Call to rein in counter-terrorism laws

Nicola Berkovic
The Australian
March 21, 2012

LEADING criminal barristers have called for aspects of Australia’s anti-terrorism regime to be reined in, saying the laws were an overreaction to threats perceived in the wake of the September 11, 2001, terrorist attacks.

Their comments follow the release yesterday of a report by the new national security legislation watchdog, Bret Walker SC, which questioned whether some of the counter-terrorism laws should be repealed because they were excessive or had been designed as temporary.

The laws include an ability for authorities to question suspects for 24 hours at a time and hold them for a week without charge.

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This article was posted: Tuesday, March 20, 2012 at 1:27 pm

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