New South Wales Council for Civil Liberties Civil Source Newsletter July 2013

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Hi CCL supporter! Welcome to this month's edition of The Civil Source. If you appreciate the work we're doing, perhaps you'll consider becoming a member.

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In this edition || Annual Dinner reminder // Web update // ASIO's absurd powers // Australia's deepening asylum seeker shame // Out of control gatherings // Supply of alcohol to minors // Occupy Sydney

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NSWCCL 50th ANNIVERSARY DINNER Just a reminder that the main celebratory event for this 50th anniversary year for the NSWCCL will be our annual dinner on Wednesday 18 September 2013. The Hon. Michael Kirby AC CMG, honorary life member of NSWCCL, has agreed to be the keynote speaker. With such a renowned orator, and returning to last's year highly rated venue Sky Phoenix Restaurant in the CBD Westfield Plaza, we have great hopes for the night!

NSW Council for Civil Liberties office@nswccl.org.au Suite 203, 105 Pitt St, Sydney, NSW 2000 PO Box A1386, Sydney South, NSW, 1235 Phone: (61 2) 8090 2952 Fax: (61 2) 8580 4633 - NSWCCL website - Renew membership - Donate now - Email us

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Note 18 September in your diary Line up your friends Get a table together Formal invitations will be sent to members and external guests in the second week of August.

Wednesday 24 July Monthly Committee Meeting

WEB UPDATE We mentioned in the last edition that NSWCCL are working on improving our communication to members and the community - central to this new strategy is the complete revision of our website, including updating content and a new design. We're very excited this week to have taken the first step by engaging a web design company to help. We'll be working over the next few weeks to get things ready before starting work with them in August. We're very excited about the ideas they have and the tools we'll be using in future, which will mean better engagement with our members and more public awareness and education of critical civil liberties and human rights issues. We'll continue to keep you updated!

Wednesday 18 September Annual Dinner Wednesday 23 October Annual General Meeting

NATIONAL ASIO CAMPAIGN POLITICS IN THE PUB: ASIO'S ABSURD POWERS A packed gathering (around 150) at the Politics in the Pub forum on ASIOs Absurd Powers last Friday heard two powerful presentations reminding them why a focused national campaign against the most extreme and most anti-democratic of ASIOs extraordinary antiterrorism powers is needed. Nicola McGarrity (Gilbert +Tobin Centre of Public Law at UNSW) and Stephen Blanks (NSWCCL Secretary) spoke compellingly about some of the most disturbing of ASIOs powers.

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Nicola outlined the extraordinary ASIO powers to question and detain persons who have not been charged with any terrorist offence, or, even more extraordinarily, persons not even suspected of any terrorist activity or orientation. She argued these are powers more suited to authoritarian regimes like Pinochets Chile than to a liberal democracy. Nor are they necessary powers. Nicola presented her view that, in the main, it appeared that ASIO acted appropriately and within its legal parameters. Her concern was that ASIO should not be given powers which are an overreach and dangerous for democratic values. These extraordinary powers were an overreach. They should be repealed. This is a key goal of the ASIO Campaign. Stephen framed his presentation around the proposition that ASIO could be classified as a rogue organisation because: it has been given powers that are inconsistent with democratic values; it makes decisions without regard to their consequences, with the result that democratic values are infringed; and it is co-operating with surveillance programs of foreign intelligence agencies that undermine democratic freedoms. He argued his case by discussing two areas of current ASIO activity. He spoke at some length about the role of ASIO in designating some refugees to be security risks to Australia with devastating consequences for the individual. Over 50 refugees are currently being held in indefinite detention because of these assessments. The reasons for these assessments are secret and there is no right of a merits appeal to an independent judicial tribunal. Stephen spoke with some passion on this topic as an involved legal representative. He illustrated the lack of fairness and justice in the process with a recent case which had been reviewed by the official Independent Reviewer of adverse assessments Margaret Stone. The Independent Reviewer supported ASIOs 16 July 2013 Key evidence missing on ASIO refugee case 13 July 2013 Bondi Beach Hotel installs CCTV cameras above urinals 7 July 2013 Coalition in push to cut prison votes 4 July 2013 Occupy Sydney not going away 1 July 2013 Villawood Sentences Bring the law into disrepute 21 June 2013 Is parole allowing killers to roam free? A lawyer and a cop go head to head
CCL in the media

23 July 2013 Government urged to adopt mandatory pornography filter 19 July 2013 A-G's intervention in rape case 'political'

