AFP unable to charge hate preachers under current laws

Acting Prime Minister Richard Marles says the federal government will “continue to monitor” whether hate speech laws are strong enough to deal with hate preachers, after the Australian Federal Police (AFP) revealed it has been unable to lay charges over radical sermons since the Bondi Chanukah attack.

AFP commissioner Krissy Barrett told The Australian that a task force set up after the December 14 attack to monitor a small number of prayer halls, known as Operation Antrobus, had not laid a single charge. “I have asked relevant AFP teams twice to review the sermons of certain hate preachers to determine if charges can be laid,” Barrett told the masthead.

“However, these sermons are not reaching a threshold that would allow the AFP to lay charges. I am convinced some hate preachers are getting legal advice to ensure they push it right to the edge to prevent the AFP from laying charges.”

Under current law, hate speech is a criminal offence only if it involves a threat or call to violence.

Asked on Thursday whether federal hate laws were adequate, Marles told The Australian: “We continue to monitor these, and we continue to look at how we can make sure that our laws are robust in this regard.”