Australian sedition law is the area of the criminal law of Australia relating to the crime of sedition. Criminal law (also known as penal law) is the body of common law that punishes criminals for committing offences against the state. ... Sedition is a deprecated term of law to refer to non-overt conduct such as speech and organization that is deemed by the legal authority as tending toward insurrection against the established order. ...

Effectively defunct for nearly half a century, these laws returned to public notice in 2005 when changes were included in an Anti-terrorism Bill announced by Prime Minister Howard prior to a "counter-terrorism summit" of the Council of Australian Governments on 27 September. 2005 (MMV) was a common year starting on Saturday of the Gregorian calendar. ... The Federal Anti-Terrorism Bill 2005 is draft legislation, intended to hamper the activities of any potential terrorists in Australia. ... The office of Prime Minister is in practice the most powerful political office in the Commonwealth of Australia. ... John Winston Howard (born 26 July 1939) is an Australian politician and the countrys 25th and current Prime Minister. ... A summit is: A point higher than all the ground immediately surrounding it; see topographical summit. ... The Council of Australian Governments (COAG) is an organisation consisting of the Australian Federal Government and the governments of the six states and two territories. ... September 27 is the 270th day of the year (271st in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar, with 95 days remaining. ...

The Bill was introduced on 03 November and passed into law on 06 December 2005 after government amendments adding some protection for the reporting of news and matters of public interest were introduced in response to community pressure. The changed laws are to be reviewed in 2006. November 3 is the 307th day of the year (308th in leap years) in the Gregorian Calendar, with 58 days remaining. ... December 6 is the 340th day (341st on leap years) of the year in the Gregorian calendar. ... 2005 (MMV) was a common year starting on Saturday of the Gregorian calendar. ... 2006 (MMVI) is a common year starting on Sunday of the Gregorian calendar. ...

History

Early prosecutions for sedition in Australia include:

• the conviction of Henry Seekamp for seditious libel over the Eureka Rebellion in 1854;
• the conviction of 13 trade union leaders of the 1891 Australian shearers' strike for sedition and conspiracy; and
• the action against radical Harry Holland, jailed for two years in 1909 over his advocacy of violent revolution during the Broken Hill miners' strike.

During the First World War Sedition laws were used against those who opposed conscription and war, in particular the Industrial Workers of the World (IWW) in Australia. In 1916 members of the IWW in Perth were charged with sedition including 83 year old Montague Miller, known as the grand old man of the labour movement. Miller was released after serving a few weeks of his sentence but was re-arrested in 1917 in Sydney at the age of 84 and sentenced to six months jail with hard labour at Long Bay Goal on the charge of belonging to an unlawful association.[1] The Sydney Twelve were all charged and convicted with various offences including sedition. Henry Erle Seekamp (1829 - July 19, 1864) was the journalist, editor and owner of the Ballarat Times at the time of the Eureka Stockade in 1854. ... The Eureka Flag The Eureka Stockade was a miners revolt in 1854 in Victoria, Australia against the officials supervising the gold-mining region of Ballarat due to many reasons, including heavily priced mining items and the expense of a digging license. ... The 1891 Shearers Strike is one of Australias oldest and most important industrial disputes. ... Henry Edmund (Harry) Holland (10 June 1868 - 8 October 1933) was a New Zealand politician and unionist. ... 1909 (MCMIX) was a common year starting on Friday (see link for calendar). ... Broken Hill is an isolated mining city and Local Government Area in the far west of outback New South Wales, Australia, with a population of 21,000. ... The Industrial Workers of the World (IWW or the Wobblies) is a famous international union currently headquartered in Cincinnati, Ohio, USA. It contends that all workers should be united within a single union as a class and the wage system abolished. ... The Sydney Twelve were members of the Industrial Workers of the World arrested on September 23, 1916 in Sydney, Australia, and charged with treason under an archaic law known as the Treason Felony Act (1848), arson, sedition and forgery. ...

