Australia criminalises journalism - 10 year jail threat

New laws passed with the acquiescence of the opposition Labor Party. Anyone found guilty of disclosing details of a "special intelligence operation" - as designated solely by the order of the Attorney-General - faces 5 years jail, 10 years if the disclosure reveals the identity of agents involved. The laws far exceed anything on the statute books of comparable liberal democracies. They've been passed in the knee-jerk environment of fear around the "threat" of ISIS to national security but are clearly aimed more at Wikileaks-style revelations.



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http://ift.tt/1q31Z00 Under the National Security Amendment Bill (No 1) 2014 journalists can now be jailed for up to 5 years for disclosing information on covert intelligence operations, and up to 10 years if that disclosure endangers lives. According to the journalists’ union, the MEAA , this: " “... overturns the public’s right to know. It persecutes and prosecutes whistleblowers and journalists who are dealing with whistleblowers. It imposes ludicrous penalties of up to 10 years jail on journalists. It imposes outrageous surveillance on journalists and the computer networks of their media employers ...” — Media, Entertainment and Arts Alliance, 26th September, 2014" But according to Attorney-General George Brandis it is a law we need for our safety. And it is not intended to be an attack on press freedom. "GEORGE BRANDIS: This is not a law about journalism, it’s not a law about journalists, it’s a law of general application about the disclosure of something which ought not, for obvious reasons, to be disclosed. — ABC News 24, 1st October, 2014" The new national security law—which was supported by all parties except the Greens—has been in the planning for the last two years, and is not a reaction to ISIS or the latest terror raids. Indeed its aim, according to Griffith University’s Professor of Journalism Mark Pearson is much broader. "The provision is clearly aimed at preventing Wikileaks or Snowden-style leaks of recent years and their broad publication in the world’s media and across social media ... — JournLaw.com, 20th July, 2014" So what will now be prohibited? Well, it was already a jailable offence to name an ASIO officer. The new law increases the maximum penalty from 1 to 10 years. But the key provision is section 35P, which bans disclosure of any information that relates to a SPECIAL Intelligence Operation This ban applies to any person

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I am absolutely livid with the so-called opposition who could have blocked the law in the senate but chose instead to hand massive powers to the AG without any scrutiny. Only the Australian Greens and independents vote against.

via International Skeptics Forum http://ift.tt/1s2SEvO