New Zealand police arrest 120 demonstrators against vaccine mandate

Wellington: New Zealand Police have arrested 120 people at the convoy protest on Parliament grounds on Thursday amid vaccine mandate demonstrations, Wellington District Commander Superintendent Corrie Parnell said.

"In terms of the 120 arrested today the charges are trespass or obstruction," NZ Herald quoted Parnell as saying.

The commander also said that two police officers were assaulted, with one suffering from dispersed pepper spray, and the other receiving several minor scratches.

On Tuesday, the protesters throughout New Zealand, largely inspired by similar demonstrations in Canada, arrived at the parliament building, where they erected tents and blocked streets outside in protest against compulsory vaccination and COVID-19 restrictions.

A wave of protests across Canada began in mid-January, with thousands of truck drivers and farmers converging in Ottawa to express strong opposition to the COVID-19 vaccine mandates after two years of the restrictive measures.