S11 (protest)

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S11 refers to a series of protests against meetings of the World Economic Forum on 11, 12 and 13 September 2000 in Melbourne, Australia, where approximately 10,000 people of many ages and a wide cross section of the community were involved.^[3] One of the groups involved in the protests called itself the S11 Alliance.^[4] This group was dominated by various socialist parties. The success of the protest led them to the creation of the M1 Alliance on 1 November 2000 in preparation for the next year's May Day events^[5] and the S26 Alliance,^[6] in solidarity with protest against the International Monetary Fund/World Bank meetings in Prague (26 September 2000). The other main organising network for the protest was the autonomist & anarchist s11 AWOL.^[7]

The protest was part of the anti-globalisation movement, and closely modeled after the 1999 WTO protests in Seattle (known as the battle for Seattle.)^[8] This movement has been motivated by a number of concerns about globalization, including loss of national sovereignty, environmental impact, and the impact of foreign debt and multi-national corporations on third world countries.

The protest was notable as the first major anti-globalization action to take place in Australia. As with previous events in other parts of the world, the event was characterized by civil disobedience and often festive direct action, and by an aggressive police response.^[9] Protesters linked arms and some chained themselves together in an effort to prevent delegates from getting into the meetings.^[10] The police reportedly responded with pepper spray (which in Victoria is not permitted to be used by police at demonstrations), and Green Party of Aotearoa New Zealand MP Nándor Tánczos reported that he and other protesters were victims of police brutality.^[11]