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adverse assessment. But the reasons remain unclear. The information provided to the appellant is so heavily edited that little can be gleaned from it. Stephen noted that this individual had been given an adverse assessment without being interviewed by ASIO. When this became an issue, a belated interview was held. The content of the interview could not be verified by the Independent Reviewer as part of her review as the file could not be found! For further details and information, you can read this article in the Sydney Morning Herald. The National ASIO Campaign is fighting for these refugees in indefinite detention to be given the right of a merit appeal against their adverse security assessments in a properly constituted legal tribunal. (As is the case for Australian citizens who have adverse security assessments from ASIO.) Stephen also spoke broadly about the ongoing global furore arising from the Edward Snowden revelations as to the massive, secret US data surveillance/collection programs and their flow-on implications for other countries - including Australia. It is clear that Australias intelligence agencies including ASIO are receiving and providing intelligence data through these secret surveillance programs. Our challenge is to flush out a truthful statement from Government as to the parameters and dimensions of its current access to internet surveillance and collection of data on Australians from all sources. In this context about the only positive note of the evening was that the Government has put its own intensely controversial proposal for mandatory data retention on hold - at this time at least. Perhaps they dont need it!! The ASIO campaign gained quite a number of supporters after the evening. Lesley Lynch Convenor, National ASIO Campaign

Prisoner voting rights under threat Currently those serving more than 3 years in prison are not allowed to vote. If elected at the forthcoming Australian elections, the Coalition has vowed to extend this ban to those serving more than a year. NSWCCL opposes this move. What is the purpose behind widening the disenfranchisement of an already demonised and marginalised group? Given the small number of people affected, this is a symbolic rejection of human rights ideals. Read the SMH article here.

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ASYLUM SEEKERS: AUSTRALIA'S DEEPENING SHAME

Invitation!! Special guest Marianne Evers, who has worked on Nauru, will be speaking at the committee meeting tomorrow night (Wednesday 24 July) at 6pm in the Sydney Town Hall Council Chambers, entry via George St. Please advise our office coordinator, Caitlin, if you can come along to hear what Marianne has to say. The Governments shameful, cynical and hastily contrived (or exceedingly stupid) PNG Solution takes Australia to a new and depressing low in public policy on asylum seekers. The two paged agreement signed last Friday by Prime Ministers Rudd and ONeill is worth reading: Regional Settlement arrangement between Australia and Papua New Guinea. We would like to invite CCL members to our Committee Meeting tomorrow night, Wednesday 24 July at Sydney Town Hall in the Council Chambers, entry via George St. At 6pm we have invited Marianne Evers, a registered nurse who worked briefly on Nauru in late 2012 to address the committee. Marianne approached NSWCCL early this year to seek assistance in obtaining media exposure of conditions in Nauru, and NSWCCLs assistance resulted in the issue getting wide exposure on the 7.30 program. Marianne has ongoing contact with detainees in Nauru, and wishes to share some information concerning conditions leading up to last
NSWCCL Executives and members turned out in support of the National Day of Action: Protect our privacy on Saturday 6 July in Pitt St Mall, in conjunction with Electronic Frontiers Australia. You can see a video from the Melbourne rally here (note: some coarse language in video). National Day of Action: Protect Our Privacy

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weeks disturbance. We would encourage members to come along to hear what she has to say. Non-members are also able to attend committee meetings as visitors, however as per our normal procedure we would ask that you please contact the NSWCCL office prior to the meeting to advise.

NSW LAW ALERT: 'OUT OF CONTROL' EVENTS Late in 2012 the WA Government passed an outrageous law creating the offence of organising an out-of-control event with a maximum penalty of 12 months imprisonment and a $12000 fine. An event (such as a teenager's party) will be deemed to be out of control if there are 12 or more people attending and at least two people are engaging in criminal conduct, disorderly behaviour, or behaviour that causes fear or alarm to neighbours'. Police have the power to order the immediate dispersal of offenders and can arrest anyone who fails to comply. Recently Queensland has indicated it will follow suit and introduce its own version of this excessive legislation. The alarm bells are ringing in NSWCCL. We do not want to see this legislation copied in NSW. It is not fair, nor appropriate, to impose criminal penalties on persons who are the victims of the criminal behaviour of others. This could apply, for example, to parents who allow their children to have parties. It is also a dangerous precedent to charge people for policing. Stephen Blanks has spoken out against this legislation and CCL will oppose any attempt to introduce it in NSW see our media release here.

No Fire Zone: The Killing Fields of Sri Lanka No Fire Zone: the Killing Fields of Sri Lanka is a powerful, balanced and shocking account of war crimes in Sri Lanka. Every politician should see and ponder its implications for asylum seeker policies. The CCL-endorsed Australian tour of the documentary concluded last month. To find out more about the film, visit their website.

