National Security (General) Regulations (Amendment) (Cth)

STATUTORY RULES.

1942. No. 308

REGULATIONS UNDER THE NATIONAL SECURITY ACT 1939-1940.*

I, THE GOVERNOR-GENERAL in and over the Commonwealth of Australia, acting with the advice of the Federal Executive Council, hereby make the following Regulations under the National Security Act 1939-1940.

Dated this fifteenth

day of July , 1942.

Governor-General.

By His Excellency’s Command,

for and on behalf of the Minister of State for Defence.

———

Amendments of the National Security (General) Regulations.

Definitions.

1. Regulation 3 of the National Security (General) Regulations is amended by inserting in sub-regulation (1.), after the definition of “ammunition”, the following definition:—

“‘article’ includes any substance whatsoever;”.

2. Regulation 15a of the National Security (General) Regulations is repealed and the following regulation is inserted in its stead:—

Undeliverable postal articles addressed to members of the Forces.

“15a. Postal articles, other than letters, postcards and commercial papers, which have been posted within the Commonwealth addressed to any member of the naval, military or air forces of the Commonwealth, or to any person accompanying any of those forces, in any Territory of the Commonwealth or abroad and which are unclaimed by, or cannot be delivered to, the addressee, may be dealt with and their contents disposed of as the Minister directs.”.

* Notified in the Commonwealth Gazette on , 1942.

  Statutory Rules 1939, No. 87, as amended by Statutory Rules 1939, Nos. 103, 174, 177; Statutory Rules 1940, Nos. 8, 32, 34, 45, 67, 71, 90, 91, 93, 113, 118, 119, 120, 127, 171, 175, 187, 191, 243, 246, 261, 262, 263, 264 and 270; 1941, Nos. 2, 8, 9, 40, 69, 112, 116, 125, 171, 174, 179, 208, 248, 266, 268, 274, 287, 291, 301 and 325; and 1942, Nos. 49, 56, 67, 87, 89, 97, 105, 124, 133, 141, 163, 238, 259, 266, 276 and 296.

3758.—Price 5d. 25/7.7.1942.

3. After regulation 30 of the National Security (General) Regulations the following regulation is inserted:—

Forcing safeguards.

“30a.—(1.) A person shall not force or evade, or attempt to force or evade, a safeguard.

“(2.) In this regulation ‘safeguard’ means—

(a)any party of the naval, military or air forces of the Commonwealth or of the United Kingdom or of any other part of His Majesty’s dominions;

(b)any party of any allied or other foreign force serving in association with His Majesty’s armed forces;

(c) any party of Commonwealth Peace Officers,

which is posted for the purpose of protecting, or to prevent or control access to, any premises or place, or any vehicle, vessel or aircraft, or for the purpose of regulating traffic on any road, railway or inland waterway and includes a sentry or guard being a member of any such force, and any Commonwealth Peace Officer, posted for any of those purposes.”.

Evacuation of areas.

4. Regulation 32 of the National Security (General) Regulations is amended by inserting after paragraph (d) of sub-regulation (1.) the following paragraph:—

“(da)directing any person or class of persons employed in any area in connexion with any essential service, to continue, unless prevented by reasonable cause (proof whereof shall lie upon the person affected) to carry on his or their ordinary occupation in connexion with that service as on and from the date specified in the order;”.

Powers of State Premiers.

5. Regulation 35a of the National Security (General) Regulations is amended by inserting in paragraph (b) of sub-regulation (2b.), after the word “which”, the word “he”.

Disposal of dead bodies.

6. Regulation 37 of the National Security (General) Regulations is amended—

(a) by inserting in sub-regulation (1.), after the words “police station”, the words “, any member of the police force of or above the rank of sergeant”;

(b) by omitting from that sub-regulation the words “in the Defence Force” and inserting in their stead the words “of the Armed Forces”; and

(c) by omitting sub-regulation (3.) and inserting in its stead the following sub-regulations:—

“(3.) Notwithstanding the provisions of any other law, any officer of the Armed Forces in charge of any unit of a Graves Registration Service or any Graves Registration and Enquiry Unit, may establish or cause to be established such cemeteries as are required for the burial of persons who have died in consequence of war operations, or for the burial of internees or prisoners of war.

“(4.) In this regulation—

‘Armed Forces’ means any of the Armed Forces, or nursing services or women’s services auxiliary to the Armed Forces, of His Majesty or of any power which is allied or associated with His Majesty in any war in which His Majesty is engaged;

‘body’ includes any part of a body; and

‘war operations’ means operations of the forces of an enemy, or operations of any of the Armed Forces while in action against an enemy or while acting in the course of their duty upon any warning of the imminence of an attack by an enemy.”.

7. Regulation 69 of the National Security (General) Regulations is repealed and the following regulation is inserted in its stead:—

Derelict articles.

