I am humbled to accept the inaugural NSW Council for Civil Liberties President's Award.

It’s an honour to be acknowledged for my battle to uphold journalism without fear or favour, it’s been a very difficult year given the bullying and silencing of journalists in Australia.

I dedicate this award to the journalists who have been murdered doing their jobs. Journalism is not a crime. Systematically killing journalists is.

Gaza is the deadliest place to be a journalist. The past 10 months have been the deadliest period to be a journalist. This award is for the Palestinian journalists who no longer have breath, let alone a voice.

Internet shutdowns are typically associated with controlling information flow in certain areas, and are a global concern, not just limited to third-world countries.

Misuse of internet kill switches is not new; it has been happening for decades. China, the UK, and Russia have all enacted laws or taken actions to shut down the internet during times of unrest or perceived threats, often raising concerns about censorship and abuse of power. Internet shutdowns have become more frequent in recent years, with recent examples like the five-day shutdown in Dhaka, Bangladesh, due to political turmoil. The increasing prevalence of these shutdowns worldwide is alarming.

Internet shutdowns are on the rise, with 2023 seeing 283 shutdowns globally, 167 excluding India. Most occurred in the Middle East, India, Myanmar, Iran, and Palestine, primarily due to conflicts, protests, and political reasons. In Africa, 60% were linked to protests, while 76.6% in the Asia Pacific coincided with public violence. Eastern Europe saw 13 shutdowns, mainly due to Russian military actions.

The CFMEU is set to be placed into administration for at least three years after the federal parliament passed laws allowing the appointment of an administrator and the imposition of life bans on corrupt officials. 

This move follows allegations of criminal conduct and ties to organised crime within the union. 

The union criticised the law, arguing it strips members of fair process and may challenge it in court. 

Some might argue that calling for corporations to face the same scrutiny as the CFMEU is mere “whataboutism,” defending alleged union corruption. This topic arises follows claims of corruption and intimidation, as reported by Nine journalists. The union has been placed under administration for three years, and many officials have been dismissed due to legislation passed with Coalition support, though legal challenges may follow.

Some argue that this situation highlights a double standard. For example, why didn't the government threaten similar action against PwC when it was revealed that they leaked confidential tax information for profit?

RMIT Professor Anthony Forsyth acknowledges this double standard in the treatment of corporations versus unions but insists that the legislation was necessary due to the CFMEU's likely resistance to a court-appointed administrator. Meanwhile, Lydia Shelly from the NSW Council for Civil Liberties criticises the inconsistency in addressing corporate wrongdoing. 

The Australian Greens have criticised the Labor and Liberal parties for collaborating to quickly pass legislation targeting the CFMEU (Construction, Forestry, Maritime, Mining, and Energy Union).

They argue that this move undermines the rule of law and threatens civil liberties. The Greens claim that the rushed legislation could allow Michaelia Cash to appoint a new administrator of the CFMEU, that person potentially being Tony Abbott, if there is a change of government.

The NSW Council for Civil Liberties has serious concerns with the Federal Government’s Fair Work (Registered Organisations) Amendment (Administration) Bill 2024 and the Government’s accompanying amendments. While any allegation of criminality is serious and must be addressed, the powers set out in this bill are far-reaching and establish a dangerous precedent for the trade union movement, membership-based organisations, and the rights of individuals to natural justice and procedural fairness.

Back in March, the Premier and Finance Committee launched a NSW parliamentary inquiry to examine the state’s cannabis laws, focusing mainly on whether to decriminalise the popular but still illegal plant. On the first day of the hearings, August 1st 2024, Premier Chris Minns made it clear in a press conference that he went into the election promising not to change the law on decriminalisation, and he’s not planning to break that promise now.

On that same day, top legal experts, including the state’s longest-serving Director of Public Prosecutions, Nicholas Cowdery KC, and Australian Lawyers Alliance spokesperson Greg Barns SC, spoke up in support of the inquiry.

Public opinion in NSW has shifted so much that in the 2023 election, for the first time ever, a Legalise Cannabis NSW representative, Jeremy Buckingham, was elected to the state upper house, and now he’s chairing the inquiry.

