The following article was published in "The Guardian", newspaper
of the Communist Party of Australia in its issue of Wednesday,
March 27th, 2002. Contact address: 65 Campbell Street, Surry Hills. Sydney.
2010 Australia. Phone: (612) 9212 6855 Fax: (612) 9281 5795. CPA Central
Committee: <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>
"The Guardian": <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>
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TERROR LAWS Urgent action required
The Federal Government and ALP have combined to stifle public comment on
proposed anti-terrorism laws that threaten to criminalise social
dissent. The legislation introduced into Parliament this month creates
new offences of terrorism, gives the government the power to ban
organisations and gives ASIO the power to detain people incommunicado
for 48 hours. A Senate Committee will hold a public inquiry into the
legislation, but have only given the public less then two weeks to
comment on the new laws. It is crucial that people act now to express
their opposition to the laws and pressure the Labor Party to block the
passage of the legislation in the Senate.
by Damien Lawson
Federation of Community Legal Centres
Organisations banned
Like the Menzies Government's Communist Party Dissolution Act, "the
Security Legislation (Terrorism) Amendment Bill" will give the
government wide powers to outlaw organisations that it opposes.
The Attorney General will be able to proscribe organisations "likely to
endanger, the security or integrity of the Commonwealth or another
country." People who are members or assist banned organisations face up
to 25 years imprisonment.
The phrase "or another country" is important. This would allow a range
of groups that support anti-colonial or national independence struggles
to be proscribed. Under this law Nelson Mandela's ANC or East Timor's
Fretilin could have been banned. Already the government has created a
list of groups to be banned, which include Kurdish organisations, and
Colombian guerilla groups the ELN and FARC.
Secret Police
ASIO will move from spy agency to secret police. With the assistance of
the state or Federal police, ASIO will be able to arrest and hold people
for questioning for 48 hours after obtaining a warrant from a Federal
Magistrate or the Administrative Appeals Tribunal (AAT).
Both these bodies have been appointed by the present Federal Government.
AAT members do not have the same independence as judges, with fixed
terms and reappointment determined by the government.
People will be able to be held incommunicado with no right to a lawyer
and no contact with family or the outside world. People could face up to
five years in jail for refusing to answer questions, removing people's
right to silence.
Such powers would not be restricted to those suspected of terrorism, but
anyone who might have information regarding politically motivated
violence. The Attorney General has said this could include lawyers and
journalists and even children.
It is clear these laws will be used to further harass and intimidate the
Islamic and Arab communities in Australia, if the "war on terrorism"
continues this net could widen to include anyone perceived as outside
the establishment.
Terrorism or activism
Terrorism has replaced communism or subversion as the justification for
the secret snooping of intelligence agencies and the development of
powerful national security infrastructures.
Often these institutions have worked to shut down political dissent and
criticism rather then pursue terrorism. Following the rise of the global
social movements challenging corporate globalisation, these institutions
have scrambled to gain new powers and greater resources.
The attacks on September 11 have given greater impetus to this process
with police and intelligence agencies arguing that terrorism and
activism are the same problem and need to be approached in the same manner.
Terrorist acts
The government's proposed terrorism offences have the potential to be
used to criminalise militant unionism and direct action from social
movements.
The Criminal Code will be amended to create a definition of "terrorist
act", which includes actions that are made with "with the intention of
advancing a political, religious or ideological cause".
Such actions are not restricted to harm to persons, but also include
serious damage to property or something that places at risk the health
and safety of a section of the public.
The scope of the definition is broadened even further to include any act
that "seriously interferes with, seriously disrupts, or destroys, an
electronic system".
An electronic system is defined broadly to include systems used in most
areas of industry, such as information systems, telecommunications,
financial systems, the delivery of essential government services,
essential public utilities, and transport systems.
While there is an exemption for industrial action and lawful advocacy,
protest or dissent, such an exemption does not cover a range of
industrial action such as the effective picketing of the MUA dispute or
a range of civil disobedience.
Using this broad definition of terrorism the legislation creates a
series of offences such as collecting or making documents connected with
terrorist acts, possessing things connected with terrorist acts or
financing terrorist acts. All offences can attract a penalty of life
imprisonment.
It is easy to imagine that a picket line or civil disobedience could be
labelled as terrorist and these laws used to criminalise political
opposition to government policy. Whatever one thinks of the present
government, providing any government with such powerful executive power
is dangerous.
Will the ALP block the laws?
The ALP has said they have concerns about the legislation but have not
declared their position with regards to a vote in the Senate.
It is crucial we place as much pressure as we can on the ALP to join
with the Greens and Democrats in blocking the laws. People should ensure
as many individuals and organisations as possible make submissions to
the inquiry and use this as a spring board for a campaign of gaining
union and public opposition to the laws.
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