Australia PM seeks new law to penalise animal rights activists

FILE PHOTO: Prime Minister Scott Morrison speaks to the media during a press conference at Parliament House in Canberra, Australia, March 20, 2019. AAP Image/Andrew Taylor/via REUTERS ATTENTION EDITORS

SYDNEY (Reuters) - Australia's government proposed on Wednesday to criminalise some actions of animal rights protesters after activists blocked traffic in Melbourne and stormed farms and abattoirs this week to protest factory farming.

The new law proposed by Prime Minister Scott Morrison is unusual, legal experts say, because it appears to be a specific response to the actions of a vegan activist group, AussieFarms.