Following at least three incidents of minors involved in thwarted terror plots, Australia’s national spy agency, ASIO, is seeking new powers to question 14-year-olds in the presence of a lawyer to reflect the “reality” of Australia’s evolving national security threats.
In a submission to Parliament in May, ASIO wrote that they were “concerned that vulnerable and impressionable young people” were at risk of being caught up in the streams of hate spread across the internet from “extremists of every ideology.”
The submission noted that the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL) “set the standard among Islamist extremists” for disseminating propaganda in Australia; and that right-wing extremists also continue to produce “internet-savvy, sophisticated messaging.”
According to ASIO, since 2015, one terrorist attack and three disrupted plots have involved teenagers under the age of 18.
“Minors continue to be involved in attacks and attack planning,” ASIO noted in its submission.
The submission also noted that Australia’s “probable” terror threat was unacceptably high.
When Home Affairs Minister Peter Dutton brought the Australian Security Intelligence Organisation Amendment Bill 2020 before Parliament on May 13, he said that the number of terrorism leads ASIO is investigating has doubled since that time last year.
“The director-general also noted that the threat to Australia from foreign interference and espionage is higher now than it was at the height of the Cold War,” Dutton said.
Dutton said the bill would improve ASIO’s capacity to respond to these threats.
ASIO’s submission (pdf) to Parliament said: “The threats posed today by espionage and foreign interference operate at a scale, breadth, and ambition that has not previously been seen in Australia.”
“Espionage and foreign interference are affecting parts of the Australian community previously untouched by such threats, even during the Cold War,” said the intelligence agency.
Response to the Bill
Child advocates have argued that the powers are inappropriate.
AAP reported on July 10 that Save the Children chief executive Paul Ronalds said that there was little evidence to justify lowering the age of questioning.
“If successful, it will undermine the democratic ideals and way of life that it purports to protect, putting at-risk children’s rights in the justice system, including the right to a fair trial.”
In a media release on July 10, the Law Council of Australia President Pauline Wright said that it was concerning that there would be inadequate safeguards for the questioning to 14-year-old children.
“The Law Council is not denying that intelligence operatives work in a complex and dynamic security environment and need appropriate and adequate powers to keep the community safe,” Wright said. “But there needs to be greater precision in defining the limits and authorisation thresholds for the proposed powers in the amendment.”
Focus News: ASIO Seeks Powers to Question 14-Year-Olds to Investigate National Security Threats