Lance Sharkey, then General Secretary of the Communist Party of Australia, was charged that, in March 1949 he: The Communist Party of Australia was founded in 1920 and dissolved in 1991. ... 1949 (MCMXLIX) is a common year starting on Saturday. ...

uttered the following seditious words: "If Soviet Forces in pursuit of aggressors entered Australia, Australian workers would welcome them. Australian workers would welcome Soviet Forces". State motto (Russian): Пролетарии всех стран, соединяйтесь! (Transliterated: Proletarii vsekh stran, soedinyaytes!) (Translated: Workers of the world, unite!) Capital Moscow Official language None; Russian (de facto) Government Federation of Socialist republics Area  - Total  - % water 1st before collapse 22,402,200 km² Approx. ...

The last prosecution was in 1960, when Department of Native Affairs officer Brian Cooper was prosecuted for urging "the natives" of Papua New Guinea to demand independence from Australia. He was convicted, and committed suicide four years later, after losing his appeal. 1960 (MCMLX) was a leap year starting on Friday (link will take you to calendar). ... This article is being considered for deletion in accordance with Wikipedias deletion policy. ...

Previous Law

Colonial legislation, for example the Queensland Criminal Code (1899), first established sedition in Australian law. In general, the word colonial means of or relating to a colony. In United States history, the term Colonial is used to refer to the period before US independence. ... It has been suggested that Statutory law be merged into this article or section. ... Motto: Audax at Fidelis (Bold but Faithful) Nickname: Sunshine State/Smart State Other Australian states and territories Capital Brisbane Government Governor Premier Const. ... The law of Australia consists of the Australian common law (which is based on the United Kingdom common law), federal laws enacted by the Parliament of Australia, and laws enacted by the Parliaments of the Australian states and territories. ...

The Federal period offence of sedition was created in the Federal Crimes Act (1914). The federation of Australia was the process by which the six separate British colonies of New South Wales, Queensland, South Australia, Tasmania, Victoria and Western Australia formed a federation. ... Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is the sixth-largest country in the world, the only country to occupy an entire continent, and the largest in the region of Australasia/Oceania. ...

Seditious Intention

Section 24 defined a seditious intention as [a]n intention to effect any of the following purposes:

(a) to bring the Sovereign into hatred or contempt;

(d) to excite disaffection against the Government or Constitution of the Commonwealth or against either House of the Parliament of the Commonwealth;

(f) to excite Her Majesty's subjects to attempt to procure the alteration, otherwise than by lawful means, of any matter in the Commonwealth established by law of the Commonwealth; or

(g) to promote feelings of ill-will and hostility between different classes of Her Majesty's subjects so as to endanger the peace, order or good government of the Commonwealth;

Seditious Enterprises

Section 24B defined a seditious enterprise as an enterprise undertaken in order to carry out a seditious intention, and Section 24C specified that [a] person who engages in a seditious enterprise with the intention of causing violence, or creating public disorder or a public disturbance, is guilty of an indictable offence punishable on conviction by imprisonment for not longer than 3 years, although Section 24D(2) provided that [a] person cannot be convicted of any of the offences defined in section 24C or this section upon the uncorroborated testimony of one witness.

Seditious Words

Section 24B defined seditious words as words expressive of a seditious intention, and Section 24D(1) specified that [a]ny person who, with the intention of causing violence or creating public disorder or a public disturbance, writes, prints, utters or publishes any seditious words shall be guilty of an indictable offence punishable by [i]mprisonment for 3 years.

Summary Prosecution

Section 24E allowed that, while an accused person might elect to be committed for trial, sedition could, with the consent of the Attorney-General, be prosecuted summarily, in which case the applicable penalty would be imprisonment for a period not exceeding 12 months. A summary judgment is a legal decision in a case made when one party to a lawsuit requests summary judgment by pre-trial motion. ...

Good Faith

Section 24F specified that nothing in the preceding provisions made it unlawful:

(a) to endeavour in good faith to show that the Sovereign, the Governor-General, the Governor of a State, the Administrator of a Territory, or the advisers of any of them, or the persons responsible for the government of another country, has or have been, or is or are, mistaken in any of his or their counsels, policies or actions;

(b) to point out in good faith errors or defects in the government, the constitution, the legislation or the administration of justice of or in the Commonwealth, a State, a Territory or another country, with a view to the reformation of those errors or defects;

(c) to excite in good faith another person to attempt to procure by lawful means the alteration of any matter established by law in the Commonwealth, a State, a Territory or another country;

(d) to point out in good faith, in order to bring about their removal, any matters that are producing, or have a tendency to produce, feelings of ill-will or hostility between different classes of persons; or

(e) to do anything in good faith in connexion with an industrial dispute or an industrial matter.

