Australia parliament passes strict social media laws  

Australia will fine social media and web hosting companies up to 10 percent of their annual global turnover and imprison executives for up to three years if violent content is not removed “expeditiously” under a new law.

Critics warn that some of the most restrictive laws about online communication in the democratic world could have unforeseen consequences, including media censorship and reduced investment in Australia.

The conservative government introduced the bills in response to the March 15 attacks in Christchurch in which an Australian white supremacist apparently used a helmet-mounted camera to broadcast live on Facebook as he shot worshippers in the two mosques.

Australia's government rushed the legislation through the last two days that Parliament sits before elections are expected in May, dispensing with the usual procedure of a committee scrutinizing its content first.

Australian Brenton Tarrant, 28, a suspected white supremacist, was charged with one murder following the attack and was remanded without a plea.

New Zealand police said on Thursday that Tarrant will face a total of 50 murder charges and 39 attempted murder charges when he appears in court on Friday.

The law has made it a crime for social media platforms not to remove "abhorrent violent material" quickly. The crime would be punishable by three years in prison and a fine of 10.5 million Australian dollars ($7.5 million), or 10% of the platform's annual turnover, whichever is larger.

Abhorrent violent material is defined as acts of terrorism, murder, attempted murder, torture, rape, and kidnapping. The material must be recorded by the perpetrator or an accomplice for the law to apply. Platforms anywhere in the world would face fines of up to AU$840,000 ($597,500) if they fail to notify Australian Federal Police if they are aware their service was streaming "abhorrent violent conduct" occurring in Australia.

Digital Industry Group Inc (DIGI) - of which Facebook, Apple, Google, Amazon, and Twitter are members - said the laws fail to understand the complexity of removing violent content.

“With the vast volumes of content uploaded to the internet every second, this is a highly complex problem,” said Sunita Bose, Managing Director of DIGI.

Australia’s opposition Labor party backed the legislation but said it will consult with the technology industry over possible amendments if it wins power at an election due in May.