DPP Presses Charges Against Government Whistleblowers
Australia’s reputation as a ‘fair’ country has taken another battering, with revelations that the Commonwealth Director of Public Prosecutions (CDPP) has filed criminal charges against two Australians who allegedly released information that the Howard government had been illegally spying on...
Government Puts Church before Children
The Royal Commission into Institutional Responses to Child Sexual Abuse heard evidence relating to 4,444 alleged incidents of child sexual abuse involving 93 Catholic Church authorities over the period 1980 to 2015. During the six decades since 1950, 7 percent of...
Silencing Dissent: NSW Government Gives Itself New Powers to Ban Gatherings
A new Act governing the management of Crown lands, along with a fresh set of regulations, comes into effect on 1 July 2018. And the NSW government has taken this opportunity to continue restrictions on protests and demonstrations in these...
The Impact of Social Media on a Fair Trial
Social media can be a source of information and leisure, a way to connect with other people and a means to express views about a range of subjects - including those which invoke emotions such as anger and disgust. But...
Crimes Against Humanity: An Interview with Human Rights Lawyer Julian Burnside
The Norwegian freighter MV Tampa entered Australian waters on 29 August 2001, carrying 433 asylum seekers who’d been stranded on a fishing boat in the Indian Ocean. The vessel crossed the maritime boundary close to Christmas Island, despite having been refused...
Government Bans Anti-Abortion Activism Near Reproductive Health Clinics
The NSW government has passed laws to impose 150-metre ‘safe access zones’ around abortion clinics. The new laws were passed through the legislative assembly by a majority of 61 votes to 18, and will see anti-abortion activists face prison time...
Diminishing Rights: An Interview With the Muslim Legal Network’s Zaahir Edries
US District Judge Denise Casper recently found that the US Department of Homeland Security’s policy of searching electronic devices at the international border without a warrant could be in breach of the fourth amendment. The Massachusetts federal judge ruled in March...
New Road Laws: Tougher DUI Penalties, Targeting Phone Use and Cocaine Testing
On 1 July, a series of new road safety laws will come into effect across New South Wales. The new laws will add cocaine to the list of drugs police test drivers for, significantly increase the penalties for driving under...
Aussie Takes on Google, and Wins
The High Court of Australia has ruled that a Melbourne man has legal standing to commence proceedings against United States-based internet juggernaut Google for allegedly defamatory material posted on the company’s search engine. The story so far Milorad ‘Michael’ Trkulja...
The Link between State of Origin and Domestic Violence
A new report by the Centre for Alcohol Policy Research (CAPR) at La Trobe University in Melbourne suggests that State of Origin rugby league games correspond with significant spikes in domestic violence. The Centre analysed data from the NSW Bureau...
