Silencing of Activism in Australian Law

Mary Heath, Peter Burdon

    Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

    4 Citations (Scopus)

    Abstract

    Environmental destruction and climate change are driving new waves of environmental activism. In response, governments in several Australian states have enacted legislation designed to penalise and silence political protest. This article analyses Tasmania’s anti-protest laws and considers how the United Nations and scholars have reacted to them. We argue that protest suppression laws such as these reflect a neoliberal rationality which conceptualises society in market terms. This mode of thinking perceives protest as market interference rather than civic participation. Accordingly, anti-protest laws seek to secure the rights and interests of corporations to unimpeded market access.

    Original languageEnglish
    Pages (from-to)190-194
    Number of pages5
    JournalAlternative Law Journal
    Volume42
    Issue number3
    DOIs
    Publication statusPublished - 2017

    Keywords

    • climate change action
    • dissent
    • environmental activism
    • environmental NGOs
    • protest

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