Australia’s hate speech, gun law reforms face free speech concerns

SYDNEY, Jan 15 (Reuters) – Hate speech and gun control laws proposed by the Australian government in the aftermath of the Bondi Beach mass shooting were criticised by conservative opposition and Greens parties on Thursday, putting in question whether they can pass.

Prime Minister Anthony Albanese has recalled Parliament from its summer break to sit next Monday and Tuesday with the hope that a combined bill that authorises a gun buyback and lowers the bar for hate speech prosecutions would be voted on.

Albanese was criticised for not acting quickly enough in announcing a public inquiry into the Bondi massacre, but has now been criticised for rushing complex legislation.

On Thursday, Liberal Party leader Sussan Ley, who previously urged Albanese to act quickly, said the bill was “unsalvageable” after prominent conservative lawmakers said it threatened free speech. She urged Albanese to allow more time to consider new laws.

The December 14 shooting in Sydney that killed 15 people at a Hanukkah celebration sparked nationwide calls to tackle antisemitism. Police say the alleged gunmen were inspired by the Islamic State militant group.

Ley criticised the bill for not targeting “radical Islamic extremist hate preaching without impinging on free speech.”

The bill exempts preachers who quote from or discuss religious texts, which the Executive Council of Australian Jewry said could pose a loophole that allows antisemitism.

The National Party, which partners with the Liberals in opposition, criticised the government for combining gun control measures, which it opposed, and hate speech in the same bill.

“This should have been a moment of national unity,” Albanese said in an Australian Broadcasting Corporation radio interview on Thursday. The government is prepared to consider amendments to the bill, he added.

Labor holds a majority in the lower house of Parliament and is negotiating with the Greens party for support for the bill in the Senate.

The Greens said on Thursday it would not support the bill over concerns at the impact on political protest and changes to the migration act.

Greens leader Larissa Water said the party also wants hate speech protections broadened beyond race to cover Islamophobia.

“We need to ensure these laws cannot be weaponised to shut down legitimate political protest. Labor must make it crystal clear that criticism of Israel’s actions, just like those of Russia, China or Australia, will not be criminalised,” she said.

Home Affairs Minister Tony Burke said since the draft law was released on Tuesday, a neo-Nazi group that was flagged as a concern by intelligence agencies disbanded to avoid prosecution, which he said showed the effectiveness of the bill.

In addition, a Muslim prayer hall in Sydney linked to a cleric who was found by a court to have made intimidating statements about Jewish people said it would shut down.

An expert in constitutional law, Anne Twomey, said the proposed law could be challenged in the High Court for impinging on political communication. The proposed offence of promoting racial hatred carries a five-year prison sentence.

Daniel Aghion, president of the Executive Council of Australian Jewry, said the reform would make it easier to prosecute hate crimes because incitement of an audience would no longer need to be proved in court.

In a statement, the council said the bill should be passed, even though it had “serious shortcomings.”