Queensland Art Gallery Presscuttings Book 4 : Presscuttings, November 1967 - June 1972

A S Frank Gardiner said, if it weren't so serious, it'd be hilar– ious. Carloads of slt'rn-fared police raiding the Queensland Art Gallery armed with glue pots, big red "BANNED'' stickers, and armfuls of figleaves. The stickers to paste ,--------.. ri::,::,Jeth~J~!hlJf 'l~,:= gustlng" arLlat.s like FW· nolr and PIC&SiO. The fig leaves LU cover the d eg rada ti on of lihameless sculpLOrs like Daphne Mayo and Har– old Parker. Neither of whom e, 1 er f~1r'"'t>"r':i'~ t~n~,~~ 1 b\~ figure creations with so much as a loin cloth. By which neglect. or e ours e, Queensla1 ders were being exposed to dreadful depths of cor- ru~!frthnt was obvious– ! y how some people U1ou1ht In the old CU· ri06lly Stnt.e of Queeru;– land, Mr. Onrdlner r;ald. censorship - and oth– er invasions of cMI llber- ~:t Tt ~~~1JI\>,res~%,~~ him If the fictitious po• lice action he'd Just con• Jured up, actually took pince one day. Frnnk Gardiner, 30- :,ear-old ex-Navy Jet na– vlgntor, and recently– graduated burrL,tcr, Is v I c e-presldent or the Queensland Oouncll for Civil Liberties. Lnst night, the Council r1 ~r.iu ~~ed,,:1~~~1:~~G~,~~ dangerous trend" towards Rrowlng restrictions of public rights In llll !lelds. Jn particular, existing aearcl1-nnd-entry leglsla– t.1011 and censorship. The Council comprises barr Is ters , solicitors, businessmen, ncndemlcs. theatricals - and or• dlf~&1"'G'~~';,~fat:P~~m- m I tteea will plough throu~ the Queensland ~~ll!Um In ~ay: Jfy p~~~i piece of legtsfatton and recommend nny reforms It ~t'!:s=ss~'dl~- tlon.11, 1BY9 f'ralnlt GIil'• diner, they're Soin8 to be b~ 1:e:. ~att~:ery t Im e Parliamentary drartsmen draw up a new Act they're pretty much allowed to RO berserk.'' Queensland, he said, had become "riddled" with Jaws thnt gave po– lice and Government of– flclnls the right to search people's homes or busi– nesses without a warrant. The trend hnd come abo ut t hrou g h the growth nnd complex1ues ~~1~ 0'1~~~ 11 "a~ 0iJJf1'te~~ ror delegation of author– ity nt public service level. "The other reason. ol co\lr~ ~• re~P.l~u~r1a~.r rlght.s as ciLlzcns with a stunned-mullet-like sl– Jence. ye~~o;~:~e J;~\-!. ufr Ji~~ do, it ·s not. n constructive complnlnt .. . they don't offer nuy nltcrnuuvc so~ lution.·· Mr. Gardiner s11ld thnt t he Queensland Council for Civil Liberties wns unxious u:, henr nny nncl nil complaints from the puhllc that concerned ar– bltnry Government uc• bltrary Oovemment o.c- "The general public would be amazed at some or the lntrusion-of-prlvn– cy powers that the State ha.s." he said. '' Pow ers that hnve come about Jn a gradual prO<',ess over the past four or five years. "A man's home la no 10 !!~~ 1 ~~a~\~: It Isn't widely rea))sed Urnt such 1t~~nr~\\~Y ~;~~!f't l~~~ Wheat Board Act.. and Margarine Act.a can be used to carry out forced entry and seach o! any ~~":t:ou~!t~~~:rchh~~: rant. "A policeman, oper– ating, we'll say under the Animal Act, can enter your home on the pretext of checking a report that you've been mnltreatin11 rg~:o~~t ~~,gr out a "He can also bust In under the Explosives Acts nnd - taken to the ex- The Educauon Minister (M r. Fletcher) ~esterdu l' dlsc·o11111cd suµ~r:,.i1ons th n't thr site chosC'n for the new Q11ee;1slancl Arl Gallery - In 8011th 13risbnne ~- might be elmn~ed. T here were 11n doubts nhout the silr. he :,aid. The Government hnd ctcc1dcd cfinit clv u on it. To him it's the State of 0 ~ for Quaint) ~•/]~ - ofconf;:S,\':!At-J s plnl. ~li\Ybe (:\"CU Q. box ot mntcJlcs." And, suid Mr. Gardl• ner, It wns no good legis– lators arguing tlu,t these pow er s weren't. being used - or ruUier, misus– ed. "T h ere hnve been mnny blatant examples e\'en in recent. months. '"Police can't arrest n mnn tor murder wlthoUL first currylnc out. a thor– ough hl\'Cstlgallon - and tllcn ubtuimnc o. war– rant. '"Why ("l\ll Lhcy t,rcnk inLO u. privat.c home without u warrnul.'t "Another alnrtnlng ns– pect of this wl<lc search • and - emry power Is Lllat. the orrentlcd p11rty ho.<; no easy recourse tu law. ··A pollcemnn only has to get up in court o.nd say that he had ·reason to suspect.· ·· One of the worst as• pccts or censorship m Queensland, he said, was t.he Vagrant.s· Oaming 1tnd other Offences Act. * "This Act, as everyone knows, Is the •cntch - nil' but It Is being used tor censorship. "TIie ease wiU1 which a policeman, under this Act, can obtain a war• rnnt, Is fantastic. "He merely goes along l:lm&ann~~flil~~~•th~ 1 t~~ vestlgation underwny 1 obtains II warrant, ana executes it - often In cases of alleged por• ~~f,'iffahJon~ prohibited "But amazingly, under this Act. the onus J,; on t.he DEFENDANT to prove his Innocence. "The unfair aspect Is Uiat there Is provision !or police to act under the CJrlmlnal Code In cases such as this, but of ~~~~:elt ~~~1d ::i~~~• b~= Ing to face a Judge and Jury. "Jn brief, a lone magis– trate Is now asked to,de• clde the moral standards of a whole community, Instead ol the citlzeru; Lhemsclves. Ja ;;~.•~~~,';~~W/ 11 1sQt,~•~= solllt.e Joke. "It's so ludicrous that mnny people have ac• tu11lly upped bng nnd ~~:.!"'k nnd left the Ano t h e r crrcct wns thnt the '"righteous in– dignation" of the ln– nuentJal few, was driving hnrd • core pornography und similar t.hlngs un- d~rA~ou;;i.,tln:ii~balm-nk that if t,hey put on 'Hnlr' (Lhc nude-scene Show> In Brisbane thnt the mob would suddenly rush out nnd commit mayhem in 1.he foyer or Her Mujes- LY:¾uccnslnnd must be lll),I~~~ 11 ~vt~:.:' "h~[J~- the r i d Ic u I o us situation w h ere one authority, such as Ihe Customs De· pnrtment.. passes a publl · cat.Ion or rllm only to find It seized by the po– lice. "Really, Lile question will never be solved unt,il Austrnlln. like America, hi/w1~il i fm!\'.\(~-~ ny ~~-~,n~~ll~~d~gnHe~l~Rj~~~ tv·s to Sf"C t,h c first shock- 1i'lg, uncxpurcntcd ver– sion or the Alrlcan Bnl• lei. By wll lch time T won't be dnmm -wcll tn tercstrd. "COURIER MAIL" . t OJUN 1969 Brisbane, Old.