Ballarat CBD businesses were forced to close after protesters blocked busy city streets for a so-called 'freedom' march on what would usually be a busy day of pre-Christmas trade.
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With the march taking place from Civic Hall to Bakery Hill along Armstrong Street, Sturt Street and the Bridge Mall, many businesses decided to close in anticipation of the event including Midtown Cellars and Bar, Collins Booksellers Ballarat on Lydiard and Kittelty's.
The closures are particularly damaging for many businesses that just came out of more than 18 months of lockdowns and were looking forward a busy summer of trading.
Other businesses remained open with staff and owners keeping a close eye on proceedings from their doors as the protests passed.
The protest caused temporary road closures on Mair Street, Armstrong Street, Sturt Street, Camp Street, Grenville Street, Peel Street and Main Road as the underwhelming crowd made their way through the city.
While some early crowd estimates reached up to 10,000 people during the week, the real number likely fell well shy of that mark.
Many of the protesters carried upside-down Australian flags and red ensigns, along with Greek, Polish, New Zealander, Iraqi, Lebanese, French and Croatian flags.
Some carried signs protesting vaccine mandates or the recently passed pandemic legislation, while others carried signs protesting a raft of other laws that had been in place well before the pandemic.
Many protesters also made the decision to bring their young children, who joined in on the demonstration, leading chants and singing songs.
A large police presence gathered at Civic Hall from early in the afternoon as protesters began to arrive from Melbourne and led the group through the street to their final destination at the skate park on Main Road in Bakery Hill.
Many onlookers gathered on Mair Street, opposite Civic Hall, to watch the protest from afar but not take part.
The protesters went about their demonstration in a largely peaceful manner as most onlookers kept out of the way.
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