18C

Why Scott Morrison Must Act On Free Speech
24 November 2021

Why Scott Morrison Must Act On Free Speech

Free speech is fundamental but talk is cheap. Mr Morrison, if you REALLY believe in free speech then it’s time to DO SOMETHING about it. It’s time to repeal section 18C.
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There May Be 1300 Reasons This Law Does Not Work
29 November 2019

There May Be 1300 Reasons This Law Does Not Work

There are potentially 1300 smoking guns pointing to evidence that the Attorney­-General’s Department has been using the power of the commonwealth to target conservatives­ in Australia. It is not acceptable for bureaucrats to be running a covert political operation out of the Attorney-General’s Department to silence Australians because of their polit­ical beliefs, but they are able to under the Foreign
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The Secretary Of The Attorney-General’s Department Must Stand Down
6 November 2019

The Secretary Of The Attorney-General’s Department Must Stand Down

“The Secretary of the Attorney-General’s Department, Chris Moraitis, must stand down pending an investigation into how his department abused its power to target Australians because of their political beliefs,” said Daniel Wild, Director of Research at free market think tank the Institute of Public Affairs. On Saturday, The Australian reported that Andrew Cooper, the organiser of a conservative political conference
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This Foolish Act Must Be Repealed At Once
6 November 2019

This Foolish Act Must Be Repealed At Once

Bureaucrats are using Australia’s foreign-influence laws to run a covert political operation out of the Attorney-General’s Department to silence Australians becaus­e of their political beliefs, all under the nose of the Coalition government. This is the kind of behaviour one would expect from the Stasi in East Germany in 1961, not in Australia­ today. On Saturday, The Weekend Australian reported that Andrew
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Finally, Parliament Can Act On Restoring The Right To Free Speech
20 July 2018

Finally, Parliament Can Act On Restoring The Right To Free Speech

There is no right not to be ­offended. Yet dozens of provisions on the commonwealth statute books make it unlawful or illegal to ­offend. There is a right to freedom of speech, and each of these laws is an attack on that right. The existence of these laws is an embarrassment to Australia as a country that holds itself out
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Turnbull’s 18C On Steroids
9 February 2018

Turnbull’s 18C On Steroids

Rahm Emmanuel, one-time Chief of Staff in the Obama Administration, once said: ‘You never let a serious crisis go to waste… It’s an opportunity to do things you think you could not do before.’ It would seem that the Turnbull government is using the perceived crisis of ‘foreign influence’ in our political system to tweak federal electoral regulations in its
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Simon Breheny on Q&A – QUT Case
4 December 2017

Simon Breheny on Q&A – QUT Case

Simon Breheny debates Gillian Triggs over how the AHRC handled the QUT case.
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Religious Freedom Review
22 November 2017

Religious Freedom Review

“Section 18C must be included in any review of religious freedoms,” said Morgan Begg, research fellow at the free market think tank the Institute of Public Affairs. The Coalition government today announced that it has agreed to appoint an expert panel to review to examine whether Australian law adequately protects the human right to religious freedom. “You can’t have freedom
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Tim’s Tawdry Trick
6 October 2017

Tim’s Tawdry Trick

As the saying goes, if all you have is a hammer, everything looks like a nail. So naturally, when the Race Discrimination Commissioner, Tim Soutphommasane, decided last week to share his view of Trump, Brexit, and conservative populism, he described it as ‘xenophobic and racist’. In the name of ‘equality and non-discrimination’ and ‘rationality and civility’, the populism that has
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Why Abolish 18C? Consider This Vexatious Complaint’s Threat To Free Speech
28 September 2017

Why Abolish 18C? Consider This Vexatious Complaint’s Threat To Free Speech

When the legal affairs editor of this paper, Chris Merritt, sent a carefully worded reply on March 9 to an email he had received two days earlier, that should have been the end of a matter involving what can fairly be described as a mild-mannered response to abusive hate mail. Instead, the relevant series of emails is about to become
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