The growing list of Alcohol Free Zones (AFZs) in Sydney has been a creeping imposition on the freedom of the community to use public space without any evidence that it achieves other positive public policy objectives.

Most parks around the CBD, Kings Cross and Redfern have been designated AFZs, as well as Martin Place, sections of The Rocks and Circular Quay. AFZs cover much of Darlinghurst, Surry Hills, Redfern, Waterloo, parts of Glebe and Newtown, main city roads, and roads around the casino. The City of Sydney has an extensive and effective Street Safety Camera program in which most public places are already monitored.

The NSW Council of Civil Liberties and Scarlet Alliance, Australian Sex Workers Association submits that the Criminal Code Amendment (Deepfake Sexual Material) Bill 2024 fails to enhance the civil rights of the Australian public. Generative AI is an increasingly fast moving and adaptive technology. Any response to address the harm that can be caused through the abuse of this technology must be built on a holistic government approach, and not simply through increased criminal measures. Even where new criminal measures are enacted these must add to, and not cut across or confuse, the existing protection and legislative frameworks which already exist at federal, state and territory levels.

Alex Greenwich MP’s equality bills that would reduce faith-based discrimination in schools, remove the current requirement for a person to have a surgical procedure to update the sex on their birth certificate, and give courts the power to issue a parentage order for children born out of commercial surrogacy outside of NSW has been delayed yet again.

This morning the Legislative Assembly passed a Bill extension motion moved by Sydney MP Alex Greenwich to prevent this important legislation from lapsing. We understand that the Bills will now not be considered until October. We call on the Premier to explain this unreasonable delay which in practice means that these important reforms are still not in place to recognise and protect the LGBTIQA+ community.

Nicholas Cowdery, a former NSW Director of Public Prosecutions, told an NSW parliamentary inquiry on August 1 that action was needed now to decriminalise cannabis use.

Cowdery, a former president of the NSW Council for Civil Liberties (NSWCCL) said it had long believed that criminal law is “ill-suited to deal with drug use in the community”.

Every year in NSW more than 700,000 people “from all walks of life” use cannabis, Cowdery said.

“There is consistent evidence that decriminalisation doesn’t encourage cannabis use or increase cannabis taking in the community,” he said, adding that decriminalisation “may have the opposite effect” as more people access advice, support and treatment if they need it.

People with problematic drug use needed a health and social support response rather than a criminal justice one, he added.

Today former President of the NSW Council for Civil Liberties and former NSW Director of Public Prosecutions, Nicholas Cowdery AO KC, appeared before the inquiry into the impact of the regulatory frameworks for cannabis in NSW.

The NSW Council for Civil Liberties has long called for decriminalisation coupled with regulation of cannabis across Australia. We believe that the criminal law is ill-suited to deal with drug use in the community.

NSW Council for Civil Liberties has expressed strong opposition to the new Campus Access Policy, with President Lydia Shelly calling for its "immediate reversal." In a statement, Shelly described the policy as "an affront to the democratic principles universities should be fostering – not banning."

The policy mandates that all demonstrations must notify the university at least 72 hours in advance. It outlines "unacceptable activities," including protests without prior notice, and categorizes certain actions, such as using megaphones and amplifiers or hanging banners from University buildings, as "activities that require approval."

Violations of these restrictions may lead to protesters being removed from campus, having property confiscated, or being detained by campus security and handed over to NSW Police.

Listen to Nicholas Cowdery, former NSW Director of Public Prosecutions and long time Committee member of NSWCCL on ABC's RN Drive: Most of us trust the police, but courts not so much.

Check it out!

This year the NSW Labor Conference provides an opportunity for the Government to abandon the draconian policies relating to bail laws, the suite of anti-protest laws and the harmful drug laws that are unfair and unjust and must be changed.

NSW Labor has a proud 130-year history of convening this annual democratic assembly. We urge the Labor parliamentary team to listen to its members and put into practice the democratic ideals of the party’s founders.

