re: new terror laws....more
Law Council reacts angrily to anti-terror laws PRINT FRIENDLY EMAIL STORY AM - Saturday, 15 October , 2005 08:00:18 Reporter: Louise Yaxley ELIZABETH JACKSON: The Law Council has reacted angrily to the draft anti-terror laws, which were released for the first time yesterday.
The ACT Chief Minister, Jon Stanhope, posted the proposed laws on his website, even though they were given to him in confidence by the Federal Government.
The Bills are due to be introduced to Federal Parliament in a fortnight.
The minor parties and the Law Council say the Federal Government's new anti-terror laws go much further than previously anticipated.
Law Council President John North has told Louise Yaxley that the laws are being enacted with "indecent haste" and are open to abuse by police.
JOHN NORTH: The Law Council is upset that the Government has acted with undue haste to try and push through laws that will affect each and every Australian.
We're most concerned about the control orders and the preventative detention orders. They will allow the Government to seek and obtain these orders without the people even having any right to know about it, or to inform themselves or properly inform lawyers.
LOUISE YAXLEY: Were you surprised to see that, that they won't know themselves that they are the subject of the order?
JOHN NORTH: We are surprised, because these are not like seeking a warrant, they're actually placing people in detention or at home on control orders, and therefore these people should be allowed to get legal advice and argue about these matters prior to them being obtained.
It seems to be against the fundamental right of Australians to remain free unless they are reasonably suspected of having committed and offence.
And in this legislation, it looks as if the Government is going to be able to lock people up in times of fear, such as if they are having a heads of government meeting or an Olympic Games, and if they think that there's going to be trouble, they can pull people off the street and hold them under these orders.
LOUISE YAXLEY: Are there other areas of these laws that cause you concern?
JOHN NORTH: There's a new crime of advocating terrorism, which allows people to be jailed if they praise a terrorist act. How far the ambit that that is going is beyond us and we'd like to see how it can work in real life.
There is also a part of the legislation that may allow the AFP (Australian Federal Police), the police, to use lethal force when arresting someone under this Act or when they are trying to flee.
LOUISE YAXLEY: How does that differ from what happens at the moment?
JOHN NORTH: Well it differs in that police under today's law can only use lethal force if they are directly themselves threatened or they have to save someone. Under this, there's seems to be enough room to manoeuvre and it seems to be directly pointed at the London situation where the person was shot.
LOUISE YAXLEY: The other area of controversy over these laws has been the amount of time that the Senate's been given to consider them. What's the Law Council's view on that?
JOHN NORTH: The Government is acting with indecent haste to bring in laws. The states and the territories have been given one week, the Senate have been given one week and they will have Estimates Committee hearings on during that week, no one else has been given proper consultation.
This is a great, great shame when laws of this importance are being brought in.
LOUISE YAXLEY: What do you say to those who say that the Government, when it says that these laws are needed immediately because of the potential for terrorist attacks?
JOHN NORTH: The Government knows that the people are scared. The people are crying out to the Government to make them safer, we are just asking the Government to bring in laws that actually do make us safer, not put our liberty in jeopardy.
ELIZABETH JACKSON: Law Council President John North speaking to our reporter Louise Yaxley.
