Porn raid in Marrickville
A raid on a Marrickville business has prompted calls for the full legalisation of X18+ rated material in NSW.
Police raided two warehouse units on Carrington Rd last Wednesday alleged to be used by a business selling adult products, and seized more than 1000 X-rated DVDs. Some unrated material was also allegedly found.
Police claim the X-rated DVDs were being sold over the internet by the company.
The raid came about as part of a joint operation between NSW Police and the federal Attorney-General’s Department, acting on information received by that department’s Classification Liaison Scheme.
X-rated material is not illegal under Australian federal law, however, under state laws the material may be owned and viewed but not sold.
Australian Sex Party president Fiona Patten questioned why the Attorney-General’s Office participated in a raid on material it had classified.
“How can you have the same agency approving films for the general public on the one hand and then helping police prosecute people for selling these films?” Patten asked.
Patten said the operation would result in a significant cost to the taxpayer.
“Twelve police officers were taken off community policing for a day. They will spend at least another two weeks processing and storing the films ready for court and will have to pay $800 each to have them classified.
“The taxpayer is being asked to spend well over $100,000 to prosecute an ‘obscenity’ case where the films have been checked and classified by Commonwealth censors and are legal on the internet.
“I would like all NSW MPs to have the honesty and integrity to stand up and say if they have ever purchased and watched this material and the reason they support continued prohibition.”
NSW Greens leader Lee Rhiannon told Sydney Star Observer it was important for the sale of X-rated material to be legalised to prevent money going to organised crime.
“The legal ambiguity regarding X18+ non-violent erotica only encourages a black market in the industry,” Rhiannon said.
“It is estimated this is worth at least $200 million a year in Australia.
“An Interpol report found the money from the black market in such films finds its way into the funding of terrorist groups and organised crime.”
Rhiannon said with the ban on X-rated material so rarely enforced, non-violent material could often be found in petrol stations and regular video stores where minors could be exposed to it.
The Greens will be putting motions before the NSW Parliament to legalise X-rated material and to restrict the sale of non-violent erotica to adult stores.
who cares? If people want to be paid to be filmed being raped/sodomised/whatever for money, let them – if you don’t like it don’t watch it or don’t apply to be filmed doing that.
What a stupid law.
Obviously not everyone is aware that these unclassified ” for sale” pornos have been made in circumstances that are well and truely beyond the control or permission of the ” VICTIM”!!! Imagine how you would feel if all your civil rights were completly disregarded to the point you were filmed in your own home, degraded ,humilliated, ridiculed, sent footage of yourself doing private things and my list could go on and on. So Fiona your ignorant remarks as to why these films MUST be classified so us ( the victims ) can one day be acknowledged for the severe injustices that we have incurred. The NSW justice system is a farce. It disgusts me, actually makes me sick. Fiona I am all for CONCENTUAL sexual practices provided they are legal., I am all for gay marriage but RAPE, BEING DRUGGED, PUT ON THE BLOCK and filmed is against the law and that is why your whining about it being a waste of tax Payers money is so appalingly ignorant, you make me feel sick. Wake up to yourself and wake up corrupt NSW and give your citys residents the real details of the damage u and others have done!!!!
You go into any Adult store and most of the DVDs for sale are the “unrated” category which I actually previously erroneously believed was legal for them to sell.
It’s stupid and inconsistent having a law that says you’re not allowed to sell products which themselves are not illegal to either view or own…and which can be legally sold in the ACT or NT.
Also I don’t think the state or the police or society or especially the churches should be able to dictate or judge the morality of the content of DVDs or magazines bought by consenting adults provided the activities on the discs themselves are not illegal activities and no one was hurt or harmed in the production.
Regardless of what anyone thinks of erotica, there is actually a need for most adults to view this material, and they should be able to do so and be able to purchase it.