organisers, Fabian Yarran, said: “This incident must be fully investigated as an act of terrorism and a hate crime against First Nations people and protesters, and appropriately charged as such.”
Terrorism
Police have not labelled the incident terrorism.
Western Australia's Police Commissioner Col Blanch told media on Tuesday: “To be an act of terrorism it requires one of three things: either political motivation, a religious motivation, or some type of ideology and advancing that cause.
"So at this stage it's a hostile act, and we are investigating whether or not those motivations existed to prove terrorism charges."
Political response
WA Premier Roger Cook said: “That a peaceful protest was targeted in this fashion runs against thevery heart of what it means to be Australian... We can’t let hate win.“
On Tuesday, Prime Minister Anthony Albanese added: “This was an incident that isquite shocking. He's been charged with two serious offences and I look forward to him being prosecuted to the full force of the law.”
