Terrorism is currently ‘off topic’ for a new Senate Inquiry into the ‘adequacy of aviation and maritime security measures to combat serious and organised crime.’

The inquiry was ordered on Monday by the Parliamentary Joint Committee on the Australian Crime Commission and announced this afternoon.

The committee will examine the effectiveness of current administrative and law enforcement arrangements to protect Australia’s borders from serious and organised criminal activity. In particular the committee will examine:

(a) the methods used by serious and organised criminal groups to infiltrate Australia’s airports and ports, and the extent of infiltration;

(b) the range of criminal activity currently occurring at Australia’s airports and ports, including but not limited to:

• the importation of illicit drugs, firearms, and
• prohibited items
• tariff avoidance
• people trafficking and people smuggling
• money laundering
• air cargo and maritime cargo theft

(c) the effectiveness of the Aviation Security Identification Card (ASIC) and Maritime Security Identification Card (MSIC) schemes; including the process of issuing ASICs and MSICs, the monitoring of cards issued and the storage of, and sharing of, ASIC and MSIC information between appropriate law enforcement agencies;

(d) the current administrative and law enforcement arrangements and information and intelligence sharing measures to manage the risk of serious and organised criminal activity at Australia’s airports and ports; and

(e) the findings of the Australian Crime Commission’s special intelligence operations into Crime in the Transport Sector and Illegal Maritime Importation and Movement Methodologies.

Submissions close on 6 November and it is likely that hearings will be held in the New Year.

Comment: It may be difficult for the inquiry to quarantine terrorism related crime from the traditional purpose and focus of the Australian Crime Commission on the heavy duty operations of activities that predominantly had no political or ideological agenda until the aftermath of 9/11 .

But the crossover of established crime with the crimes of terrorism has preoccupied border protection authorities in the US and Europe, and there is no reason why these issues are not also relevant in Australia.

The Aviation Security Identification Card is generally reviled for being useless, or unnecessary or poorly administered, or all of the above, at the general aviation and aviation support industry levels, and was justified as an essential tool in the fight against terrorism. Its inclusion in the terms of reference is likely to produce strong submissions and inevitably require the committee to consider anti-terrorism issues as they are alleged to arise at smaller country and general aviation airports.

Another crossover point for the inquiry is likely to arise from proposed methods of improving the scanning of containers to detect drug smuggling,the avoidance of  duties or the fraudulent description of consignments. Those same processes can be an integral part of scanning for explosives or biological weapons.

They are also very costly processes, and it is fair to say that shippers in general are determined to see any extra costs shifted from them to border authorities in a way that doesn’t cripple their businesses, or ‘international trade’, to use the term preferred by shipping lobbies.