Australian Capital Territory Consolidated Acts Australian Capital Territory Consolidated ActsAn Act to provide extraordinary temporary powers to prevent and respond to
terrorist acts, and for related purposes
Preamble
1 This Act is based on an agreement between the Commonwealth, State and Territory Governments adopted at the special meeting of the Council of Australian Governments (COAG) on counter-terrorism held in Canberra on 27 September 2005.
2 At the meeting, COAG considered the evolving security environment in the context of the terrorist attacks in London in July 2005 and agreed that there was a clear case for Australia's counter-terrorism laws to be strengthened.
3 Leaders agreed that any strengthened counter-terrorism laws must be necessary, effective against terrorism, contain appropriate safeguards against abuse (such as parliamentary and judicial review), and be exercised in a way that is evidence-based, intelligence-led and proportionate.
4 The Legislative Assembly wishes to enact legislation in accordance with the COAG agreement in recognition of the clear need for laws to combat terrorism.
5 The community needs to be protected from acts of terrorism. If law enforcement agencies have evidence that a terrorist act is imminent or has happened, they need to be able to respond appropriately to prevent it or investigate and reduce its impact.
6 The Legislative Assembly considers that extraordinary measures are justified in extreme circumstances where available evidence is insufficient to enable suspected terrorists to be detained under existing criminal law.
7 The Legislative Assembly is committed to fully implementing United Nations resolutions relating to terrorism by adopting counter-terrorism measures that are consistent with international human rights obligations.
8 In particular, the Legislative Assembly is committed to taking measures to protect our community against terrorist activity that respect and promote the values reflected in, and the rights and freedoms guaranteed by, the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights.
9 In enacting these extraordinary
temporary measures, the Legislative Assembly, therefore, considers that it is
critical that Australia's fundamental legal principles (such as the rule of
law, respect for the legal process, the separation of powers, and respect for
human rights) be preserved.
The Legislative Assembly for the Australian Capital Territory therefore enacts as follows: