Page 799 - Week 03 - Wednesday, 20 March 2019
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The government, of course, has also given extra resources to the Director of Public Prosecutions to handle confiscation of criminal asset matters. Confiscation of assets deprives criminal gangs of the financial means and incentives to engage in crime. Recently, residential properties, vehicles and cash have been forfeited to the territory as part of enforcement activity designed to disrupt OMCG-related activity. These laws, and other existing police powers, have resulted in a significant number of arrests and charges, with 17 detainees at the AMC currently believed to be patched members, nominees, former members or associates of outlaw motorcycle gangs.
Of course, there has also been the additional resourcing for policing, which I am sure Minister Gentleman will speak to. But these resources for Task Force Nemesis will be more effective in combatting OMCG activity, and more effective than I believe the false promises of Mr Hanson, as contained in this bill, can be.
The Attorney has given the figures on the numbers of arrests we have seen. The number of search warrants indicate that police have significant powers to intervene. The additional resources and the additional measures, such as working with the DPP, are I think the sorts of measures that we need to see that are actually proving to be effective, are actually resulting in disruption of activities.
The position the Greens have adopted for some time now is that we are unwilling to support legislation that criminalises people for whom they associate with, and that instead we should target the offending behaviour. This is a principle that we will continue to keep in mind when considering legislation that targets OMCG activity so that there are no unintended consequences. We are open to new initiatives but they must be effective and must seek to avoid the sort of perverse outcomes that we have seen in New South Wales.
MS CODY (Murrumbidgee) (10.28): Today, once again, we see the Liberals’ answer to organised crime. I will not speak for long. My colleagues Mr Ramsay and Mr Rattenbury have already covered off most of what should be said. But I also will not speak for long because no means no. I taught my sons that. It works in all kinds of contexts. I will just briefly remind Mr Hanson why no is still no and will still be a no, no matter how many times he asks.
As Mr Rattenbury remarked, the scrutiny report can help in explaining why I am a hard no on anti-consorting laws. The scrutiny committee reports that the consequences of this law will fall particularly hard on Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people, young people and marginalised people. Yes, Mr Hanson’s answer to organised crime is ordering the cops to be bigots and to target kids and the disabled. By contrast, Mr Ramsay and Mr Gentleman are running a criminal justice system that is focused on crime, not just the nearest young Indigenous child who cannot defend themselves.
ACT Policing deserve great praise for their campaigning against racism and discrimination of all kinds. ACT Policing’s achievements in working with our multicultural communities to ensure that everyone in our community is safe and feels safe, no matter what their religion, is commendable. They also deserve great praise for
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