Photo of protest by Independent and Peaceful Australia Network.
The Land Forces International Land Defence Exposition is taking place in Perth, Western Australia from October 6-8.
Land Forces brings together 964 exhibitor companies, including Elbit Systems, Israel Aerospace Industries (IAI), Rafael Advanced Defense Systems, Lockheed Martin, Raytheon, Northrop Grumman, Boeing and General Dynamics; with 60 nations and 258 government, industry and academic delegations.
The protest
The Western Australia Anti-War Collective had posted on Instagram: “Land Forces 2026 will ’invade’ Boorloo (Perth) at the PCEC 6-8 October.” They called the protest for Tuesday October 6 at 5 pm local time (5 am in Ottawa).
Green Left adds: “The protest was initiated by the WA Anti-War collective, with the support of Stop AUKUS WA, Friends of Palestine WA and a range of other organisations.”
Disrupt Wars posted on Instagram this short video of the protest. There are also these photos from the protest.
Yesterday Youth Jam posted on social media: “A large crowd of protesters have marched on the Land Forces Expo in Perth to condemn the weapons exhibition. Gathering initially at Yagan Square, demonstrators chanted as they moved down William Street, protesting against weapons manufacturers and Israel, accusing companies of supplying arms used in what they described as a ‘genocide’ in Gaza. A heavy police presence, including mounted officers, closely monitored the march.”
And ABC News now reports: “More than 600 people have marched through Perth city to peacefully protest Australia’s biggest land defence expo, which opened in the state capital today two years after violent clashes marred demonstrations against the same event in Melbourne.”
Additional reading: Thousands protest Elbit Systems, Lockheed Martin and other weapons companies at Land Forces in Melbourne, Australia (PBI-Canada, September 11, 2024).
Heavy police presence
That ABC News article adds: “The demonstration was surrounded by a heavy police presence, with vans and other vehicles on stand-by. …WA police were given 10 days of temporary extra powers for the event, which included the ability to ban “excluded persons” from the expo and its dedicated security zone outside the convention centre. A new facial recognition system currently being trialled by WA police will likely be used to help enforce those bans. …Police Minister Reece Whitby has described the police response as the “biggest police operation” in the state.”
Nine.com.au further reports: “Drone vision is being beamed in live, along with CCTV from every angle of the convention centre, all displayed across the [Maylands police] command centre’s wall-to-wall screens. Live facial recognition technology is also being utilised in the $11.5 million exercise.”
“Security zone”
The Guardian has previously reported that the Land Forces (Special Powers) Bill 2026 was passed last month that “gives police expanded stop-and-search powers and the ability to ban people from entering a security zone that extends from the Elizabeth Quay bus port to the convention centre for 10 days”.
And Sydney Criminal Lawyers notes: “The legislation includes the ‘excluded persons’ law that can prohibit specific activists from the buffer zone, via threat of up to 3 years prison time and/or a $36,000 fine.”
At least twelve activists were banned under this legislation from entering the security zone to protest the arms fair.
Image of exclusion zone from Sophie McNeill.
The right to protest
The Australian Democracy Network comments: “Legal advice from Climate Defenders Australia and the Human Rights Law Centre has concluded that the [Land Forces Event (Special Powers) Bill 2026] goes beyond what is needed to address genuine security concerns and instead disproportionately constrains peaceful protest.”
And The Guardian quotes Australian Greens Member of Parliament Sophie McNeill who says: “[The Western Australia state government] said that these powers were for people who had the propensity to commit violence, people who are a threat to the community. Instead, what we’ve seen is peaceful activists targeted … who didn’t even have any plans to be here in Perth… It’s outrageous.”
In May 2026, the London, United Kingdom-based Business and Human Rights Centre (BHRC) published Navigating a global crossroads: Human rights defenders and business in 2025 that documented 46 attacks against defenders “raising concerns about arms and weapons companies and their complicity in conflict and genocide” and that “protesters at arms fairs targeting companies selling weapons to Israel were detained in the United States, Turkey, Switzerland and France, whilst activists in New Zealand faced violence for protesting the militarisation of aerospace technology and its uses against civilian populations.”
CANSEC 2027
Peace Brigades International-Canada notes that similar concerns could be raised about the CANSEC arms show that is scheduled to take place on June 2-3, 2027, in Ottawa. More information on that can be found at Shut Down CANSEC on Instagram.
The CANSEC arms fair is where “$1B+ in business deals happen every year”. It’s where 100+ delegations, including from the U.S., Israel, and the Philippines, come to buy weapons and technology from 300+ transnational corporations, including Elbit Systems, Lockheed Martin, and BAE Systems.
We continue to follow this.
Photo from protest by Brad Pettitt.
