CRIMINAL CODE 1899 - SECT 228
Obscene publications and exhibitions
CRIMINAL CODE 1899 - SECT 228
Obscene publications and exhibitions
228 Obscene publications and exhibitions
(1) Any person who knowingly, and without lawful justification or excuse—
(a) publicly sells, distributes or exposes for sale any obscene book or other
obscene printed or written matter, any obscene computer generated image or any
obscene picture, photograph, drawing, or model, or any other object tending to
corrupt morals; or
(b) exposes to view in any place to which the public are
permitted to have access, whether on payment of a charge for admission or not,
any obscene picture, photograph, drawing, or model, or any other object
tending to corrupt morals; or
(c) publicly exhibits any indecent show or
performance, whether on payment of a charge for admission to see the show or
performance or not;
is guilty of a misdemeanour, and is liable to imprisonment
for 2 years.
(2) In the case of an offence defined in subsection (1) (a) or
(b) , if the matter or thing is obscene or tends to corrupt morals by reason
of depicting a person who is or is represented to be—
(a) a child under the
age of 16 years—the offender is liable to imprisonment for 5 years; or
(b)
a child under the age of 12 years—the offender is liable to imprisonment for
10 years.
(3) In the case of an offence defined in subsection (1) (c) , if a
person appearing in the indecent show or performance is or is represented to
be—
(a) a child under the age of 16 years—the offender is liable to
imprisonment for 5 years; or
(b) a child under the age of 12 years—the
offender is liable to imprisonment for 10 years.
(4) It is a defence to a
charge of any of the offences defined in this section to prove that it was for
the public benefit that the act complained of should be done.
(5) Whether the
doing of any such act is or is not for the public benefit is a question of
fact.
"computer generated image" means electronically recorded data capable, by way
of an electronic device, of being produced on a computer monitor, television
screen, liquid crystal display or similar medium as an image, including an
image in the form of text.
