The cavalry police force in Melbourne today used tear gas to suppress and arrest protesters who broke through security fences set up on the street.
It is unclear how many people were arrested in clashes between police and protesters in these two cities.
The mass protests took place at a time when Australia recorded 894 new infections in the past 24 hours, a record level since Covid-19 appeared in the country.
Australian police clashed with anti-blockade protesters
Australian police suppress anti-blockade protesters in Melbourne on August 21.
Sydney, the capital of more than 5 million people of the state of New South Wales, has been under lockdown for two months, but has still not been able to prevent the Covid-19 outbreak in the community.
`We are facing a very serious situation in New South Wales,` state health authority leader Brad Hazzard said.
Police today deployed patrols on Sydney’s streets, preventing public transport and private vehicles from entering the city center to reduce the number of people gathering at an unauthorized protest.
In Melbourne, after Premier Daniel Andrews decided to expand the blockade to the entire state of Victoria, a large group tried to protest and many people then clashed with police.
Victoria State Police Chief Shane Patton previously warned people to stay away from protests, saying it was `ridiculous` for selfish crowds to protest at this time.
Hundreds of people also participated in a peaceful protest in Brisbane, the capital of Queensland state, which has not yet been imposed a blockade to prevent nCoV.
Australians generally do not support protests against the blockade.
Australian police used pepper spray to repel protesters in downtown Melbourne on August 21.
Complying with public health rules is one of the main reasons why Australia has been successful in its efforts to contain Covid-19.
New South Wales officials on August 21 announced three more deaths and 516 people hospitalized.
Australia has so far recorded 43,123 cases of infection, relatively low compared to other developed countries, of which 978 deaths.
