From the introduction - the reason behind it:

"This report addresses the human right to freedom of religion and belief in Australia. The right is contained in article 18, International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights. It includes the freedom to have or adopt a religion or belief of one’s choice including theistic, non-theistic and atheistic beliefs. Discrimination and vilification on the basis of religion and belief discourages participation in the community and may infringe the right to freedom of religion and belief."

Discrimination on the basis of religion and belief:

"To ensure the enjoyment of religion and belief the individual must be free from discrimination on the ground of religion and belief in all areas of public life including employment, education, the provision of goods and services and accommodation. The proposed Religious Freedom Act would contain provisions making discrimination on the ground of religion and belief unlawful subject to exemptions for discrimination based on the inherent requirements of the job and for discrimination in certain circumstances in connection with employment at an institution which is conducted in accordance with the doctrines, tenets or teachings of a particular religion or creed (Recommendation 4.1)."

The right to manifest a religion or belief:

"The freedom of religion and belief extends to the right to manifest one’s religion or belief in worship, observance, practice and teaching. The right to manifest a belief is subject only to limitations provided by law which are necessary to protect the public safety, order, health, or morals or the fundamental rights and freedoms of others."

"Submissions on paganism argued that some State and Territory laws prohibiting witchcraft and fortune-telling infringe the right to practise or manifest a religion or belief of choice. The Commission has concluded that those laws should be repealed as they infringe the right to manifest the beliefs of some pagans (Recommendations 3.13 - 3.14)."

Recommendations in the Act (these are things we all need to fight for IMHO) See my pages on the Witchcraft/Tarot laws in your area for more information on these:

"Recommendations on anti-witchcraft and fortune telling laws
R3.13 The federal Attorney-General through the Standing Committee of Attorneys-General should encourage Queensland and Victoria to repeal legislation criminalising the practice of witchcraft, fortune-telling, sorcery and enchantment.

R3.14 The federal Attorney-General through the Standing Committee of Attorneys-General should encourage Queensland, Western Australia, South Australia, the Northern Territory and Tasmania to repeal legislation criminalising the practice of fortune-telling."

Defining  the word "Religion"
(an interesting piece of the Act)

"Emile Durkheim enunciated what is generally regarded as the classic sociological definition of ‘religion’.

[A] unified system of beliefs and practices relative to sacred things, that is to say, things set apart and forbidden - beliefs and practices which unite into one single moral community called a Church, all those who adhere to them.

The definition of ‘religion’ in the Shorter Oxford English Dictionary has frequently been referred to in legal decisions since the middle of the sixteenth century.

Recognition on the part of man of some higher unseen power as having control of his destiny, and as being entitled to obedience, reverence and worship; the general mental and moral attitude resulting from this belief, with reference to its effect upon the individual or the community; personal or general acceptance of this feeling as a standard of spiritual and practical life.

• belief in a supernatural Being, Thing or Principle
• the acceptance of canons of conduct to give effect to that belief (though canons of conduct which offend against the ordinary laws are outside the area of any immunity, privilege or right conferred on the grounds of religion).

•  a particular collection of ideas and/or practices involving belief in the supernatural
• ideas that relate to the nature and place of humanity in the universe and the relation of humanity to things supernatural
• ideas accepted by adherents requiring or encouraging the observation of particular standards or codes of conduct or participation in specific practices having supernatural significance
• adherents constituting an identifiable group or identifiable groups, regardless how loosely knit and varying in beliefs and practices these adherents may be
• adherents themselves seeing the collection of ideas and/or practices as constituting a religion.

Religious Rights:

"The right to freedom of religion and belief has also been proclaimed in the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR).

ICCPR article 18 guarantees to everyone ‘the right to freedom of thought, conscience and religion’. It prohibits coercion which would impair the exercise of this right. It stipulates that freedom to manifest religion may only be subject to those limitations which are prescribed by law and necessary to protect public safety, order, health or morals or the fundamental rights and freedoms of others. It allows for parents and legal guardians to determine the religious and moral education of their children.

1. Everyone shall have the right to freedom of thought, conscience and religion. This right shall include freedom to have or to adopt a religion or belief of his choice, and freedom, either individually or in community with others and in public or private, to manifest his religion or belief in worship, observance, practice and teaching.

2. No one shall be subject to coercion which would impair his freedom to have or to adopt a religion or belief of his choice.

3. Freedom to manifest one’s religion or beliefs may be subject only to such limitations as are prescribed by law and are necessary to protect public safety, order, health, or morals or the fundamental rights and freedoms of others.