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SUPPLY OF ALCOHOL TO MINORS The NSW Legislative Assembly Social Policy Committee is conducting an inquiry into the supply of alcohol to minors. This is examining whether parents and guardians should continue to be allowed to supply alcohol to children and give permission to other adults to supply alcohol; whether there should be a statutory minimum age for children to be supplied alcohol; secondary supply issues; penalties; and education campaigns. NSWCCL has recently put in a submission in response to the discussion paper developed by the Committee. We advocated for the status quo and agreed with the Committee that any supply of alcohol should be consistent with responsible supply. We argued against introducing a statutory minimum age as doing this may not take into account all current or potential circumstances in which the supply of alcohol is acceptable. For example, alcohol can sometimes be supplied to children - some quite young - in religious ceremonies. Fixing a minimum age might have unintended consequences, such as leading to prosecutions for the supply of alcohol which has been seen as acceptable to date. We also advocated that parents/guardians should continue to be able to give permission to other adults to supply alcohol. Removing this would mean that relatives who passed alcohol between a parent and a child at a BBQ could be prosecuted - an outcome that enjoys little community support. The Parliamentary committee will release a final report after considering submissions. Martin Bibby Co-convenor, Police Powers and Civil Rights Subcommittee
The importance of parole Parole has been understandably in the media spotlight. However, as CCL President Cameron Murphy outlines, it is important to remember the importance of parole as a tool and incentive for reform. Read his article in the Daily Telegraph here. Over the next month CCL will be working on a submission to the NSW Law Reform Commissions review of the parole system in NSW. You can view the terms of reference and scoping paper on their website.

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OCCUPY SYDNEY: THE RIGHT TO PROTEST Occupy Sydney protesters have been present in Martin Place since October 2011. Overnight on 3 July police dismantled their protest site in Martin Place, in response to the City of Sydney's concerns about health and public amenity resulting from the camping structures set up by the protesters for their own accommodation and provision of meals and accommodation to homeless persons. This police action has generated renewed controversy around the rights of protesters in public spaces. There is no debate about the core right of Occupy Sydney protesters to protest in Martin Place 24/7. Sydney Council amended the original proposal to 'to remove the illegal protest site from Martin Place' so that it could not be interpreted as banning the ongoing protest. The amended resolution included a statement that: 'the City supports the right to protest and encourages Occupy Sydney and other groups to do so in a way that does not alienate public space or create a public nuisance; and the City will help provide access to support services for any Occupy Sydney protestors that have been sleeping in Martin Place and need more secure accommodation.' The police were requested to 'remove all structures and materials associated with Occupy Sydney to ensure that Martin Place is returned to a condition that makes it fully available to the public and that allows maintenance, waste collection and other City operations to be carried out without restriction and ask the Police to monitor the area to avoid a recurrence of the current situation.' NSWCCL is monitoring the situation and exploring options for resolution of the dispute. Any resolution is
CNS Phone Line funded at the 11th Hour We are pleased to see that the Attorney-General has finally agreed to fund the Aboriginal Legal Services CNS phone line for a further two-year period, following the great campaigning of the ALS. Read the ALS press release here, and thanks to those who signed the petition CCL circulated.

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greatly hindered by the lack of any Human Rights law in Australia. Stephen Blanks made the following public statements on the matter: "The NSW Council for Civil Liberties supports the right of Occupy to maintain a 24 hour protest in Martin Place. The symbolic significance of the site of the protest, and the 24 hour occupation, is clearly an integral part of the Occupy message. As with the Aboriginal tent embassy in Canberra, this symbolism should not be undermined by forcing a move to a different location or placing a restriction on the hours of protest. There is no reason in principle why satisfactory arrangements cant be made with the City of Sydney to allow health and public amenity measures to be addressed, and it is pleasing that Councils resolution last week recognised the right to protest and allowed for ongoing negotiations. Of course, an important objective of the Occupy Sydney movement should be to gain public support for its position, and the City of Sydney is right to encourage them to protest in a way that does not alienate the public. Using the protest to feed homeless people is perhaps one way to do this." "Since Australia does not have a national human rights law that directly protects the freedom to make political communications, it is necessary to rely on the implied right to political communication in the Australian constitution, which offers more limited protection. As we have seen in the recent Federal Court case, in Australia the implied right can be curtailed on health and public amenity grounds, although that decision is subject to appeal." You can read further in Alternative Media Group's article 'Occupy Sydney not going away'.
Nomination for CCL VicePresident Congratulations to CCL VicePresident Pauline Wright Pride of Australia nominee! Read the article in the Herald Sun: Pauline Wright picks up Community Spirit Medal nod.

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