The Independent Member for Denison, Andrew Wilkie, has discussed the passage of the national security reforms through the House of Representatives this morning.
“This morning I was one of only three members of the House of Representatives to vote against the Government’s national security Bill,” Mr Wilkie said.
“I do see the need to modernise some of Australia’s national security framework and was hoping to be able to support this tranche of legislation. But the Government is seeking to go way beyond what is necessary by capitalising on the current security environment. Moreover some aspects of the reforms are poorly considered, some areas of legitimate concern are neglected and the whole lot is being pursued in too hasty a manner.
“The Government’s insistence that these reforms are prompted by the events of recent weeks is a sham. In fact many of these reforms have been on the backburner for considerably more than two years and were referred to the Parliamentary Joint Committee on Intelligence and Security (PJCIS) as far back as May 2012. In other words, the modernisation of Australia’s national security legislation was seen as a routine matter until the Islamic State gave the Government the excuse to exaggerate the need for reform.
“The Government has also abandoned proper process in its rush to realise these reforms. Indeed just last year the PJCIS, when considering amendments to the Australian Security Intelligence Organisation Act and the Intelligence Services Act, urged the Government not to proceed unless reform was detailed, released for public consultation and the views of all stakeholders taken into account. This is not happening.
“And then there is the detail of the reform, of which section 35P has received much media interest because this section would jail a journalist for 10 years for disclosing special intelligence operations. This is police state-like attack on the media and one likely to punish journalists for simply doing their job. It could even force journalists to avoid checking some stories with the security services first in an attempt to use ignorance as a defence.
“And there are other problems with the legislation, for instance no judicial authorisation is required for special intelligence operations, scant limits are placed on the breadth of a network that can be subject to surveillance and ASIO is being given the right to use force.
And all of this in the context of Australians still not having any enshrined right to privacy.
“What is missing from the legislation is also telling, in particular reforms that would provide better oversight of intelligence operations. For instance the legislation fails to give the PJCIS any such oversight, unlike in the US where the Senate Select Committee on Intelligence and House Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence do indeed have operational oversight, or in the UK where the Intelligence and Security Committee has a similar role. I moved an amendment to rectify this but both major parties refused to support it.
“Nor do the Government’s reforms promise better visibility of intelligence wrong-doing by enhancing the federal whistle-blower legislation which still provides no protection for intelligence officials or the disclosure of intelligence material.”
EARLIER ON TASMANIAN TIMES …
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