4. The States Parties to the present Covenant undertake to have respect for the liberty of parents and, when applicable, legal guardians to ensure the religious and moral education of their children in conformity with their own convictions."

Where it says that Everyone shall have the right to manifest their religion, this has been given examples such as the following:

•  "worshipping and assembling, and maintaining places for this purpose
• establishing and maintaining charitable or humanitarian institutions
• practising religious rites and customs
• writing and dissemination of religious publications
• teaching of religion and belief
• soliciting voluntary financial support
• training and appointment of religious leaders in accordance with the requirements and standards of the religion or belief
• observing religious holidays and ceremonies
• communicating with individuals and communities on matters of religion and belief."

"3.10  Paganism
Pagans see divinity expressed in every part of the universe. The Earth, the planets, the stars, the void - all are parts of one great, divine source to the Pagan. Pagans do not “worship” trees or rocks, however they do revere the divine life force which is contained within trees and rocks, and within every part of the universe.

Paganism is a general term which covers a variety of spiritual beliefs centred upon harmony with the Earth. The umbrella term embraces beliefs such as Celtic Paganism, Druidry, Shamanism, Wicca and Witchcraft. Wicca is described by the Pagan Alliance as
... a modern revival of the ancient folkloric and magical practices of Europe. Wiccans generally perceive divinity in the form of a Goddess and a God, who have many different aspects. Most Wiccans celebrate eight Festivals each year, and hold meetings in accordance with the phases of the Moon.

The Commission received a large number of submissions from Pagans and Wiccans. They complained, in particular, that the free expression of their practices and beliefs are unnecessarily limited by the criminal law of Queensland which deems the practice of witchcraft, fortune-telling, sorcery or enchantment an offence.

Section 432 of Queensland’s Criminal Code 1899 provides

Pretending to Exercise Witchcraft or Tell Fortunes. Any person who pretends to exercise or use any kind of witchcraft, sorcery, enchantment, or conjuration, or undertakes to tell fortunes, or pretends from his skill or knowledge in any occult science to discover where or in what manner anything supposed to have been stolen or lost may be found, is guilty of a misdemeanour, and is liable to imprisonment with hard labour for one year.

As a person with beliefs in traditional witchcraft I feel as though my religion is still not being accepted by the laws of this country ... the anti-witchcraft laws in the Queensland Criminal Code (section 432) ...  can lead to fines and imprisonment for anyone “caught” practising witchcraft.

Witchcraft/Wicca is a valid religion ... My issue is the Witchcraft laws still active in Queensland. It should be removed because Witchcraft/Wicca is NOT devil worship.

In one court case in 1990, the knowledge [that] a Wiccan’s religion was illegal was offered as proof of his willingness to break the Law. This was despite the fact that the charges had nothing to do with the Wiccan’s faith ...

The practice of fortune-telling, including tarot card reading and astrology, may be the expression of the spiritual beliefs of certain Pagans and Wiccans. The criminalisation and prohibition of these practices limits their rights to express their beliefs freely.
Mr Akers alleged that these laws have been used to arrest tourists engaged in fortune-telling in Queensland, especially backpackers who are unaware of the State’s laws in this respect.

Over the decades there have been numerous reports of tourists being harassed, even arrested for Vagrancy, after reading cards in coffee shops in an attempt to raise living expenses.

This provision appears to be the relic of a more superstitious age and if to be retained at all, it should be set out in legislation other than the Criminal Code. There are summary offences relating to fortune telling for gain in the Vagrants, Gaming and Other Offences Act 1931. If the relevant conduct involves fraud, it would be sufficiently covered by the new fraud offence ...

The rationale for retaining the offences prohibiting witchcraft or fortune-telling for gain or payment appears to derive from the view that the practices are fraudulent, dangerous and undesirable. In 1996, in response to questions in Parliament concerning the continued relevance of the provisions, the Attorney-General, the Hon. Denver Beanland, stated that he was aware of representations to have section 432 of the Criminal Code and section 4(1)(o) of the Vagrants Gaming and Other Offences Act 1931 (Qld) repealed. He stated, however,

These provisions ... are there to protect the gullible and to discourage the practice of not only fortune-telling but, as, section 432 also provides, witchcraft, sorcery and practices in the occult ... these practices therefore are not archaic.

Submissions on Paganism
A submission by Ms Louise Bowes on behalf of the Servants of the Elder Gods, however, alleged that the laws prohibiting witchcraft and fortune-telling are retained because of ignorance about the practices.

