§ Mr. Peter Bruinvelsasked the Attorney-General on how many occasions in the last 30 years he or the Director of Public Prosecutions has authorised the initiation of proceedings for (a) sedition and (b) conspiracy, dividing this category by type of offence; and if he will make a statement.
§ The Attorney-GeneralIn 1973 the Director of Public Prosecutions instituted proceedings against three persons for offences which included seditious conspiracy and uttering seditious words but the count of the indictment alleging seditious conspiracy was allowed to lie on the file and not tried. The DPP has instituted no other proceedings for sedition in the past 30 years. The information sought in relation to prosecutions for conspiracy is not available for the full period and to the extent that it is available could be collated only at disproportionate expense.