Two people have been arrested and a sacred tree cut down at the Djab Wurrung protest camp in western Victoria.
The camp, which is protesting the logging of trees near Ararat, is a "site of vast cultural significance to the Djab Wurrung Peoples," according to the activist group Anti-Militarism Action Network (AMAN).
Traditional Owners and supporters have been protecting culturally significant trees on the site, they say.
"Today, VicRoads brutally murdered a sacred tree, on Djab Wurrung country, who had been standing long before the colonial state of 'Australia' ever existed," AMAN wrote on social media.
"To get to the tree, Vic Roads and VicPol sent a swarm of riot police to break up the Djab Wurrung Camp holding ground and conducting sacred ceremony at the tree's base."
At least 20 protestors were at the site, with footage on social media showing a heavy police presence at the scene. At least one tree was reportedly cut down.
The Eastern Maar Aboriginal Corporation approved a cultural heritage management plan in March this year for the duplication of part of the Western Highway. The plan includes protecting all trees in the area that had been "the subject of cultural and community concern," they said.
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In a statement on Tuesday afternoon, Victoria Police said local police, with support from the Public Order Response Team and Search and Rescue Squad, were at Hillside Road in Dobie "as a result of protest activity".
Police said the protest, "for the most part," had been peaceful, with officers engaging with protesters to move them to a safe area and allow for the lawful removal of trees.
Two people — one man and one woman — were arrested for refusing to leave a restricted access area, Victoria Police said. Both have since been released pending summons.
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The Victorian Greens said they were concerned about the "extraordinarily heavy-handed" police response.
Deputy Leader of the Victorian Greens Sarah Mansfield said the deployment of more than 100 officers "against a small group of people protecting sacred trees raises serious questions about whether this response is proportionate or necessary".
"We saw the distressing scenes of police forcibly removing people protecting Djab Wurrung cultural heritage in 2020. Labor cannot allow history to repeat itself," she said.
"Labor should be working with Traditional Owners to protect sacred trees, not sending in police against those fighting to save them."
The site has been the scene of protests since 2018 to stop construction works of the highway.
In 2020, the yellow box tree, known as a directions tree, was felled, and over 50 protestors were arrested.
At the time, the Victorian Government said the tree was not listed as requiring protection in an agreement with the Eastern Maar Aboriginal Corporation.
