Crackdown on Internet racism ill-thought out

EFA commentary:

If you're a politician, and something nasty is brought to your attention, what do you do? The best and sometimes only tool in your toolbox is the one you reach for. The tool is this: to pass a law banning it. Therefore, although it's always discouraging, a story like this one, is far from unusual or surprising. "Laws to tackle racism on the Internet are set to be beefed up," it announces.

"Authorities warn they are often powerless to act against online content, which is responsible for almost one in five racial vilification complaints," it continues, then:

Attorney-General Robert McClelland has ordered the Australian Human Rights Commission to conduct a sweeping review of "arrangements for dealing with racist material on the internet".
"While freedom of expression is one of the most fundamental rights, this is not at the expense of the rights of people, while using the Internet, to be treated with equality, dignity and respect," Mr McClelland told The Sunday Age.
Certainly, nobody likes hate speech. But these words, by our Attorney-General, are concerning. Firstly, they show a terrible lack of consideration of the complexities of the issue, and secondly, they demote freedom of speech in a significant way.