Reforms Target Antisemitism, Hate, Safeguard Faith Groups
- The Crisafulli Government is delivering strong, decisive action to combat antisemitism, address terrorist-motivated offending to make Queensland safer.
- The reforms will ensure that Queenslanders can live, worship and gather safely.
- The legislation will deliver reforms focused on terrorist symbols and phrases, and safety around places of worship.
- The Crisafulli Government is making Queensland safer after Labor failed to crackdown on antisemitism during their decade of decline.
The Crisafulli Government is delivering a comprehensive package to crackdown on antisemitism and terrorist symbolism, bolster safety around places of worship, and make Queensland safer.
The tough laws - to be introduced in Parliament this week - deliver a suite of changes focused on terrorist symbols and phrases, and safety around places of worship, and is the first of several strong measures being delivered by the Crisafulli Government in the wake of the Bondi beach terrorist attack.
The reforms deliver on the Crisafulli Government's commitment to stamp out antisemitism and terrorist extremism to ensure every Queenslander - including the Jewish community, which has experienced a rise in antisemitic attacks - can live, worship and gather safely.
To address intimidation at places of worship, the Bill:
- Increases penalties for assaulting or threatening a person officiating a religious ceremony from 2 to 5 years' imprisonment;
- Introduces new offences for impeding or harassing people attending religious services (maximum 3 years' imprisonment);
- Creates a new special case of wilful damage for damage to a place of worship, with a maximum penalty of 7 years' imprisonment.
The Bill introduces tougher measures to curb terrorist symbols, including:
- Increasing penalties for displaying terrorist symbols from 6 months to 2 years' imprisonment.
- Extending the existing prohibition on the display of symbols to include terrorist organisations or state sponsors of terrorism, including:
- the Hamas flag and emblem, the Islamic State flag, the Hizballah emblem and Nazi symbols.
To restrict terrorist slogans, the Bill:
- Proposes a new offence prohibiting the public distribution, publication, public display or public recitation of a prescribed phrase to cause menace, harassment or offence, applicable to:
- "globalise the intifada"
- "from the river to the sea"
https://statements.qld.gov.au/statements/104460
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