The law was retained largely on the basis of ignorance, marrying violent activities and deliberate deception with the practice of witchcraft and the adoption of the religion known as “Wicca” ... What this means for the many Wiccan followers in Queensland is obvious - they experience an immediate inability to follow their faith for fear of arrest and incarceration.

No submissions provided any evidence that witchcraft or fortune-telling practices of themselves present a threat to the safety or well-being of members of the community. Practitioners refuted such allegations.
 

Pagans do not perform sacrifices (other than of their own time and energy) and are not opposed to any other religious beliefs. Pagans do not sexually abuse children; quite the contrary. Despite many hysterical claims of sexual abuse by witches and other occultists, none has ever been proven to be true.

Wicca followers do not worship Satan; we don’t even believe in his existence. We do not sacrifice animals or virgins, and we don’t engage in debauched sex orgies ... we ask the Queensland government exactly what it sees as so dangerous in our religious practices. Could it be the use of alternative medicines, herbalism, the horoscope? Could it be self-awareness they are objecting to? Or perhaps the respect and reverence we give our Earth?

Like so many alternate religions, none of our Wiccan practices contravene any state or federal law as far as violence, stealing, cruelty to animals, abuse of children etc. are concerned. Should a religious group partake of activities which do break laws of this nature, then obviously the participants in that religion would and should be open to prosecution.

If there are abuses, let us deal with that abuse. If people practising witchcraft abuse a young child, let us oppose them for the abuse of the young child, not for their faith, be that different from our own. If those who are of a non-Christian background believe in the spirit or spirits and abuse a person in some way they should be attacked for the abuse and not for their beliefs.

The Attorney argues that the ... case justifies the retention of this provision. If the argument in favour of retaining this provision is that it continues to be relevant to modern times, I ask the Attorney ... on how many occasions in the last decade a prosecution has been brought under this provision? The person to whom the Attorney referred was charged and convicted of murder.

While these laws are unnecessary for any practical purpose they remain as a potent threat to the legitimate practices of Pagans and Wiccans. An example from England shows how such legislation may be used in unforeseen ways. In 1944 a woman, Ms Helen Duncan, who practised as a medium was convicted under the long-forgotten Witchcraft Act 1735 for ‘pretending to exercise conjuration’ and sentenced to nine months imprisonment. Ms Duncan  had conducted a seance and allegedly contacted a sailor on the ship HMS Barham who told the participants in the seance ‘My ship has sunk’. The authorities decided to prosecute for fear that Ms Duncan constituted a wartime security risk able to ‘see’ and reveal the sites for planned D-Day landings in France.  While this situation was provoked by wartime fears in 1940s England it is possible that unenvisaged circumstances in 1990s Australia may lead to the existing legislation being used in such an inappropriate way.

Findings and recommendations on Paganism

• Wiccans and Pagans have the right to manifest their beliefs ‘either individually or in community with others’ in the practice of witchcraft and fortune-telling subject only to ‘such limitations as are prescribed by law and are necessary to protect public safety, order, health, or morals or the fundamental rights and freedoms of others’ (ICCPR article 18.3).
• There is no evidence to suggest that individuals or the community require specific protection from witchcraft or fortune-telling practices. There is no evidence that the practices of witchcraft and fortune-telling in Australia require limitations as permitted by the ICCPR.
• Any practice associated with witchcraft which might result in physical or mental injury to other individuals or loss of or damage to property can be dealt with under general criminal and civil laws dealing with conduct of that kind.
• Similarly, any fortune-telling practices found to constitute fraud or deceptive conduct can be dealt with adequately under the general criminal law.
• Section 432 of Queensland’s Criminal Code 1899 and section 4(1)(o) of the Vagrants, Gaming and Other Offences Act 1931 (Qld) and the equivalent legislation in Victoria, Western Australia, South Australia, the Northern Territory and Tasmania are not necessary to protect public safety, order, health or morals or the fundamental rights and freedoms of others.
• Laws prohibiting witchcraft and fortune-telling unnecessarily discriminate against members of the Wiccan and Pagan communities and contravene the right of practising Wiccans and Pagans to express their religions or beliefs in accordance with ICCPR article 18.

R3.14 The federal Attorney-General through the Standing Committee of Attorneys-General should encourage Queensland, Western Australia, South Australia, the Northern Territory and Tasmania to repeal legislation criminalising the practice of fortune-telling."