LAWS AROUND AUSTRALIA RELATING TO WYTCHCRAFT
The following information has been derived from "Witchcraft and Paganism in Australia by Lynne Hume. As this book was published in 1997, some of the State and Territory statutes affecting the practise of Paganism and Wytchcraft have changed, in particular the Queensland statute. Therefore, this information is provided here merely as a guide. If in doubt, the Temple of the Dark Moon strongly recommends you seek professional advice.
AUSTRALIAN CAPITAL TERRITORY - Until relatively recently, there were a number of laws covering the pretence of Wytchcraft in the ACT. However, the Discrimination Act 1991 now makes it unlawful to discriminate against a person on the basis of (among other things) the person's religious convictions.
NEW SOUTH WALES - The English "Witchcraft Act of 1735" was repealed by the Imperial Acts Application Act 1969 (NSW), (having been repealed in England in 1951). The offence of fortune telling, [Section 4(2)(n) of the Vagrancy Act 1902 (NSW)] was repealed by the Summary Offences Act 1970 (NSW), and replaced by Section 39 of the Summary Offences Act 1970 (NSW), which was finally repealed by the Summary Offences Act (Repeal) Act 1979 (NSW).
NORTHERN TERRITORY - The most relevant legislation, specifically the Northern Territory Ciminal Code 1983 and the Summary Offences Act 1923, fails to reveal any equivalent laws which affect religious practices.
QUEENSLAND - The statute in question is the The Criminal Code of Queensland - Chapter XL entitled "Obtaining Property by False Pretenses: Cheating" in which Section 432 states:
Pretending to exercise witchcraft or fortune telling. Any person who pretends to exercise or use any kind of witchcraft, sorcery, enchantment or conjuratoin, 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 for one year.
As such, Wytchcraft was a criminal offence in Queensland until recently this statute was changed earlier this year (2001).
SOUTH AUSTRALIA - The Statutes Amendment and Repeal (Public Offences) Act 1991 abolished a section similar to the Queensland criminal code plus a vagrancy provision. The 1991 Act inserted a new offence into the Summary Offences Act as Section 40. It states:
A person who, with intent to defraud purports to act as a spiritualist or medium or to exercise powers of telepathy or claivoyance or other similar powers, is guilty of an offence.