In considering a good faith defence, it was specifically noted that the Court might consider whether the case involved the safety or defence of the Commonwealth; assistance to countries or organisations at war with the country or its allies, or to enemies of its allies (whether or not they are enemies of Australia); traitors or saboteurs; or the intention of causing violence or creating public disorder or a public disturbance. For the practice in Wikipedia, see Wikipedia:Assume good faith. ...

Unlawful Organisations

Section 30A declared that any body of persons, incorporated or unincorporated (or [a]ny branch or committee of an unlawful association, and any institution or school conducted by or under the authority or apparent authority of an unlawful association) which by its constitution or propaganda or otherwise advocates or encourages (or which is, or purports to be, affiliated with any organization which advocates or encourages) sabotage; damage to property used in cross-border trade or commerce; revolution or war against either any civilised country or organised government; or the doing of any act having or purporting to have as an object the carrying out of a seditious intention was an unlawful association for the purposes of the Act.

The Act went on to criminalise members (deemed, in the absence of evidence to the contrary, to include attendees at a meeting, those speaking in public in advocacy of an association or its objects or distributing its literature), officers, representatives and teachers in any institution or school conducted by or under the authority or apparent authority, of an unlawful association, as well as persons printing or selling material produced by, or intentionally permitting a meeting in their premises of, such an association.

Current Law

Schedule 7 of the Anti-Terrorism Bill (No. 2) 2005, passed by the Upper House on 06 December 2005, repealed Sections 24A to 24E of the Crimes Act (1914) and reintroduced them, along with several new classes of offence, in a Division 80—Treason and sedition. Crimes in this division now attract a maximum penalty of seven years' imprisonment. Australian Senate chamber Entrance to the Senate The Australian Senate is the upper of the two houses of the Parliament of Australia. ... December 6 is the 340th day (341st on leap years) of the year in the Gregorian calendar. ... 2005 (MMV) was a common year starting on Saturday of the Gregorian calendar. ... A repeal is the removal or reversal of a law. ...

Seditious Intention

The definition of "seditious intention" originally in Section 24A has become (as amended) an intention to use force or violence to effect any of the following purposes:

(a) to bring the Sovereign into hatred or contempt;

(b) to urge disaffection against the following:

(i) the Constitution;

(ii) the Government of the Commonwealth;

(iii) either House of the Parliament;

(c) to urge another person to attempt, otherwise than by lawful means, to procure a change to any matter established by law in the Commonwealth;

(d) to promote feelings of ill-will or hostility between different groups so as to threaten the peace, order and good government of the Commonwealth.

Australia is a constitutional monarchy, a federation and a parliamentary democracy. ... // Australia is a constitutional monarchy, a federation and a parliamentary democracy. ... The Parliament of Australia is the legislative branch of Australia. ...

Sedition

Subdivision 80.2 of the proposed legislation (as amended) specifically criminalises Urging the overthrow of the Constitution or Government:

(1) A person commits an offence if the person urges another person to overthrow by force or violence:

(a) the Constitution; or

(b) the Government of the Commonwealth, a State or a Territory; or

(c) the lawful authority of the Government of the Commonwealth.

Similarly, it introduces the offence of [urging] another person to interfere by force or violence with lawful processes for an election of a member or members of a House of the Parliament, and Urging violence within the community:

(a) the person urges a group or groups (whether distinguished by race, religion, nationality or political opinion) to use force or violence against another group or other groups (as so distinguished); and

(b) the use of the force or violence would threaten the peace, order and good government of the Commonwealth.

Additionally, it is now specifically illegal to [urge] a person to assist the enemy:

(a) the person urges another person to engage in conduct; and

(b) the first-mentioned person intends the conduct to assist, by any means whatever, an organisation or country; and

(c) the organisation or country is:

(i) at war with the Commonwealth, whether or not the existence of a state of war has been declared; and

(ii) specified by Proclamation made for the purpose of paragraph 80.1(1)(e) to be an enemy at war with the Commonwealth.

or to [urge] a person to assist those engaged in armed hostilities:

(a) the person urges another person to engage in conduct; and

(b) the first-mentioned person intends the conduct to assist, by any means whatever, an organisation or country; and

(c) the organisation or country is engaged in armed hostilities against the Australian Defence Force.

except where such urgings are by way of, or for the purposes of, the provision of aid of a humanitarian nature.

