They’ve Gone Too Far

Posted on 03. Jun, 2010 by Mysty in News

If you weren’t aware, Australian Customs are issuing incoming travellers with cards that now ask whether you are carrying pornography in your luggage, or on your body.  It is simply a checkbox asking whether you are carrying pornography or not.  Failing to tick the box when you do have pornography is seen as a criminal offence.

Comments from Australian Customs have so far indicated that this has been added to incoming traveller cards as a way to block the entrance of illegal pornography such as child pornography and other pornography classified under the ‘Refused Classification’ banner.  Now I don’t know who in their right mind, who is carrying child pornography is actually going to tick the box.  Why would anyone subject themselves to a search for child pornography?

I personally see one flaw in this new policy, and that is for those people who have taken personal holiday snaps or video of themselves making love in an exotic location.  If you do take pics or video containing nudity, even though it would be considered legal in Australia, you still have to declare it, and of course Customs is likely to want to view it to make sure that it is legal, or in the case of one Australian, he has had his whole hard disk drive confiscated because it contained one ‘suspect’ video.

Mr Mansfield had only been told that there was some ‘suspicious material’ on his hard drive.  That is the reason given to Mr Mansfield.  I suspect that they viewed the material away from Mr Mansfield, and he probably wasn’t present for the viewing of the hard drive, and as such doesn’t know exactly what material is considered to be the ‘suspicious material’.  I don’t know how long it would take to go through a hard drive thoroughly, particularly if it is quite large, and does contain over 5000 photos and 30,000 songs

I suspect that Mr Mansfield is very angry, and he has threatened to sue Customs if he fails to get his hard drive back, or they have deleted any material.  Personally, I don’t blame him.  i would be quite angry to have my music collection confiscated from me, particularly if they wouldn’t even show me why they confiscated my hard drive.

Do you think that Australian Customs has a right to search hard drives and laptops for pornography?  If you were carrying pornography, would you declare it, or risk being caught?  Let us know your thoughts.

From SMH | SMH