MR: CONCERN OVER ABUSE OF TERROR LAWS TO TARGET LGBTIQA+ PEOPLE

[Michael Barnett OAM]

---------- Forwarded message ---------
From: Rodney Croome <rodney...@equalitytasmania.org.au>
Date: Tue, 30 Sept 2025 at 13:40
Subject: MR: CONCERN OVER ABUSE OF TERROR LAWS TO TARGET LGBTIQA+ PEOPLE
To: <mikey...@gmail.com>

 

Media Release

Tuesday September 30th 2025

 

CONCERN OVER ABUSE OF TERROR LAWS TO TARGET LGBTIQA+ PEOPLE

CALL FOR LAWS TO BE REVIEWED

 

Equality Tasmania has expressed concern the state’s current anti-terror laws could be used to harass LGBTIQA+ people and has called for them to be reviewed.

 

The call comes in a submission the group made to the State Government which is proposing to renew anti-terrorism laws enacted twenty years ago.

 

Spokesperson, Dr Ash Russell, said,

 

“Tasmania’s anti-terrorism laws have not been used since they were enacted twenty years ago and are in need of a formal review." 

 

"Part of that review should be a consideration of how such laws have been abused elsewhere to target LGBTIQA+ people, especially trans and gender diverse people.”

 

“In other countries, including Russia and the United States, government officials have labelled LGBTIQA+ people and organisations 'extremists' and ‘terrorists’.”

 

“We are concerned rogue law enforcement officers or future governments may do the same here under existing anti-terrorism laws.”

 

“There's an increasingly common misperception that LGBTIQA+ people, and especially trans and gender diverse people, are more likely to be violent extremists. This is at odds with the reality that we are more likely to be victims of such extremism."

 

The Equality Tasmania submission outlines the long history of LGBTIQA+ people being demonised as national security threats, extremists and terrorists. It also responds to skepticism about this happening again in Australia. The submission says,

 

"The abuse of anti-terrorism laws to harass and persecute LGBTIQA+ people may seem a very unlikely path for Australia to take. But when marriage equality became law across the United States in 2015, who would have predicted that just a decade later the President of that country would canvass banning the pride flag as a terrorist symbol?"

 

Dr Russell went on to say that if a review recommends existing anti-terrorism laws remain, they should be amended to reduce the possibility of arbitrary arrest, similar to the ACT anti-terrorism laws.

 

“There should also be education of law enforcement and other relevant professionals about the risk of LGBTIQA+ people, and especially TGD people, being stereotyped as extremists and terrorists."

 

A copy of the submission is attached.

For a copy of this statement on the web, click here

For more information contact Ash Russell on 0447 378 689.

 

 

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