NSW premier signals possible retreat from 'globalise the intifada' ban after court defeats

Lead

New South Wales Premier Chris Minns has suggested he may not proceed with a ban on the phrase "globalise the intifada" unless a similar law in Queensland survives a legal challenge, according to multiple reports. The comments mark a notable shift in position for the premier, who had previously promised to prohibit the slogan.

Coverage comparison

Reporting from The Guardian indicates that Minns is now linking the fate of any potential NSW ban to the outcome of a constitutional challenge to Queensland's legislation. The Guardian reports that Minns described the phrase as "hateful, violent rhetoric" in December but has since sent the proposal to a parliamentary inquiry, with no legislation yet introduced.

ABC Australia's coverage focuses on a recent Court of Appeal ruling that struck down other anti-protest laws enacted after the Bondi Beach terrorist attack. The court found that "social cohesion" is not a legitimate constitutional purpose for laws that burden freedom of political communication. According to ABC's report, the court's decision has significant implications for the government's broader legislative agenda.

Key claims

• The New South Wales Court of Appeal ruled that "social cohesion" is not a legitimate purpose for laws that burden the constitutionally implied freedom of political communication, as reported by ABC Australia.
• The Court of Appeal's ruling invalidated laws, passed following the Bondi Beach terrorist attack, that allowed police to restrict protests in certain areas for up to three months, per ABC's coverage.
• Premier Chris Minns is considering introducing legislation to ban the phrase "globalise the intifada," as reported by multiple outlets.
• The Queensland government has enacted its own ban on the phrase, according to reports from ABC and The Guardian.
• Two protesters have been charged under the new laws in Queensland, as reported by ABC Australia.
• University of Sydney constitutional law expert Anne Twomey has warned against banning individual political slogans, according to The Guardian.
• Minns has indicated he will only proceed with a ban if Queensland's law survives a constitutional challenge, as reported by The Guardian.

Perspectives

The Queensland precedent: Both ABC and The Guardian report that Queensland has already enacted a ban on the phrase, with ABC noting that two protesters have been charged under those laws. The Queensland experience is now being watched closely, as pro-Palestinian groups have vowed to launch a legal challenge.

The Guardian reports that Minns explicitly linked the fate of NSW legislation to the outcome of that Queensland challenge. "If [the ban] is upheld in Queensland, I'll do it in New South Wales, I won't muck around," he told 2GB radio on Tuesday.

Constitutional concerns: ABC Australia's coverage emphasizes the Court of Appeal's reasoning against the anti-protest laws. Chief Justice Andrew Bell and Justices Julie Ward and Stephen Free wrote that Australia's system of government "entails acceptance of the potential for disharmony, incivility and disruption that is part and parcel of democratic intercourse," according to ABC's report.

The court rejected arguments that protecting social cohesion justified the laws' burden on political communication, a finding that legal sources suggest could have implications for any similar ban on political slogans.