Activist fights graffiti charge

May 19, 2021
Issue 
The 'offence' for which Langford has been ordered to pay $400.

Stephen聽Langford聽said he would not pay a fine imposed by Downing Centre Local Court on May 14 for writing a message about how Australia tortures refugees on a commercial billboard.

On August 14, 2019, Langford used liquid chalk聽to write: 鈥淪orry to bully innocent people in concentration camps for six years. But that鈥檚 Australia.鈥

鈥淚 refuse to pay the $400 penalty鈥, Langford told 91自拍论坛. 鈥淭he real victims, the targets of the government鈥檚 human rights violations, were not represented in court.

鈥淲e need the 1951 United Nations Refugee Convention, which Australia signed, to be enforced鈥,聽Langford聽added.

Commenting on the aggravated graffiti charge, Langford鈥檚 lawyer Mark Davis said outside the court that Australia鈥檚 freedom of speech protection was 鈥渧ery weak鈥.

Langford is facing a separate charge for glueing an A4-sized poster to a statue of Lachlan Macquarie in Hyde Park which gave details of the .

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