The Lies Abbott Tells - Part Fourteen

THE WILFULLY IGNORANT LIE

QUESTION:

Prime Minister, lastly, there’s a big rally today in Sydney against your Government. Do you have anything to say to those protesters today?

PRIME MINISTER:

Well, my understanding is that the only big rally in Sydney is the St Patrick's Day parade. That’s the big event - to be sure - in Sydney today and I wish all the St Patrick's Day revellers well and if their parade is rained on, there’s always some Guinness available somewhere around the city.

[Australian Prime Minister Tony Abbott answering a question about March In March 2014 at a joint press conference in Sydney on 16 March 2014]

THE FACTS

March In March 2014 had been widely advertised since January 2014 on Facebook and elsewhere.

Twitter had displayed an almost continuous stream of #marchinmarch tweets prior to and on the actual protest days and, first as opposition leader and then as prime minister, Tony Abbott has maintained an active Twitter account/presence.

The Canberra Times newspaper was reporting on the event as early as 4 February and The Australian newspaper by 8 February.

On 16 March 2014 the number of Sydney protest marchers was estimated by various sources as between 10,000 to 30,000 people.

Journalist Richard Chirgwin tweeted that it took marchers 30 minutes to pass the point at which he watched the Sydney march. His short video of people gathered in Belmore Park is at http://twitpic.com/dygkbl.

The Sydney Morning Herald online 16 March 2014: Sydney March In March

 Across Australia it is estimated that over 80,000 people marched.

ABC News online storified this national protest in pictures.