Schedule 1—Amendment of the Criminal Code Act 1995

Chapter 8—Offences against humanity and related offences

Division 268—Genocide, crimes against humanity, war crimes and crimes against the administration of the justice of the International Criminal Court

Subdivision F—War crimes that are serious violations of article 3 common to the Geneva Conventions and are committed in the course of an armed conflict that is not an international armed conflict


268.75 War crime—taking hostages

(1) A person (the perpetrator) commits an offence if:

(a) the perpetrator seizes, detains or otherwise holds hostage one or more persons; and
(b) the perpetrator threatens to kill, injure or continue to detain the person or persons; and
(c) the perpetrator intends to compel the government of a country, an international organisation or a person or group of persons to act or refrain from acting as an explicit or implicit condition for either the safety or the release of the person or persons; and
(d) the person or persons are not taking an active part in the hostilities; and
(e) the perpetrator knows of, or is reckless as to, the factual circumstances establishing that the person or persons are not taking an active part in the hostilities; and
(f) the perpetrator’s conduct takes place in the context of, and is associated with, an armed conflict that is not an international armed conflict.

Penalty: Imprisonment for 17 years.

(2) To avoid doubt, a reference in subsection (1) to a person or persons who are not taking an active part in the hostilities includes a reference to:

(a) a person or persons who are hors de combat; or
(b) civilians, medical personnel or religious personnel who are not taking an active part in the hostilities.

Article 8
War crimes
2. For the purpose of this Statute, "war crimes" means:
(c) In the case of an armed conflict not of an international character, serious violations of article 3 common to the four Geneva Conventions of 12 August 1949, namely, any of the following acts committed against persons taking no active part in the hostilities, including members of armed forces who have laid down their arms and those placed hors de combat by sickness, wounds, detention or any other cause:
(iii) Taking of hostages