Commonwealth Consolidated Acts

DEFENCE ACT 1903 - SECT 51IB

                   A member of the Defence Force who is being utilised in accordance with section 51D may, under the command of the Chief of the Defence Force, do any one or more of the following for the purpose of protecting designated critical infrastructure:

                     (a)  take one or both of the following actions:

                              (i)  prevent, or put an end to, damage or disruption to the operation of the designated critical infrastructure;

                             (ii)  prevent, or put an end to, acts of violence;

                     (b)  in connection with taking any such action, do any one or more of the following:

                              (i)  if the member finds a person whom the member believes on reasonable grounds to have committed an offence against a law of the Commonwealth, a State or Territory--detain the person for the purpose of placing the person in the custody of a member of a police force at the earliest practicable time;

                             (ii)  protect persons from acts of violence;

                            (iii)  control the movement of persons or of means of transport;

                            (iv)  evacuate persons to a place of safety;

                             (v)  search persons or things for dangerous things or other things related to the threat concerned;

                            (vi)  seize any dangerous thing or other thing related to the threat concerned found in such a search;

                     (c)  do anything incidental to anything in paragraph (a) or (b).

Note:          Subdivision B of Division 4 sets out what is to happen if a thing is seized under this section.