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Australia introduces new control order for terror teens

Xinhua, November 12, 2015 Adjust font size:

Teenagers are the target of new Australian government legislation designed to further strengthen the nation's counter-terrorism laws.

The Counter-Terrorism Legislation Amendment Bill (No. 1) 2015 was introduced into parliament by Attorney-General George Brandis on Thursday, and will give relevant authorities the power to prosecute those 14 years and above if they are suspected to be involved in terrorism-related activity.

Brandis said it was a sad fact that many teenagers were being influenced by terrorists through social media and other extremist measures.

"Regrettably,(the government) knows that children as young as 14 have been identified as being involved in terrorism-related activities," Brandis said in a statement on Thursday.

"Our current laws already permit the prosecution of a person younger than 16 years of age and this bill will reduce the age of those who may be subject to a control order to 14," said Brandis.

"Appropriate safeguards will be introduced to protect individual rights and the needs of the child, the community and the justice system," he added.

Also introduced in the legislation are new measures to make search, telecommunications interception and surveillance device easier, the power to provide greater protection to sensitive information regarding court proceedings and a new offense for advocating genocide.

Brandis said genocide was an "abhorrent" act, and that it was a surprise that advocating such a crime wasn't already illegal in Australia.

"Advocating genocide can never be regarded as being an expression of political opinion, and has no place in our society," he said.

"However, until now, the advocacy of genocide was not unlawful in Australia."

The attorney-general added that the Commonwealth government would continue to work closely with the states and territories in its effort to stamp out terrorism and terrorism-related activities in Australia.

"The national security challenges Australia faces are evolving rapidly," he said in a statement.

"We must ensure our counter-terrorism framework adequately equips our law enforcement and security agencies to meet these emerging challenges," he added.

Brandis said he expects the legislation to be enacted by February 2016. Endit