Ten things you should know about Barnett's anti-association law

The control measures in the anti-association legislation will limit our rights to freely associate with people by allowing the government to make a declaration on an organisation.

This will allow the government to obtain “control orders” over individuals who are members, former members or people involved in the running of a declared organisation.

This is what you need to know about this law:

1. The legislation will criminalise association instead of actual crimes.
2. The anti-association law is not limited to “outlaw bikie gangs”. The word “bikie” or even “motorcycle” is not mentioned once in the legislation. These laws could apply to sports groups, churches, rotary groups and environmental groups.
3. Control orders can stop you from holding particular jobs, from going to certain places, possessing certain items and even from using a mobile phone or the internet all together.
4. The police can use secret evidence to place a control order on you, and you won’t even be told what that evidence is, let alone be given the chance to rebut it.
5. Even with that advantage, you will be judged on the civil standard of “balance of probabilities”. In a normal criminal trial you must be proven guilty “beyond a reasonable doubt”. Why? Because otherwise it is unfair (the state has more resources than you) and to reduce the chance of an unjust result (sending an innocent person to jail). Yet under these laws all the government has to do is show that their case for controlling you is slightly more convincing than your case to remain free.
6. This law can apply to children from the age of 16.
7. These laws will only be reviewed after five years, and there are no other inbuilt accountability mechanisms.
8. Controlled persons will have their personal details, including date of birth and home address, put online as part of a register that can be accessed by anyone.
9. This type of legislation has not been proven to work in any other country in the world. In fact, this type of legislation has been tried in other Australian states, and every time the High Court of Australia has found it unconstitutional.
10. Every single offence under this law, whether it be associating with another controlled person, recruiting a person to a declared organisation or even allowing a declared group to use your premises, is punishable by a minimum of two years imprisonment.

[Compiled by Search For Your Rights.]