These new crimes are all punishable by Imprisonment for 7 years.

Good Faith

The new legislation, in subsection 80.3 Defence for Acts done in Good Faith, updates the circumstances for good faith exemption in a fashion similar to the definition of seditious intention, above.

Extraterritoriality

The new law specifies, under section 80.4 Extended geographical jurisdiction for offences, that:

Section 15.4 (extended geographical jurisdiction - category D) applies to an offence against this Division

Originally introduced into Australian law as a consequence of Australia's acceptance of the International Criminal Court, Section 15.4 of the Criminal Code Act (1995) provides that offences under category D apply: Official logo of the ICC. The International Criminal Court (ICC) was established in 2002 as a permanent tribunal to prosecute individuals for genocide, crimes against humanity, and war crimes, as defined by several international agreements, most prominently the Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court. ...

(a) whether or not the conduct constituting the alleged offence occurs in Australia; and

(b) whether or not a result of the conduct constituting the alleged offence occurs in Australia.

Category D — initially applicable only to such crimes as genocide and crimes against humanity — specifically omits provisions restricting its scope to Australian citizens, and therefore applies to any person in any country, giving Australia universal jurisdiction over the crime of sedition. Genocide is defined by the Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of the Crime of Genocide (CPPCG) article 2 as any of the following acts committed with intent to destroy, in whole or in part, a national, ethnic, racial or religious group, as such: Killing members of the group; Causing... This article is in need of attention. ... Universal jurisdiction or universality principle is a controversial principle in international law whereby states claim criminal jurisdiction over persons whose alleged crimes were committed outside the boundaries of the prosecuting state, regardless of nationality, country of residence, or any other relation with the prosecuting country. ...

Amendments

The following amendments were introduced to the Bill prior to its passage.

• (68) Schedule 7, item 4, page 109 (line 14), after an intention, insert to use force or violence.

• (69) Schedule 7, item 12, page 111 (line 11), omit subsection 80.2(2), substitute:

(2) Recklessness applies to the element of the offence under subsection (1) that it is:

(a) the Constitution; or

(b) the Government of the Commonwealth, a State or a Territory; or

(c) the lawful authority of the Government of the Commonwealth;

that the first-mentioned person urges the other person to overthrow.

• (70) Schedule 7, item 12, page 112 (lines 6 and 7), omit , by any means whatever,.

• (71) Schedule 7, item 12, page 112 (lines 18 and 19), omit , by any means whatever,.

• (72) Schedule 7, item 12, page 113 (line 29), at the end of subsection 80.3(1) (before the note), add:

; or (f) publishes in good faith a report or commentary about a matter of public interest.

Penalties and Scope

The new laws more than double the maximum penalty for sedition from three years imprisonment to seven, and allow certain convictions relating to the use of force or violence on the basis of recklessness rather than proven intent. In the criminal law, recklessness (sometimes also termed wilful blindness) is one of the three possible classes of mental state constituting mens rea (the Latin for guilty mind). To commit an offence of ordinary as opposed to strict liability, the prosecution must be able to prove both an actus reus...

However, the amended laws no longer include specific penalties for uttering seditious words, nor provisions relating to seditious enterprises, although the definition of seditious intent continues to apply in the determination of unlawful organisations. Additionally, all prosecutions for sedition (no longer just summary prosecution) now require the approval of the Attorney-General, although this does not apply to arrests. An utterance is a complete unit of talk, bounded by silence. ...

Implications

The principal changes to sedition law in the proposed bill seem to involve:

• the inclusion of sedition along with the separate crime of treason under their new joint heading;
• an increase in the maximum penalties from three to seven years;
• the introduction of the concept of recklessness;
• the inapplicability of seditious intention to individuals not associated with an unlawful organisation;
• its extension to foreign citizens.

Perhaps most importantly, the "modernisation" of the laws seems to indicate that the government, apparently in the expectation of an increase in seditious activity, now intend to actively enforce laws which had been allowed to fall into disuse.

