by Ganesh Sahathevan
election issue ;his Dept Of Justice Secretary
Cappie-Wood must not interfere in the coming
election to defend or promote Speakerman
In yet another breathtaking demonstration of his legal skills the Attorney General NSW Mark Speakman SC has declared that the has the power to prosecute in NSW, anyone, anywhere in Australia and the world, against whom a complaint is made pursuant to the quite wide provisions of the Anti-Discrimination Act NSW (see below article from The Australian, 31 January 2019).
Australia has, until now, provided a safe haven for opponents of many of Asia's Islamic statutory bodies and state-linked NGOs.
A case in point are the members of the secret ex-Muslim network in Australia, whose words reported by the ABC would be perceived to be offensive to Muslims in even moderate Malaysia. Many like them who have sought refuge in Australia so that they might express their beliefs ((or lack of belief) without fear of state prosecution and persecution are now vulnerable to complaints made against them by agents and others sponsored by the respective states in NSW pursuant to the provisions of the NSW Discrimination Act.Indeed, there is nothing to prevent the states concerned from making the complaints themselves. Race and religion are almost synonymous in for example Malaysia,so as to make the exclusion of discrimination on religious grounds in NSW meaningless.
In yet another breathtaking demonstration of his legal skills the Attorney General NSW Mark Speakman SC has declared that the has the power to prosecute in NSW, anyone, anywhere in Australia and the world, against whom a complaint is made pursuant to the quite wide provisions of the Anti-Discrimination Act NSW (see below article from The Australian, 31 January 2019).
Australia has, until now, provided a safe haven for opponents of many of Asia's Islamic statutory bodies and state-linked NGOs.
A case in point are the members of the secret ex-Muslim network in Australia, whose words reported by the ABC would be perceived to be offensive to Muslims in even moderate Malaysia. Many like them who have sought refuge in Australia so that they might express their beliefs ((or lack of belief) without fear of state prosecution and persecution are now vulnerable to complaints made against them by agents and others sponsored by the respective states in NSW pursuant to the provisions of the NSW Discrimination Act.Indeed, there is nothing to prevent the states concerned from making the complaints themselves. Race and religion are almost synonymous in for example Malaysia,so as to make the exclusion of discrimination on religious grounds in NSW meaningless.
END
State anti-discrimination law ‘applies to all Aussies’
EXCLUSIVE
NICOLA BERKOVIC
LEGAL AFFAIRS CORRESPONDENT
@NicBerko
NICOLA BERKOVIC
LEGAL AFFAIRS CORRESPONDENT
@NicBerko
The Australian
JANUARY 31, 2019
NSW Attorney-General Mark Speakman says the state’s anti-discrimination laws apply to people outside NSW, prompting a warning Australians could find themselves dragged before legal bodies in multiple states because of comments they make online.
Mr Speakman has intervened in a long-running dispute between Queensland-based former army officer Bernard Gaynor and NSW gay rights activist Garry Burns.
Mr Gaynor, now a conservative Christian blogger, has been hit with about 36 complaints from Mr Burns, filed with the NSW Anti-Discrimination Board, over comments on his blog and Facebook page. Mr Gaynor says he has so far spent about $250,000 on legal fees defending the complaints of alleged homosexual vilification or victimisation.
The father of eight has asked the NSW Supreme Court to prevent the Anti-Discrimination Board, the NSW Civil and Administrative Tribunal and the NSW Local Court from dealing with any existing or future complaints against him. He argues the bodies have no jurisdiction to deal with the complaints because he is a Queensland resident.
However, the Attorney-General has argued, in submissions filed with the NSW Supreme Court, that the state’s anti-discrimination laws are not confined to NSW residents.
“There is nothing in the text or context of the Anti-Discrimination Act which suggests that persons who are not residents of NSW are immune from having a ‘complaint’ made against them under that act,” the submissions say.
Mr Gaynor said if Mr Speakman’s arguments were accepted, any Australian who commented on issues such as same-sex marriage or the Safe Schools program could be dragged before each state and territory’s legal system. “They could have done nothing wrong in their own state but face costly litigation in others,” he said.
“If NSW succeeds, there will be a significant chilling effect on free speech and every Australian will need to be careful that their speech is not just lawful where they live, but in places where they don’t and cannot cast a vote.”
Institute of Public Affairs research fellow Morgan Begg said: “What the NSW Attorney-General is saying here is incredibly dangerous. We would see an explosion in litigation.”