This Labor conference should be a place where the government emerges with a plan for a more positive future for everyone in NSW. Labor’s policies should leave no-one behind. We urge the Minns Labor Government to seize this moment and reframe the future for NSW through a lens that is evidence based, democratic and upholds the Labor values that our oldest political party should be so proud of.

The NSW government has finally scheduled its long-promised Drug Summit, which will take place over four days, including regional sessions in October and hearings in Sydney in December. 

Announcing the summit on July 12, the government emphasised its aim to gather insights from medical professionals, law enforcement, individuals with personal experience, drug user organisations, families, and other stakeholders. This forum aims to foster a consensus on addressing drug use and its associated harms in NSW.

The summit raises hopes for progressive drug law reforms, echoing the precedent set by former Premier Bob Carr’s 1999 Drug Summit, which led to significant changes, including the establishment of the now-permanent medically supervised injecting room in Kings Cross.

On July 18, Palestinian activist Sara Shaweesh was arrested at Prime Minister Anthony Albanese's electorate office in Marrickville. Shaweesh, who is a citizen and whose local member is the Prime Minister, has been part of a peaceful picket outside the office for almost six months, helping to initiate it.

The arrest occurred after she attempted to inquire about the denial of visas for her family members in Gaza. Police cited "trespass" as the reason for her arrest, confiscated her phone, and detained her at Newtown Police Station for more than three hours before charging her.

For nearly six months, a group of peaceful protestors have maintained a vigil outside Anthony Albanese’s electorate office in Marrickville. The vigil is noteworthy in that the organisers, their families and attendees are diverse in their religious beliefs and cultural heritage. Importantly, the organisers and many of the protestors live in the local electorate of Grayndler.

Six months on, they are still seeking a meeting with their local member of parliament to discuss Australia’s obligation in preventing the further suffering of Palestinians which includes forced starvation, mass displacement and the unprecedented violence in Occupied Territories of Palestine and Gaza.

Unfortunately, Mr Albanese has refused to meet with his constituents. Yesterday, Mr Albanese’s office issued a letter to the peaceful protestors, demanding that the peaceful vigil be conducted elsewhere.

NSW Council for Civil Liberties wrote to the Prime Minister in April urging him to meet with his constituents. We recognise this vigil as a legitimate exercise of democratic freedoms available in Australia. To date, no response has been received.

NSW Council for Civil Liberties position is unequivocal - the democratic rights of peaceful protestors must be protected and the Prime Minister has an obligation not only to uphold the right to protest, but to meet with his constituents.

We will always defend the right to protest and the protestors who choose to exercise this right.

A Palestinian-Australian constituent of Anthony Albanese seeking visa help has been arrested and charged with trespassing, after she allegedly refused to leave the prime minister’s electorate office in the Sydney seat of Grayndler.

Sarah Shaweesh livestreamed her arrest on social media, saying she was a local constituent who lived in Marrickville, and the police had “threatened to arrest me because I went into the office to ask about my family’s declined visa applications”.

What sort of drug law reforms are likely to be on the agenda at the 2024 NSW Drug Summit?

The changes sought are focused on people who use drugs, not cultivators, manufacturers or suppliers, because it’s long been understood that illicit drug use should be treated as a health issue and not a crime.

Uniting’s Fair Treatment campaign has been calling for drug decriminalisation in NSW and the ACT since 2018, and so have the over 70 other organisations partnering with them, which include the NSW Bar Association, Community Legal Centres NSW and the Aboriginal Legal Service NSW/ACT.

Currently, in NSW, a person found with a quantity of an illegal drug deemed for personal use can be charged with drug possession, which is an offence under section 10 of the Drug Misuse and Trafficking Act 1985 (NSW) (DMT Act) that carries a maximum penalty of 2 years imprisonment and/or a fine of $2,200.

While section 12 of the DMT Act makes it a crime to self-administer an illicit substance, which too carries a maximum of 2 years imprisonment and/or a fine of $2,200.

Decriminalisation would see the revoking of the criminal sanctions relating to these laws, so that possession or use would no longer be a crime. Instead, people found in possession would rather be subject to a civil penalty, a small fine, or have the option of attending a counselling session.