Australia’s lower house of parliament has passed the first in a series of counter-terrorism amendments toughening the country’s national security law. The new legislation could see journalists jailed for reporting on related matters.
Crackdown on freedoms? Australian Senate passes
draconian anti-terror laws
National Security Amendments Bill (No. 1), passed by Australia’s
House of Representatives on Wednesday, says a person who
discloses information relating to a special intelligence
operation may face from five to 10 years behind bars.
Copying, transcribing or retaining records of the Australian
Security Intelligence Organisation (ASIO) is also outlawed, which
is seen as a measure taken in the wake of Edward Snowden’s leaks
of documents on the US’s National Security Agency.
Reporting on national security matters is being restricted
simultaneously with more powers being granted to the country’s
surveillance agency, with their power to monitor computers being
expanded.
The government has justified the legislation as one boosting the
country’s security in the wake of terrorist threat posed by the
Islamic State extremist group (IS, formerly ISIS or ISIL).
"This is not, as has been wrongly suggested, about preventing
the release of information that might simply embarrass the
government of the day or expose it to criticism," Justice
Minister Michael Keenan said. "This is about providing a
necessary and proportionate limitation on the communication of
information that relates to the core business of intelligence
agencies.”
One of the most ardent critics of the law is former intelligence
whistleblower-turned-federal MP Andrew Wilkie.
"This is clamping down on free speech; this is clamping down
on oversight of what the security agencies are up to," he
said, according to the Sydney Morning Herald.
Another opponent of the law is Greens deputy leader Adam Bandt,
who believes intelligence agents could go unpunished for any
possible misconduct as a result.
"If these laws pass, our security agencies could
inadvertently kill an innocent bystander and journalists would
not be able to report on it," Bandt said.
However, there weren’t enough critics of the law in the lower
house to prevent it from being passed. The legislation was
supported by the main opposition Labor Party.
The Committee to Protect Journalists, a New York based NGO,
issued a statement saying it was worried by the new Australian
legislation.
"This national security bill and other draft legislation
raise grave concerns about the direction in which Australia is
heading," said CPJ Asia Program Coordinator Bob Dietz.
"These bills would seriously hamper reporting in the public
interest and we urge lawmakers to add the necessary safeguards to
protect journalists and whistleblowers."
The controversial law is one in a series of amendments to the
country’s 1979 intelligence act, which are supposed to upgrade
the country’s legislation in the face of the terrorist threat the
government has been concerned about. Prime Minister Tony Abbott
earlier warned the amendments might shift “balance between freedom and
security.”
In mid-September, Australia raised its terror alert to the second
highest level in response to the activities of the extremist IS
group in the in the Middle East.
Abbott warned there were at least 60 Australians fighting
alongside terrorist groups in Syria and Iraq, and at least 100
Australians who were supporting them. The PM also pointed to the
fact that more than 20 of these foreign fighters have already
returned to Australia and pose a threat to national security.
Islamic State spokesman issued a speech September 21, urging Muslims to launch attacks on civilians from
US-led coalition countries, including Australia.
Among other counter-terrorism amendments that are pending
parliamentary approval in Australia are a law that would require
the country’s telecom companies to save metadata and provide it
to government agencies, and also a law restricting travel to
conflict zones in the Middle East.