This week's raids on Indonesian Australians' homes underscores how the government's security mindset, as well as over-reaction to the Bali attacks, is undermining basic democratic rights in Australia, legal experts and rights activists here say.

In fact, a leading constitutional lawyer believes that proposed anti-terrorism legislation revived by the government after the Oct. 12 bombings is reminiscent of laws under former military dictatorships such as Gen Augusto Pinochet's in Chile.

Speaking Friday at a counter-terrorism conference on homeland security here, Professor George Williams of the University of New South said: "Insufficient regard has been given to the need to balance the rule of law and human rights against our national security concerns.''

''Without a Bill of Rights, we have ended up with an Australian Security Intelligence Organisation (ASIO) bill that would not be out of place in former dictatorships such as General Pinochet's Chile,'' Williams said.

No evidence to date

The Australian government has accused Jemaah Islamiyah, which seeks to create a pan-Islamic state across Southeast Asia, of involvement in the Bali bombings that killed 183 people including up to 88 Australians.

To date, no evidence has been publicly produced linking Jemaah Islamiyah to the Bali bombings.

The United Nations however has added it to the list of terrorist organisations. Canberra had also requested this classification, which has triggered domestic powers available to its security forces under Australian law.

The Australian Security Intelligence Organisation, the government's counter-terrorism agency, and the Australian Federal Police (AFP) wasted no time with their new powers as soon as Jemaah Islamiyah was classified a terrorist group on Sunday.

Starting Sunday, they have combined forces to launch at least three raids in Perth, Melbourne and Sydney on the homes of Muslims, mainly Indonesian Australian, that they believe could have links with Jemaah Islamiyah.

The raids have prompted protests from the Indonesian Foreign Ministry about a lack of consultation and heavy-handed tactics, and Indonesian Vice President Hamzah Haz said: "If there is no explanation (about this), there will be other problems.''

National interest

But Prime Minister John Howard defended the raids as being in Australia's interest. "There were reasons for those raids and I defend 100 percent what ASIO has done. We will be going ahead with what we think is in the national interest,'' he said Friday.

Civil liberties groups argue that the police are over-reacting by raiding the homes and arresting people whose sole connection seems to have been their attendance at lectures of Abu Bakar Ba'asyir, the Indonesian cleric described as the spiritual leader of Jemaah Islamiyah. He had obtained immigration permission to speak at mosques in Australia years ago.

However, analysts say the real target of the raids may be the opposition Labor Party, which has to date opposed draconian provisions in the proposed anti-terrorism laws that would allow ASIO to secretly detain people as young as 14 without charges.

Those detained are liable to a five-year jail term for simply to refusing to answer questions, even during the first 48 hours when they are deprived of the right to legal advice. While the proposed legislation allows for access to legal advice after 48 hours, this would only be allowed while an ASIO officer is present.

""It would be difficult, if not impossible, to justify the ASIO bill even during a period of war in which the life of the nation is threatened,'' Williams said.

However, increased insecurity after the Bali bombings fuelled by frequent warnings by government ministers about the risk of attacks within Australia may be creating a climate in which the draconian laws would be whisked through parliament.

Decisive action

Already, the raids are designed to make the government look tough and like it is taking decisive action, says activists with the Federation of Community Legal Centres (FCLC).

""These raids are to legitimise changes to the anti-terrorism laws and create the appearance that they are actually dealing with the problem when the problem is clearly in Indonesia and not in Australia,'' FCLC spokesman Damien Lawson said.

"Its about creating this hype on the war against terrorism which is creating pressure on the Labor Party to pass these new ASIO powers in the bills,'' Lawson said.

On Thursday, ASIO director general Dennis Richardson defended the raids in his speech to the homeland security conference. "Self evidently, we could not legally conduct an entry and a search on the basis that someone had merely attended a lecture by a cleric who was visiting the country. That is simply a matter of law," he said.

No real accountability

Lawson disputes Richardson's claim. "There is no real accountability for ASIO. Under the ASIO act, the Attorney General can issue a warrant on the nebulous basis that he has reasonable grounds to believe that ASIO will be assisted in accessing information,'' he said.

""Someone's attendance at a meeting a few years ago is clearly not a reasonable basis for issuing a warrant, but since it is up the Attorney General it is difficult to test this until after the fact. ASIO and (Attorney General) Daryl Williams are saying 'trust us, we know', but that is not good enough,'' he said.

The chairwoman of the Ethnic Communities Council of Victoria, Marion Lau, is alarmed at how the Islamic community is being singled out for 'anti-terrorist' raids.

""No raid has resulted in any evidence of the victims' connection with the (Jemaah Islamiyah) organisation that has been stated and the tactical response so far seems to have been very aggressive and very oppressive,'' she said. IPS