Urging to Overthrow the Government by Force
Urging to Overthrow the Government by Force is an offence under Section 80.2 of the Criminal Code Act 1995 (Cth) which carries a maximum penalty of 7 years in prison.
To establish the offence, the prosecution must prove beyond reasonable doubt that:
- You urged another person to engage in force
- Your intention in doing so was to facilitate the overthrowal of the federal government, or the lawful authority of the federal government, or a state or territory government, or the Commonwealth constitution
- You did so intentionally or recklessly
You are not guilty if you acted in ‘good faith’, which includes:
- Trying to show that the sovereign, governor-general, state governor, territory administrator or their advisers were mistaken in their ‘counsels, policies or actions’
- Pointing out errors or defects in government, the constitution, legislation or the administration of justice to correct them, or
- Attempting to lawfully make a change to a policy, practice or law
The onus is on you to establish that defence ‘on the balance of probabilities’.
Other defences to the charge include:
- Self defence
- Duress, and
- Necessity
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