“69.—(1.) If any person finds any article which he has reasonable cause to believe—

(a) to have dropped from any aircraft, or to have formed part of any aircraft, or of the equipment of any aircraft; or

(b) to be the property of a member of any of the armed forces of the enemy or to have formed part of the arms, clothing or equipment of such a member, or to have been or formed part of any missile discharged by a member of any armed force; or

(c) to have been used or intended for use by any armed force or upon any vessel of war, or vessel defensively armed or equipped, or by a member of any such force, or of the crew of any such vessel, and to have been lost, abandoned or intentionally released or relinquished by any such member or force or from any such vessel,

or receives any such article from any other person whom he does not have reasonable cause to believe to be entitled to transfer it to him, or from a member of any of the armed forces of the enemy, he shall forthwith cause the article to be delivered to a member of the Armed Forces on duty in the neighbourhood or to the officer or constable in charge of a police station in the neighbourhood, or if, by reason of the size or weight of the article or other good cause, it cannot conveniently be so delivered, shall report the nature and situation of the article to such a member, officer or constable.

“(2.) Except as provided in this regulation, a person shall not remove or tamper with any article to which this regulation applies unless he has been granted permission to do so by a Minister or a person authorized by a Minister to grant permission for the purpose of this regulation.

“(3.) The obligations and restrictions imposed by this regulation shall not apply to anything done by any person for the purpose of preventing or minimizing damage caused or likely to be caused by enemy action or of discharging any official function exercisable by him.

 

“(4.) A Minister may by order—

(a)direct that the obligations and restrictions imposed by this regulation shall not apply in relation to any articles or class of articles specified in the order; and

(b)make provision for enabling any authorities or persons specified in the order to grant exemptions from the requirements of this regulation.

“(5.) In this regulation—

‘Armed Forces’ means any of the Armed Forces of His Majesty or of any power which is allied or associated with His Majesty in any war in which His Majesty is engaged;

‘civil defence organization’ means an approved civil defence organization within the meaning of the National Security (Civil Defence Volunteers’ Compensation) Regulations; and

‘official function’, in relation to any person, means a power or duty conferred or imposed on him as a member of the Armed Forces, or of a police force, fire brigade, or civil defence organization, or as a person acting under the instructions of any such member.”.

8. Regulation 79 of the National Security (General) Regulations is repealed and the following regulation is inserted in its stead:—

Entry and search of premises, &c., to obtain evidence of offences.

“79.—(1.) If a Justice of the Peace is satisfied by information on oath that there is reasonable ground for suspecting that a war offence has been or is being committed, or is about to be committed, and that evidence of the commission, or intended commission, of the offence is to be found at any premises specified in the information, or in or upon a vehicle, vessel or aircraft so specified, he may grant a search warrant authorizing any constable or member of the Defence Force together with any other persons specified in the warrant and any other constables or members of the Defence Force to enter the premises, vehicle, vessel or aircraft specified in the information, and any premises upon which any vehicle, vessel or aircraft so specified may be, at any time or times within one month after the date of the warrant, if necessary by force, and to search the premises, vehicle, vessel or aircraft.

“(2.)If any police officer not below the rank of sergeant or any commissioned officer of the Defence Force has reasonable ground for suspecting that a war offence has been or is being committed, or is about to be committed, and that evidence of the commission, or intended commission, of the offence is to be found at any premises or in or upon any vehicle, vessel or aircraft, and is satisfied that it is expedient in the interests of the Commonwealth that the premises, vehicle, vessel or aircraft, or any person therein or thereon, should be searched for the purpose of obtaining evidence but that, by reason of urgency or other good cause, it is impracticable to apply for a warrant under the provisions of sub-regulation (1.) of this regulation, the officer may, by written order under his hand, confer the like powers of entry and search in relation to the premises, vehicle, vessel or aircraft as might be conferred under that sub-regulation by the warrant of a justice.

“(3.) A person authorized by any such warrant or order to search any premises or any vehicle, vessel or aircraft may search every person who is found on, or who he has reasonable grounds to believe to have recently left, or to be about to enter, those premises or that vehicle, vessel or aircraft, as the case may be, and may seize any article found on the premises or in or on the vehicle, vessel or aircraft, or on any person searched in pursuance of the power conferred by this sub-regulation, which he has reasonable ground for believing to be evidence of the commission, or intended commission, of any war offence.

“(4.) No woman shall, in pursuance of a warrant issued or order made under this regulation, be searched except by a woman.”.

Power to stop and search vehicles.

9. Regulation 80 of the National Security (General) Regulations is amended—

(a) by inserting in sub-regulation (2.), after the word “in” (third occurring), the words “or on”; and

(b) by inserting in that sub-regulation, after the word “therein”, the words “or thereon”.

 

By Authority: L. F. Johnston, Commonwealth Government Printer, Canberra.