Dawn, March 2nd, 2022 marked the beginning of the end for Convoy NZ 2022 protesters camped out in and around Parliament. Video / Mark Mitchell / Michael Nielson / Mike Scott
Police have confirmed sound cannons were deployed against protesters at the recent Parliament occupation.
A document released under the Official Information Act (OIA), revealed two long range acoustic devices (Lrads) were deployed at the Parliament protest on March 2.
Other documents show there was a rush to change rules so pepper spray could be used in crowd control situations, with new products being procured for the purpose.
The anti-mandate protest ended in violence on March 2 when hundreds of police officers, many in riot gear and supported by a helicopter, clashed with crowds of protesters who lit fires and threw cobblestones on Parliament's forecourt.
That was the only day of the protest where the two Lrads, operated by members of the police negotiation team, were deployed.
One was deployed on the roof of the Parliament building and another was deployed in Aiken St.
The Lrad was described by police in the document as a "long range communication device for targeted communication" which also has the ability to produce an "aversion tone".
The devices are effectively powerful speakers, either handheld or mounted on a vehicle or tripod, that can be used to disperse crowds or as a powerful loudhailer.
The document states police have 17 Lrad units, bought incrementally since 2016, and that a tactical options report must be completed for the use of an Lrad.
The manufacturer's specifications for the Lrad model 100x used by police says the devices can project 140dB, about the sound level of a gunshot, to a maximum range of 600m.
The devices have the potential to cause permanent hearing damage, which has led to the device being limited in several jurisdictions in the United States following lawsuits.
Police during their running battle with protesters on day 23 of the Covid-19 Convoy protest at Parliament, Wellington. Photo / Mark Mitchell
It is understood the deployment on March 2 was the first use of the Lrads to disperse a crowd in New Zealand.
The information dump also revealed that 104 sponge rounds were fired on the day by nine officers, members of the elite special tactics group.
Other documents released include emails between police and Sabre Red, the supplier of pepper spray to police, which showed police scrambling to procure more pepper spray from February 15, following the first unsuccessful attempt to remove protesters on February 10.
Instructions for the use of pepper spray in a crowd were also changed, with the new rules coming into force the day before officers moved in on protesters.
A new crowd-control pepper spray product with a higher capacity, Sabre Red Mk 9, was also added to the list of approved products.
Instead of pepper spray not being used in crowded situations "as a general rule", the new rules said pepper spray could be utilised against more than one person at a time "where the circumstances justify its deployment".
The obligations of police to provide aftercare, by decontaminating and avoiding positional asphyxia, were also changed from "must" to "must if the circumstances allow".
The emails also showed police expressed interest in an even higher capacity pepper spray from Sabre Red, the Mk 60, described as a "high volume streamer".
The documents also showed between February 9 and March 13 171 police staff were deployed from the Southern police district to Wellington as part of the operation to remove the protesters.
