2 Jun 2012

Student protesters complain of police arrest action

12:04 pm on 2 June 2012

An organiser of a student protest in Auckland says the group intends laying complaints about the way participants were manhandled by police officers.

Police arrested 43 people during a demonstration on Friday against the Government's education changes.

Part of Symonds Street was closed for a time after students sat in the middle of the road.

Demonstration organiser Jai Bentley-Payne says some of the arrests were violent as police dived into the crowd and punched students.

"There were students with black eyes and one guy had a dislocated wrist. I was dragged out of the crowd by my throat - it was really just a farce to be honest."

Mr Bentley-Payne says the protestors have extensive camera footage of the arrests.