PM’s plan to jail vegan activists
Vegan protesters who target farmers' homes could face a year in jail under new laws proposed by Prime Minister Scott Morrison.
If re-elected in May, Mr Morrison plans to change the laws to prevent vegan activists from using private information about farmers to harass them.
"They are being targeted in the most mercenary way by an organisation that can only think of itself and not think of the real damage that is being done to the livelihoods of these hardworking Australians," Mr Morrison told reporters in Launceston on Wednesday.
He promised to introduce laws banning people from inciting criminal activity against farmers, with jail terms up to 12 months.
The Aussie Farms website publishes an interactive map of farms across the country, which the organisation says exposes animal exploitation in a secretive industry.
Vegan protesters on Monday launched a cross-border campaign targeting a busy Melbourne street, plus abattoirs and farms in Victoria, NSW and Queensland. It resulted in scores of arrests, criminal charges and a renewed call for farmers to take action, with the federal government committing to underwrite legal claims.
Privacy laws were changed last Friday to potentially expose Aussie Farms' website to significant penalties for publishing farmers' addresses and contact details.
