What is the impact that the Albanese government’s Combatting Antisemitism, Hate and Extremism Act 2026 will have on the ability of ordinary Australians to protest? Anne Twomey examines the provisions.
Hate Crime Laws Can Chill Free Speech
Category: Australia
Going Down, Down Under
The Australian Parliament has passed a new hate crimes law that could potentially throw critics of Israel in prison for years, reports Joe Lauria.
WATCH: CN Live! — ‘Free Speech in the Dock’
Under the new law passed this week by the Australian Parliament, a pro-Palestinian group could potentially be banned and its members arrested for accusing Israel of genocide. A senator who opposed the bill joins CN Live!
Australia’s Hate (Free-) Speech Bill
The bill calls for one to be imprisoned for causing theoretical discomfort in a theoretical person, writes Christina Maas. It removes proof of harm, rewrites fear as legal standard, and shifts the burden of innocence to the accused.
Choose Top 10 CN 2025 Photos
2024 Photo Contest Winners
As Consortium News launches its Top 10 Photos of the Year Contest for 2025, we reveal 2024’s winners.
WATCH: John Pilger — War, Peace & Propaganda
John Pilger died two years ago today. Here are some of the things he was saying almost a decade ago about Australia, America and Palestine at an appearance at Politics in the Pub in Sydney in 2016.
John Pilger: Afflictor of the Powerful
UPDATED: John Pilger died two years ago today on Dec. 30, 2023. Better than just about anyone else, he used his prodigious talents to simply do his job as a reporter, writes Joe Lauria.
PATRICK LAWRENCE: After the First 70,669 Deaths
I take the 15 victims at Bondi Beach and divide them by the 71,000 deaths in Gaza as of this writing. I get a fraction of 0.0002143.
Bondi Massacre: Curtailing Dissent
We cannot allow this tragedy to be hijacked by cynical politicians and the divisive Zionist lobby, writes Stefan Moore.