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This is a Bill, not an Act. For current law, see the Acts databases.
South Australia
A BILL FOR
An Act to provide rights in relation to assemblies held for the purposes of
genuine advocacy, protest, dissent or industrial action.
Contents
Part 1—Preliminary
1 Short
title
2 Commencement
3 Interpretation
Part 2—General right of assembly
4 General
right of assembly
Part 3—Exemption from certain
laws
5 Exemptions
6 Exemption does not operate in favour of person
who contravenes a condition
Part 4—Miscellaneous
7 Appeal to District
Court
8 Report on operation of Act
9 Service
10 Regulations
The Parliament of South Australia enacts as
follows:
This Act may be cited as the Right of Assembly
Act 2008.
This Act will come into operation 1 month after the day on which this Act
is assented to by the Governor.
In this Act—
exemption means an exemption granted under
section 5;
public place means—
(a) a place (not being a place on private land) to which the public has
free access; and
(b) a public road;
public road has the same meaning as in the Local
Government Act 1999.
Part 2—General
right of assembly
(1) Subject to this Act, but despite any other Act or law, every person
has an inalienable right to assemble with other persons in a public place for
the purpose of genuine advocacy, protest, dissent or industrial
action.
(2) This section does not apply in the following circumstances:
(a) if the person, or a substantial part of the assembly, engages in
unlawful conduct during the course of the assembly;
(b) if the person is subject to a court order under any Act or law and
such an assembly would amount to a contravention of the terms of that
order.
(3) For the purposes of this section, a reference to unlawful conduct
includes a reference to conduct consisting of a contravention, or a failure to
comply with, a condition of an exemption.
(4) For the purposes of the Serious and Organised Crime (Control)
Act 2008, the mere attendance at an assembly of a kind contemplated by
this section does not amount to an association or communication with another
person present at the assembly.
Part
3—Exemption from certain laws
(1) Subject to this section, the Minister may, by notice in writing made
on application by a person, exempt the person, or a group of persons, from a
specified provision or provisions of a specified Act or law for the purposes of,
or during the course of, genuine advocacy, protest, dissent or industrial
action.
(2) The Minister—
(a) must determine an application under subsection (1) as a matter of
urgency (and in any case must determine the application within 5 business days
after the application is received); and
(b) may only refuse to grant an exemption, or an exemption from a
particular provision of an Act or law, if the Minister believes on reasonable
grounds that granting the exemption would present an unreasonable risk to public
safety; and
(c) if the Minister refuses to grant an exemption—
(i) the Minister must notify the applicant in writing of the determination
(and the notice must set out the grounds on which the Minister believed that the
granting of the exemption would present an unreasonable risk to public safety);
and
(ii) must prepare a report setting out the grounds on which the Minister
believed that the granting of the exemption would present an unreasonable risk
to public safety, and must cause the report to be laid before both Houses of
Parliament within 6 sitting days of the date on which the notice under
subparagraph (i) was given to the applicant.
(3) An application under subsection (1) must be made in a manner and
form determined by the Minister.
(4) The applicant must, at the request of the Minister, provide such
further information as may be reasonably required to determine the
application.
(5) The Minister must not charge a fee for an application under
subsection (1).
(6) An exemption is subject to the conditions (if any) specified in the
notice under subsection (1).
(7) The Minister may, by further notice in writing, vary or revoke an
exemption for any reason the Minister thinks fit.
(8) To avoid doubt, a reference in this section to an Act or law includes
a reference to a by-law made under any Act.
6—Exemption does
not operate in favour of person who contravenes a condition
If a person contravenes or fails to comply with a condition of an
exemption, the exemption does not, while the contravention or non-compliance
continues, operate in that person's favour.
(1) An applicant for an exemption under Part 3 may, if the
Minister—
(a) determines to refuse to grant the application; or
(b) grants the application but imposes a condition on the
exemption,
appeal to the Administrative and Disciplinary Division of the District
Court against the determination or the imposition of the condition.
(2) An appeal under this section must be instituted—
(a) in the case of an appeal against a determination to refuse to grant an
application—within 28 days of the applicant being notified in accordance
with section 5(2)(c)(i) of the determination; or
(b) in the case of an appeal against an imposition of a condition on an
exemption—within 28 days of the date on which the application was
granted.
(1) The Minister must, on or before 30 September in each year, prepare a
report on the operation of this Act during the previous financial
year.
(2) The report must include—
(a) the number of applications under Part 3 received by the Minister;
and
(b) details of each such application that was granted (including details
of any condition imposed on the exemption by the Minister); and
(c) details of each such application that was refused by the Minister, and
details of the grounds on which the Minister believed that the granting of the
exemption would present an unreasonable risk to public safety; and
(d) a report from the Commissioner of Police providing the information
required by the regulations in relation to the conduct of genuine advocacy,
protest, dissent or industrial action in accordance with this Act.
(3) The Minister must, within 12 sitting days after the report is
completed, cause a copy of the report to be laid before both Houses of
Parliament.
A notice required or authorised to be given to a person for the purposes of
this Act may—
(a) be given to the person personally; or
(b) be posted in an envelope addressed to the person at the person's last
known residential, business or (in the case of a corporation) registered
address; or
(c) be left for the person at the person's last known residential,
business or (in the case of a corporation) registered address with someone
apparently over the age of 16 years; or
(d) be transmitted by fax or email to a fax number or email address
provided by the person (in which case the notice or document will be taken to
have been given or served at the time of transmission).
The Governor may make such regulations as are contemplated by, or necessary
or expedient for the purposes of, this Act.