Thu, Jun 3, 2004 at 8:00:11 am
Australian terror suspect Bilal Khazal, a former baggage handler for Qantas Airways who said “like any Muslim” he considered Osama bin Laden a “good man,” has been released by an Australian judge—on $10,000 (AUS) bail.
SYDNEY, (AFP) - Australia have rushed to tighten new anti-terrorism laws to stop alleged terrorists getting bail amid public outrage over a Sydney man charged with inciting jihad who was freed on a 10,000 dollar bond (7,100 US dollars).
The New South Wales state government introduced legislation making terrorist cases exempt from a centuries-old legal precedent giving defendants a presumption in favour of bail, while the federal government said it was considering increasing non-parole periods for convicted terrorists.
The moves followed a community backlash over a Sydney court’s decision to grant bail to Bilal Khazal, a 34-year-old former Qantas baggage handler who on Wednesday became the first person charged in Australia with inciting terrorism.
With newspapers and talkback radio hosts accusing authorities of being soft on alleged terrorists, NSW Premier Bob Carr said the court had made a mistake and his government would ensure it did not happen again. “If someone is charged with offences this serious then bail should not be an option,” Carr told reporters.
Attorney-General Philip Ruddock said he was considering urgent legislation to overrule the right of state-based courts to grant bail in terrorist cases, aside from exceptional circumstances. “I would prefer not to be in a situation in another month or so where a similar situation arose in another state and the law wasn’t equal to dealing with it,” he said.
Ruddock also foreshadowed a bill imposing lengthy non-parole periods on convicted terrorists — a response to anger over the jailing earlier this week of Australia’s first convicted terrorist for far less than the maximum possible prison term.
Facing a maximum term of 25 years for plotting to blow up the Israeli embassy in Canberra, British-born Muslim convert Jack Roche was sentenced to nine years. Under the shorter term, he could be out on parole in three years.
Khazal’s lawyer Chris Murphy accused politicians of whipping up hysteria in the lead up to national elections due later this year. “This case is about ‘bash a Muslim, get a vote’. It’s shocking,” he told reporters.