Review

The Anti-Terrorism Bill (No 2.) 2005 included provisions for a five-year review, and has a ten-year sunset clause. In addition, the Coalition backbench committee, in response to significant public outcry about the potential for the new legislation to stifle free speech and despite the government's claims about a new and imminent threat necessitating the passage through both houses of the limited and specific Anti-Terrorism Bill 2005, successfully lobbied the government to introduce an earlier review of the sedition provisions and accept certain minor amendments. A sunset clause is commonly a provision of a law passed by a legislature which causes that law to, in effect, repeal itself automatically as of a given date in the future, unless it is extended by another act of legislature. ... The Coalition in Australian politics refers to the grouping of two political parties that has existed in the form of a coalition agreement since 1922, with only brief breaks (e. ... A backbencher is a Member of Parliament or a legislature who does not hold governmental office and is not a Front Bench spokesperson in the Opposition. ... Freedom of speech is the right to freely say what one pleases, as well as the related right to hear what others have stated. ...

The majority Senate committee report into the Bill, delivered on 28 November 2005, recommended amongst 52 proposed changes that the sedition provisions be removed from the Bill until after a review, claiming they were poorly drafted and undermined free speech, and that the existing law negated any urgency for their introduction. The report's recommendations were dismissed by the government. Australian Senate chamber Entrance to the Senate The Australian Senate is the upper of the two houses of the Parliament of Australia. ... November 28 is the 332nd day (333rd on leap years) of the year in the Gregorian Calendar. ... 2005 (MMV) was a common year starting on Saturday of the Gregorian calendar. ...

ALRC Review

This article documents a current event. Information may change rapidly as the event progresses.

In December 2005, The Attorney-General Phillip Ruddock foreshadowed an independent review of the amended sedition laws, and provided the Australian Law Reform Commission (ALRC) with formal Terms of Reference for this purpose on 2 March 2006. In particular, the ALRC has been asked to examine: Wikipedia does not have an article with this exact name. ... To suggest a relevant news story for the main page, refer to the criteria then add your suggestion at the candidates page. ... In most common law jurisdictions, the Attorney General is the main legal adviser to the government, and in some jurisdictions may in addition have executive responsibility for law enforcement or responsibility for public prosecutions. ... Philip Ruddock Philip Maxwell Ruddock (born March 12, 1943), Australian politician, is Attorney-General in the Coalition Government of Australian Prime Minister John Howard. ... Australian Law Reform Commission is an independent body set up to keep the law of Australia under review and recommend necessary reforms to improve, simplify and update. ... March 2 is the 61st day of the year in the Gregorian Calendar (62nd in leap years). ... 2006 (MMVI) is a common year starting on Sunday of the Gregorian calendar. ...

• whether the amendments, including the sedition offence and defences in sections 80.2 and 80.3 of the Criminal Code, effectively address the problem of urging the use of force or violence;
• whether "sedition" is the appropriate term to identify this conduct;
• whether Part IIA of the Crimes Act, as amended, is effective to address the problem of organisations that advocate or encourage the use of force or violence to achieve political objectives; and
• any related matter.

In carrying out its review, the ALRC will have particular regard to:

• the circumstances in which individuals or organisations intentionally urge others to use force or violence against any group within the community, against Australians overseas, against Australia’s forces overseas or in support of an enemy at war with Australia; and
• the practical difficulties involved in proving a specific intention to urge violence or acts of terrorism.

On 20 March 2006 the ALRC, "committed to consulting as widely as possible, within the short timeframe provided", released an Issues Paper ^[2] and opened submissions until 10 April 2006 to feed the drafting of a discussion paper including legislative options and a final report with recommendations for tabling by the Attorney-General. March 20 is the 79th day of the year in the Gregorian Calendar (80th in Leap years). ... 2006 (MMVI) is a common year starting on Sunday of the Gregorian calendar. ... April 10 is the 100th day of the year in the Gregorian calendar (101st in leap years). ... 2006 (MMVI) is a common year starting on Sunday of the Gregorian calendar. ... In Britain, a green paper is a tentative government report of a proposal without any commitment to action; the first step in changing the law. ... A table is a piece of furniture with a horizontal surface supported above the ground. ...

