The Federal Government’s responses to both the refugee problem and the terrorist attack on the US have some worrying elements for civil liberties, human rights and passenger safety. They are the more worrying because they have the backing of the Opposition.
Putting armed guards on aircraft will only add to the danger in the skies. The guard might be over-powered and then his or her weapon becomes a weapon for the hijacker. The guard might get in a shoot-out and any shooting in a pressurised aircraft could result in sudden depressurisation and perhaps a crash. So having a gun on board is of no use – particularly against a suicidal hijacker. Prime Minister John Howard’s reaction was the wrong one. He should have reacted in the way he did to the Port Arthur massacre – seek to reduce the number of guns abroad. The guards idea should be abandoned and greater effort put into securing the cockpit and screening passengers and their baggage more thoroughly.
The Government proposes new powers for the Australian Security and Intelligence Organisation. They would give ASIO agents the power to detain and question terrorist suspects for up to 48 hours on the warrant of a federal magistrate. At present ASIO has to make a recommendation to the Australian Federal Police to arrest a suspect. Giving ASIO officers the power is a flawed idea. It is essential for civil liberties that courts are capable of supervising arrest procedures and that those arrested can challenge unlawful arrest. It is difficult to see how this can be done if the arrest is made by an ASIO officer whose identity is to remain secret. Indeed, it is an offence to disclose the identity of an ASIO officer. So under the Howard plan, either civil liberties or security must necessarily be compromised. And the idea of compelling people to answer questions (even self-incriminating ones) on pain of five years jail threatens the very free society that these measures are supposed to be protecting. Like the famous village in the Vietnam war which had to be destroyed in order to save it, we are at risk of destroying liberty in order to save it.
Fortunately, Parliament will now not meet until after the election. Maybe by then saner heads will prevail outside the heated electoral environment.
On refugees, the Government and Opposition have colluded in the disgraceful Border Protection (Validation and Powers) Act. Once again, it was a foolish and dangerous over-reaction. It imposes mandatory sentencing; it takes away the jurisdiction of the courts; it hands to the Executive unprecedented unfettered power to expel people from Australia; and it operates retrospectively.
There are justified fears arising from the horrific attack in the United States. It serves as a warning that a new breed of terrorist is willing to attack in a suicidal way against innocent people. There has also been an increase in the number of people arriving in Australia by boat, whether fleeing repression or seeking a better life. We need to tighten security. But we must not give in to hysteria. We should not let our elected politicians exaggerate and play on fear or enact laws so they can be seen to be doing something tough while there is an election in the wind.
Australians, in our liberal democracy, have rare freedoms. They need to be treasured, respected and nurtured. At the very least these new laws should have sunset clauses so they can be revisited in calmer times rather than become a permanent feature of the legal landscape.