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Laws Relating to Witchcraft in
Australia
Under the Australian
Constitution Section V chapter 116: The
Commonwealth shall not make any law for establishing any
religion, or for imposing any religious observance, or for
prohibiting the free exercise of any religion, and no
religious test shall be required as a qualification for
any office or public trust under the Commonwealth.
This means that no religion can be
recognised and no religion can be made illegal. This is
for all religions including the organised ones. The government
can however enact legislation in regards to
religious institutions and bodies.
Australian Capital Territory
The Discrimination Act,
1991, makes it unlawful to discriminate against a
person on the basis of a person's
religious convictions.
Discrimination
Act, 1991
New South Wales
The Witchcraft Act of 1735 was repealed by
the Imperial Acts Application Act, 1969 (NSW),
The offence of fortune
telling, [Section 4(2)(n) of the Vagrancy Act, 1902 (NSW)] was
through many submissions and changes finally repealed by the Summary Offences
Act (Repeal) Act, 1979 (NSW).
Northern Territory
Thorough searching has failed to reveal any equivalent laws
which affect religious practices.
Queensland
The Criminal Code -Section 432
This was repealed on 10th November 2000 Vagrants, Gaming and Other Offences Act
1931
The Queensland Government recently repealed the
Vagrants Gaming and Other Offences Act 1931. The Summary
Offences Act which takes it's place has been enacted
effective 21st March 2005.
South Australia
The Statutes Amendment and Repeal (Public
Offences) Act, 1991 abolished the Witchcraft laws in SA
However the
1991 Act came with a new section Section 40. A person who, with intent
to defraud purports to act as a spiritualist or medium or
to exercise powers of telepathy or clairvoyance or other
similar powers, is guilty of an offence.
Summary Offences Act as Section
40.
Tasmania
The Constitution Act 1934, Section 46, provides for
freedom of religion.
Constitution Act 1934
This
document includes a legal guarantee of the religious
liberty and equality of Tasmanians. Every citizen is
guaranteed freedom of conscience and the free exercise of
religion under Section 46(1) of this Act. Section 46(2)
declares that no person is required to take any oath on
religion or religious belief, and that no religious test
is required for any public office.
Victoria
Section 13 of
the Vagrancy Act 1958 which is entitled 'Fortune Telling
and Pretending to Exercise Witchcraft, etc':
Any person
who pretends or professes to tell fortunes or uses any
subtle craft means or device by palmistry or otherwise to
defraud or impose on any other person or pretends to
exercise or use any kind of witchcraft sorcery enchantment
or conjuration or pretends from his skill or knowledge in
any occult or crafty science to discover where or in what
manner any goods or chattels stolen or lost may be found
shall be guilty of an offence.
The Pagan Awareness Network Inc made a submission amongst
others to the Scrutiny of Acts and Regulations Committee
in Victoria during 2002 in the regard to supporting the
repeal of this act.
On the 3rd of September 2002 it was recommended to the
Attorney General by the Scrutiny
of Acts and Regulations Committee in Victoria that this law should be
repealed. The
status of the repeal is not known at this time. When this
law is gone there will be no standing Witchcraft laws in
Australia
In July 2005 this law was finally repealed with
the "Vagrancy
(Repeal) and Summary Offences (Amendment) Act 2005".
There are no standing Witchcraft laws in Australia now.
Western Australia
To date I have not been able to find any information
about laws that may affect Pagans or Witches past or
present.
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