Danger: police state powers

by Tom Pearson

The House of Representatives has passed legislation that would give the 
Federal Government the power to cut off the internet and phone services of 
groups and individuals involved in organising protest actions. The 
Government will be able to order communication companies to stop supplying 
services to groups or individuals labelled by ASIO and the Federal Police 
as being a "threat to national security" and "contrary to the interests of 
national security". Also, people running such targeted web sites, and those 
with links to it, could be jailed for two years under the proposed 
laws.

The claim by the Government that the new laws are an anti-terrorist measure 
is utterly without truth. The clear intention of the legislation, which 
will now go to the Senate, is to suppress and silence public dissent and 
protest against government policies. It follows the passing of draconian 
laws during the past three years giving ASIO, the Federal Police and the 
military unprecedented powers for use against the Australian people.

The ALP supports the Bill and is set to pass it with lame amendments in the 
same way it gave the green light to the ASIO Bill, Labor's Lindsay Tanner 
saying the ALP backed "the thrust" of the aim to cut people's 
telecommunications services.

Those who have their telecommunications cut off will not have to be told 
beforehand that they failed a security check. The Attorney-General will 
also be able to order the Australian Communications Authority to refuse a 
licence to any telecommunications service provider and the Authority would 
be required to get permission from the Attorney-General's office before 
granting a licence to any provider.

The Australian Council of Civil Liberties warns that the legislation gives 
wide discretion to the government of the day based on vague terms such as 
"national security" to deny what is a basic right, the ability to access 
telecommunications services.

"It is not about dealing with crime", said Council of Civil Liberties 
spokesperson Ian Dearden. "It's about dealing with politics. It's a classic 
authoritarian step." Keysar Trad, a spokesperson from Sydney's Muslim 
community, said the proposed new laws were "extreme measures" and that the 
Government had failed to provide proof that there was a terrorist threat to 
Australia.

The threat of a terrorist attack, if one exists at all, comes from 
Australia 's involvement in the war on Iraq and ties to the US: it is the 
actions of the Howard Government that threaten Australia's security.

The creation of a police state has taken a number of "authoritarian steps". 
Australia's secret police, ASIO, now has more agents than at any time in 
its history. The Government has put the reintroduction of the death penalty 
on the political agenda with Howard promoting a "debate" on capital 
punishment as part of the coming federal election campaign. In response, 
the Queensland and Northern Territory branches of the Liberal Party have 
publicly supported a return of capital punishment.

Added to this are the new powers given to ASIO in laws passed in July. ASIO 
now has the power to arrest and detain citizens. People can now be held 
indefinitely on the basis that they might have information about terrorism 
or matters the Government can label terrorism.

The definition of "terrorist groups" is so vague and sweeping that they 
allow the label to be put on trade unions, protest groups and political 
parties. The power of the Attorney-General to simply nominate groups as 
terrorist-oriented leaves the way open for widespread discrimination and 
victimisation.

It should be recalled that the Australian military, under legislation 
introduced in the lead up to the Sydney 2000 Olympics, now has the power to 
shoot down civilians in the streets. The Defence Legislation Amendment (Aid 
to the Civil Authorities) Bill established the legal and political basis 
for using troops to "suppress political disturbances".

The measures allow for the use of "reasonable and necessary force", in 
essence the right of military personal to shoot to kill.

All these fascistic powers were introduced under the cover of "anti-
terrorism" measures, but that cover, never having any substance, is now 
transparent. In the name of fighting terror, during just the past eight 
months the Australian people have witnessed the Howard Government:

* commit them to a terrorist war on the people of Iraq that slaughtered 
more than 10,000 innocent people;

* lie to the public to do so; resume ties with the terrorist arm of the 
Indonesian military, Kopassus;

* occupy the Solomon Islands as part of a broader plan to become colonial 
overlord in the Pacific; and now

* add to a raft of powers aimed at imposing a police state.