'Pull her pants down': Woman dragged from Palmerston North anti ...

A woman has been dragged out of a Stop Co-Governance meeting by her legs in Palmerston North.

Victoria Jakobs was one of hundreds who went to stand against the Stop-Co-Governance meeting at the Rose City Club Room at the Lido Aquatic Centre on Park Rd on Saturday night.

Jakobs, who is Pākehā, had entered the meeting with her sign and whistle to protest the roadshow that has travelled the nation in recent months.

She said she was expecting to be asked to leave and be escorted out by police.

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A man grabs Victoria Jakobs’ head and tries to pull out her whistle at the Stop Co-Governance meeting.

Instead, Jakobs said as she was sitting on the ground holding her sign and whistling loudly, she was grabbed by one woman and four men, had her head pulled back to rip her whistle from her mouth, and was dragged from the meeting by her legs with someone from the meeting yelling for them to “pull her pants off”.

The roadshow’s leader evangelist Julian Batchelor said nothing when she was dragged out, she said.

Jakobs said she was left with bruises on her arms and legs, a possible concussion, and loose teeth from the incident.

“They felt really entitled and comfortable about doing it,” she said.

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Victoria Jakobs is dragged from a Stop Co-Governance meeting in Palmerston North.

“There were no police inside, nobody helped me ... if they had been inside I query whether it would have happened at all. I felt terribly unsafe.”

Jakobs said she and others should be able to protest safely, but they needed police inside the events to ensure attendees and protesters were protected, and kept in line.

“I don’t regret it because I think it’s exposed a very nasty, violent underbelly that is part of what these people are.”

In a statement, police said officers were at the meeting, but were not inside.

“Police recognise the lawful right to protest, and our role in such a situation is the maintenance of the law and to keep the peace.

“Ultimately, security arrangements, are the responsibility of the organiser of respective events.”

But Jakobs said that was a cop out.

“When Julian left he had at least 15 police surrounding him, no one assaulted him – there was not one police officer protecting me when I was assaulted by five people.”

FAITH SUTHERLAND/Stuff

Victoria Jakobs was dragged from a Stop Co-Governance meeting Palmerston North on Saturday. (File photo)

”They absolutely should be there for the protection of the inevitable protestor.”

The spokesperson said police were outside the event when a member of the public exited the premises with a “minor injury”, however, to Jakobs, the minor injury left her shaken and fearful for the wellbeing of future protestors.

Rangitāne mana whenua representative Chris Whaiapu who was at the protest outside the meeting room said the actions of the people in the video were “absolutely disgusting”.

He believed if just two police had been placed inside the meeting the incident would not have occurred.

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This is one of the bruises that is forming on Victoria Jakobs’ arm after being dragged from the meeting.

“There should be an equal balance of protection for all.”

Whaiapu said whānau only expected a handful of people to come to the protest, but at least 500 people from all walks of life came to peacefully protest the roadshow with waiata and haka.

“For me, it was also just about being there, being present and showing leadership of calm and unity,” Whaiapu said.

“We don’t want this nonsense in this city, we already have co-governance, so it’s too late.”

Warwick Smith/Stuff

Rangitāne mana whenua representative Chris Whaiapu is disgusted by the behaviour of the attendees at the Stop Co-Governance tour in Palmerston North. (File photo)

Whaiapu said protest group did not assault anyone, but a whānau member was pushed by a member of the meeting outside.

Palmerston North City Council and Rangitāne have a formal co-governance agreement, as well as a policy which Whaiapu helped to create that prohibited council buildings from hosting hate speech.

Whaiapu said he was surprised that the roadshow had been allowed to meet at on council land, even though it was in a private clubroom.

He said he would be raising it with the council.

Palmerston North City Council’s mayor Grant Smith and chief executive Waid Crockett said neither the council nor staff at the Lido had any knowledge of the meeting.

As it was held at the Rose City Swim Club’s privately owned venue on site, it was also controlled by the club’s booking and management team, Smith said.

“In checking with staff and legal this morning, although many disagree with the meeting and tour’s discussion, they haven’t broken any laws.”

Community Leisure Management, an independent contractor that provides community facility and programme management to the Lido, posted to social media on Saturday saying it had no control over the booking at the venue.

General manager Tom Mann said the Lido did not oversee the clubrooms or handle its hiring.

Faith Sutherland/Stuff

The meeting was held on council grounds by the Lido Aquatic Centre in a private meeting room. (File photo)

“Our team were on the ground last night just making sure that people were obviously entering and exiting the Lido and our team were safe.

“That’s the only involvement [we had].”

He said he understood why people were upset, but they were only alerted to the event the same “time as everybody else”.

He said the grounds were council-owned.

Anthony Phelps/Stuff

Leader of the Stop Co-Governance tour Julian Batchelor speaking in Picton. (File photo)

“The Lido is a community facility and we want people to understand that by association we got attacked too last night.”

He said it had been “tough” and they had received “lots of phone calls” about the event Saturday afternoon.

Police were making inquiries into the incident at the meeting, and were looking into threatening messages sent to a protester ahead of the event.

“Police are speaking with several people that are assisting us with our inquiries.”

The leader of the Stop Co-Governance roadshow Julian Batchelor was approached for comment.