Pro-refugee demonstrators, who secretly infiltrated a Melbourne business audience, suddenly stormed the stage on Wednesday as Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull tried to deliver his first major economic speech since the election.
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As around eight guerilla protesters - most of them young men and women dressed in business attire - leapt from their seats around the Grand Hyatt ballroom and began shouting: "Malcolm Turnbull, shame on you, shut down Manus and Nauru", two women unfurled banners and one climbed on to the stage within metres of the Prime Minister. The other stood at the front of the stage on the other side of him.
Security staff quickly hustled most of the protesters out of the room, but one of the women refused to leave the stage and continued waving her banner and shouting for several minutes.
Mr Turnbull's Australian Federal Police protection agents eventually escorted her from the room, but the protest continued just outside the door.
One woman sprawled on the carpet, loudly claiming she had been assaulted.
Though Mr Turnbull was not injured, many attending the event were shocked that protesters could get so close to the Prime Minister without organisers, security personnel or the Prime Minister's protective unit detecting the presence of demonstrators in the crowd.
Several of those who took part in the protest wore badges claiming they were members of the media.
However, the badges did not appear to have been issued by any media organisation or the Committee for Economic Development of Australia (CEDA), which was hosting the luncheon.
All the demonstrators had sat quietly during lunch at audience tables scattered around the ballroom before jumping to their feet and chanting about two minutes after Mr Turnbull began speaking.
The sound system was muted and Mr Turnbull stayed at the podium without speaking until the room was cleared of demonstrators. He later continued his speech.
One of the demonstrators, Sam Castro, identified herself as founder of the group behind the protest, the Whistleblowers, Activists and Citizens Alliance.
Ms Castro said her group was supporting the Boycott Wilson Campaign, which targeted the company contracted to provide security and other services at detention centres on Nauru and Manus Island.
