Senator ALLISON (Leader of the Australian Democrats) (3:53 PM) —I move:

   That the Senate—

(a)   notes that:

(i)   thirteen Melbourne men accused of terrorist-related crimes have been held for nearly 2 years in the maximum security Acacia unit in Barwon prison; segregated, shackled, regularly strip-searched, and confined to their cells for more than 20 hours every day,

(ii)   Justice Bongiorno, in a bail application hearing earlier in September 2007, said the conditions lacked any justification and risked undermining the rule of law by treating the men in the same way as the state’s worst convicted contract killers, stating that ‘I find the conditions in Barwon very troubling from the court’s perspective. The state runs Barwon prison. What is the reason why ... people need to be treated in the way that ... the accused in this case have been treated? ... It is extremely difficult not to see this as some sort of pre-emptive punishment being imposed’, and

(iii)   the trial, which may last for 6 months, is due to begin in February 2008;

(b)   considers that it is unacceptable for accused prisoners to be awaiting trial for 2 years in punitive conditions akin to criminals convicted of the most heinous crimes; and

(c)   urges the Government to ensure fair and reasonable remand conditions and the expeditious conduct of trial proceedings for these accused.

Question put.