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2002
THE PARLIAMENT OF THE COMMONWEALTH
OF AUSTRALIA
HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
CRIMINAL
CODE AMENDMENT (TERRORIST ORGANISATIONS) BILL
2002
EXPLANATORY MEMORANDUM
(Circulated by
authority of the Attorney-General,
the Honourable Daryl Williams AM QC
MP)
CRIMINAL CODE AMENDMENT (TERRORIST ORGANISATIONS) BILL 2002
The Criminal Code Amendment (Terrorist Organisations) Bill 2002 (the
Bill) amends the Criminal Code so that regulations made from the
commencement of this Act specifying organisations for the purpose of the
definition of terrorist organisation in Division 102 take effect
in accordance with section 48 of the Acts Interpretation Act
1901.
The Bill also ensures that the existing regulation specifying
Al Qa’ida/Islamic Army as a terrorist organisation takes
effect on 21 October 2002, the date the regulation was notified in the
Gazette.
Division 102 of the Criminal Code contains a
number of offences relating to terrorist organisations. These offences include
directing activities of a terrorist organisation, membership of a terrorist
organisation, recruiting for a terrorist organisation and providing training to,
or receiving training from, a terrorist organisation.
Terrorist
organisations for the purposes of Division 102 are organisations that
are engaged in, preparing, planning, assisting in or fostering the doing of a
terrorist act or organisations specified in regulations. Organisations may be
specified in regulations if the Minister is satisfied on reasonable grounds that
the organisation is identified in a United Nations Security Council decision
relating to terrorism and that the organisation is engaged in, preparing,
planning, assisting in or fostering the doing of a terrorist
act.
Financial Impact
It is not expected that the Bill
will have a direct financial impact.
NOTES ON CLAUSES
Clause
1: Short Title
This clause is a formal provision specifying the short
title of the Act.
Clause 2: Commencement
Clause 2 provides
that the Act is taken to have commenced on 23 October 2002.
Clause 3:
Schedule(s)
Clause 3 provides that each Act specified in a schedule
is amended as set out in the Schedule concerned.
Item 1 – Subsection 102.1(1) (paragraph (c) of the definition of
terrorist organisation)
Item 1 omits the reference to
subsection 102.1(4) from paragraph (c) of the definition of terrorist
organisation in subsection 102.1(1). This item is consequent upon the
repeal of subsection 102.1(4) by item 2.
Item 2 – Subsection
102.1(4)
Item 2 repeals subsection 102.1(4) of the Criminal
Code. Subsection 102.1(4) provides that regulations made for the purpose of
paragraph (c) of the definition of terrorist organisation
in subsection 102.1(1) of the Act may not take effect earlier than the day
after the last day on which the regulations may be disallowed under section 48
of the Acts Interpretation Act 1901. Under the Acts Interpretation
Act regulations must be tabled in both Houses of Parliament and a motion to
disallow the regulations may be moved within 15 sitting days of the regulations
being tabled.
Repeal of subsection 102.1(4) of the Criminal Code
has the effect that the regulations made for the purpose of paragraph (c) of the
definition of terrorist organisation take effect in accordance
with section 48 of the Acts Interpretation Act. Under that section,
regulations may commence either on notification in the Gazette or on
later date specified in the regulations.
Regulations made under the
provisions of the Criminal Code as amended will be subject to the same
Parliamentary scrutiny as all other regulations. A motion to disallow the
regulations may be moved within 15 sittings days of the regulations being
tabled.
Item 3 provides that, in spite of anything that was in subsection
102.1(4) of the Criminal Code before it was repealed, or in the
regulations concerned, regulations made for the purposes of paragraph (c) of the
definition of terrorist organisation in section 102.1 of the
Criminal Code and notified before the commencement of this Act are deemed
to have taken effect on 21 October 2002.
On 21 October 2002, regulations
were made and notified in the Gazette specifying
Al
Qa’ida/Islamic Army as a terrorist organisation for the
purposes of section 102.1 of the Criminal Code.
The effect of item
2 is that the regulation specifying Al Qa’ida/Islamic Army as a
terrorist organisation will take effect from 21 October 2002, the
date that the regulation was made and notified. The disallowance provisions in
section 48 of the Acts Interpretation Act 1901 will apply to the
regulation.