Case Explained: Human Rights Law Centre calls for hate crime investigation into racist attack at Boorloo Invasion Day – Legal Perspective

The Human Rights Law Centre condemns the violent, racist attack on First Nations people on 26 January 2026 in Boorloo/Perth, and calls for it to be investigated as an act of terrorism or hate crime.

A bomb was thrown into a large crowd of people attending an Invasion Day rally for First Nations justice. According to WA Police, the bomb was designed to “explode on impact” and could have been a mass casualty event if it had detonated.

A 31 year old man has been arrested and charged with an unlawful act or omission with intent to do harm, and with making or possessing explosives under suspicious circumstances.

The Human Rights Law Centre supports calls by the First Nations organisers for this incident to be fully and independently investigated as an act of terrorism or hate crime against First Nations people and those people peacefully protesting. Political or racist violence has no place in Australia and undermines everyone’s democratic freedoms.

Reports by rally organisers and witnesses raise serious questions about WA Police’s response and communication with organisers, both before and after the attack. Allegations of excessive force used by police against protestors, inadequate communication with attendees, and a failure to address credible threats received ahead of the rally, should all be fully and independently investigated.

This attack shows the seriousness of the ongoing, organised racist threats and impacts of colonisation on First Nations people. Just this week, over 60 countries called out Australia’s dismal track record on First Nations rights at the United Nations, including the discriminatory policing and over-incarceration of First Nations people, the jailing of 10 year old children, and the rising deaths in custody of First Nations people. The response from police, politicians and the media highlights this ongoing discrimination and injustice.

We call on the Federal and all state governments to ensure that efforts to combat hate and racism address all forms of racism and the rise of far-right extremism.

Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people have always led the resistance to laws, policies and systems that continue to oppress Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander communities across the country. The Human Rights Law Centre stands in solidarity with First Nations people and communities in the ongoing fight for systemic change.