Opposition to the Provisions

Despite almost unconditional support for the remainder of the Anti-Terrorism Bill, by mid-November the main opposition Australian Labor Party (including two of the Premiers involved in the original COAG meeting) had joined several prominent Coalition backbenchers in calling for the removal of the Bill's sedition provisions, and committed itself to their repeal in the event it gained government. The Australian Labor Party or ALP is Australias oldest political party. ... The Premiers of the Australian states are the heads of the executive governments in the six states of the Commonwealth of Australia. ...

Incitement

At common law it is unlawful to incite a crime. Additionally, the Criminal Code Act (1995) specifically details the crimes of incitement and conspiracy, making it an offence to: This article concerns the common-law legal system, as contrasted with the civil law legal system; for other meanings of the term, within the field of law, see common law (disambiguation). ... In English criminal law, incitement is an anticipatory common law offence and is the act of persuading, encouraging, instigating, pressuring, or threatening so as to cause another to commit a crime. ...

• incite, urge, aid or encourage; or

• print or publish any writing which incites to, urges, aids or encourages;

• the commission of offences against any Federal or Territory law or carrying on of any operation for or by the commission of such offences.

Incitement of or conspiracy to commit an act of sedition would therefore be punishable as a crime, although incitement to incite sedition is specifically not a criminal act under the Code.

Potential Defences

Despite the lack of a Bill of Rights in Federal law, it is possible that certain High Court decisions which imply freedom of political communication effectively provide a legal basis for seditious activity, although this presumption has not been tested. A bill of rights is a statement of certain rights which, under a societys laws, citizens and/or residents either have, want to have, or ought to have. ... High Court entrance The High Court of Australia is the final court of appeal in Australia, the highest court in the Australian court hierarchy. ... Australian constitutional law is the area of the law of Australia relating to the interpretation and application of the Australian Constitution. ...

See also

• Australian Anti-Terrorism Act 2005

The Australian Anti-Terrorism Act 2005 is legislation intended to hamper the activities of any potential terrorists in Australia. ...

Debate

• World Socialist Web Site: "Australian government unveils legal framework for police state": [3]
• "Rights Australia": "Premiers should strengthen rights protection before endorsing new 'terrorism' laws": [4]
• Coverage on "No Right Turn": [5]
• The Age: "How's this for sedition?", an article inciting sedition: [6]
• The Australian: "More harm than good may flow from updated anti-terror laws": [7]
• Media Watch discussion of implications to journalism: [8]
• Green Left Weekly: "ASIO laws: Don't be silenced" [9]
• "Arts Coalition Objects to Sedition Provisions", a Pen article about Robert Connolly's initiative: [10]
• The Australian "Curbs on ideas pose a threat", a discussion of the sedition provisions [11]

The Socialist Equality Party is the name of several branches of the Trotskyist International Committee of the Fourth International (ICFI), the largest being in the United States. ... The Age is a broadsheet daily newspaper, which has been published in Melbourne, Australia since 1854. ... The Australian (informally referred to as The Oz) is a national daily broadsheet newspaper published by Rupert Murdochs News Corporation. ... Media Watch is an Australian television series screening on the ABC. It currently screens from 9. ... Green Left Weekly is a left-wing Australian newspaper. ... The Australian (informally referred to as The Oz) is a national daily broadsheet newspaper published by Rupert Murdochs News Corporation. ...

References

1. Federal Crimes Act (1914): [12]
2. Federal Anti-Terrorism Bill (No. 2) 2005 and memoranda: [13] (and sedition-specific Schedule 7 of the draft bill)
3. Federal Criminal Code Act 1995: [14]
4. Legal opinion concerning the new sedition provisions: [15]
5. Amnesty International's discussion of Universal Jurisdiction [16]
6. "Note on Sedition and Terror Online", a Caslon Analytics article: [17]
7. Australian sedition law discussed in relation to Article 20 of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights: [18]
8. Reportage in The Australian about passage of the legislation [19]
9. Sydney's Burning (An Australian Political Conspiracy), Ian Turner (1969) for details on the use of sedition against the IWW
10. Australian Law Reform Commission Issues Paper 30, Review of Sedition Laws [20], includes detailed history, legislative review, questions section; register for sedition-related mailing list