An Act to amend the War Crimes Act 1945

3. The Preamble to the Principal Act is repealed and the following Preamble is substituted:

(b) it is appropriate that persons accused of such war crimes be brought to trial in the ordinary criminal courts in Australia;

An Act to amend the War Crimes Act 1945

5. Sections 3 to 14, inclusive, of the Principal Act are repealed and the following section and Parts are substituted:

11. A person shall not be charged with an offence against this Act unless
he or she is:

(a) an Australian citizen; or

(b) a resident of Australia or of an external Territory.

An Act to amend the War Crimes Act 1945

5. Sections 3 to 14, inclusive, of the Principal Act are repealed and the following section and Parts are substituted:

Who may prosecute

"12. An offence against this Act may only be prosecuted in the name of the Attorney-General or the Director of Public Prosecutions.

Jurisdiction of courts and choice of law

"13. (1) Section 68 of the Judiciary Act 1903 applies in relation to an offence against this Act as if a reference in that section to a Territory did not include a reference to an external Territory.

"(2) Where a person is charged with an offence against this Act, then, for the purposes of:

(a) determining whether a court of a State or internal Territory has jurisdiction in relation to the offence;

(b) an exercise of jurisdiction by such a court in relation to the offence;

(c) a proceeding connected with such an exercise of jurisdiction; and

(d) an appeal arising out of, or out of a proceeding connected with, such an exercise of jurisdiction;
this Act has effect, in relation to an act that is, or is alleged to be, the offence, as if:

(e) a reference in subsection 6 (3) or section 18 to a part of Australia were a reference to that State or Territory; and

(f) without limiting subsection 6 (2), all defences under the law in force in that State or Territory when the person is charged with the offence had been defences under the law in force in that State or Territory at the time of the act.

"(3) Where:

(a) it is sought in a proceeding for an offence against this Act to establish for the purposes of subsection 6 (2) that a particular defence could have been established in a proceeding (in this subsection called the 'other proceeding') for an offence; and

(b) in the other proceeding, the onus of establishing the defence would have lain on the defendant;

then, in the first-mentioned proceeding, the onus of establishing that the defence could have been established in the other proceeding lies on the
defendant.

"(4) Nothing in Part II or subsection 9 (1) shall be taken to exclude, limit or otherwise prejudice:

(a) the application in proceedings for offences against this Act of the normal rules of evidence and procedure that apply in proceedings for offences against the laws of the Commonwealth; or

(b) any of the powers of a court in respect of proceedings for offences against the laws of the Commonwealth, including, but not limited to, the powers of a court to take action to prevent an abuse of process.

"(5) Where, on the trial of a person for an offence against this Act, the person satisfies the judge, on the balance of probabilities, that:

(a) the person is unable to obtain evidence that he or she would, but for the lapse of time or some other reason beyond his or her control, have been able to obtain;

(b) the person's inability to obtain that evidence has substantially prejudiced, or will substantially prejudice, the preparation or conduct of his
or her defence; and

(c) the interests of justice require the making of an order under this
subsection;

the judge may make such order as he or she thinks appropriate for a stay of
proceedings for the offence.

"(6) Nothing in subsections (4) and (5) limits the generality of anything
else in those subsections.