SAS man speaks out for liberty
A former SAS soldier, the newest member of the WA Parliament, delivered a telling commentary on the erosion of civil liberties in Australia when he gave his maiden speech in March. "...a speech capable of making the hairs on the back of your neck stand up," said ABC reporter, Claire Krol.
Read more »...Rann plan bad idea for justice
SA Premier Michael Rann, up for re-election in March 2010, is proposing that a defendant's personal history should be revealed to juries - before they decide guilt or innocence - so as to send more people to prison. CLA and the SACCL, plus most other knowledgeable legal observers, think Mr Rann is confusing conviction with justice.
Indigenous stats
sound alarm bells
Victoria is one of the more enlightened states in looking after Indigenous people...but still the statistics are appalling, as this analysis by Keith McEwan points out. "Life is not so good for an Indigenous person living in Victoria...or, for that matter, anywhere in Australia."
Read more »...NZ cuts are the unkindest of all
As governments worldwide cut back on prison numbers to save money, New Zealand is headed in the other direction, counter-intuitively cutting back on rehabilitation services, which will increase repeat offending and lead to more cost to the taxpayer.
Read more »...
Bikie laws
on hold:
WA active
With an appeal pending in the High Court from the SA Government because of the over-turning of part of its 'bikie' legislation, similar laws are largely on hold Australia-wide. In WA, motorcycle groups are getting active ahead of a likely mid-year introduction of anti-association laws to the WA Parliament.
(Photo: Club rally, Fremantle, Feb 2010: photo by JR)
Do same crime, serve same time...
but not if living in Queensland
A man's serving five years in jail in Queensland for customs duty evasion, a federal offence. Anywhere else in Australia he would be free. Is this a fair go? Here Tim Vines outlines how 'justice' in Australia depends on where you live. And there's also serious questions about whether the government side abided by Model Litigant principles in the case.
Read more »...CLA calls on Tassie to abandon
laws curtailing election comment
Tasmania still has anti-freedom-to-blog laws that South Australia this month canned before the 20 March 2010 elections expected in both states. In Tassie, you can be fined $12,000 AND sent to jail for three months for not putting your name and address at the bottom of election comment online. CLA today called for Tasmania also to abandon the repressive legislation.
Stand up for our eroding liberties
Editor, CLA Your Opinion: The Tax Commissioner's defence of his powers to break into homes and businesses without judicial warrants as 'trust me, I'm a good guy' is a dangerous argument. Powers such as these should be resisted when proposed, and removed where they exist. Many societies have lived to regret their complacency in allowing them. In the 1970s the Statistician asked for these powers to gather statistics. After a vigorous campaign, they were deleted.
Read more »...Purchasing lore: Govt buys badly
Ideological but illogical, inefficient and expensive...words that sum up how the Australian Government buys in its legal expertise, Ernst Willheim says in analysing the recently-released Legal Services Procurement Report. The report has some excellent recommendations, he says, but it should propose further unwinding of the current "unsatisfactory arrangements".
WA Premier's re-think welcomed
There's an upsurge of community concern in Perth about how police are using their new stop-and-search powers (which are largely mirrored throughout Australia). WA Premier Colin Barnett has promised to review the powers, so CLA issued a supportive statement encouraging 'sensible compromise'.
ALRC tells government
how to do
Commissions
on the cheap
Australia looks likely to get a new form of major investigation - the Official Inquiry - as a second tier to the existing Royal Commission system, after the Australian Law Reform Commission tabled its report No 111, 'Making Inquiries'. The ALRC has made other recommendations that would make the inquiry process more open, and oblige the government to respond in a timely manner to inquiry recommendations.
Assault on
liberties
long, laboured
Round-robins of 'tough on crime' legislation go from state to state, nation to nation. Here, noted Manchester QC Mark George analyses the cumulative effect of years of repressive laws in the UK, which have whittled away the traditional protections of the 'rule of law'. Other Observer newspaper commentators take the debate further.
Read more »...SA's 'stand-out' AG strikes again
Updated: Michael Atkinson, the South Australian Attorney General noted for quaint ways, is at it again: a new law means you must attach your name/details to any letter or blog comment once the March 2010 SA election is formally called, which is expected imminently. The SA pollies can accept anonymous donations...but citizens can't make anonymous comments on the pollies' performance.
Atkinson backflip: when's the election?
Wed 3 Feb 2010 A-G Atkinson did a backflip
Prisons in Victoria, 2010
How well are Australia's prisons serving the community? One major Royal Commission recommendation was that the community constantly keep watch on what is happening in prisons. Here, CLA's Keith McEwan does just that, for the Victorian prison system.
Radical stop-and-search powers
ruled invalid by EU court
Updated:- In a surprise decision, the EU Court of Human Rights has overturned a House of Lords judgement and told Britain that its police stop-and-search powers are invalid. The government must now reframe the laws to abide by human rights.
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