The Royal Commission of Inquiry into Drug Trafficking (1981–1983), also known as the Stewart Royal Commission, was a

royal commission A royal commission is a major ad-hoc formal public inquiry into a defined issue in some monarchies. They have been held in the United Kingdom, Australia, Canada, New Zealand, Norway, Malaysia, Mauritius and Saudi Arabia. In republics an equi ...

set up in 1981 by the

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New South Wales New South Wales (commonly abbreviated as NSW) is a States and territories of Australia, state on the Eastern states of Australia, east coast of :Australia. It borders Queensland to the north, Victoria (state), Victoria to the south, and South ...

Queensland Queensland ( , commonly abbreviated as Qld) is a States and territories of Australia, state in northeastern Australia, and is the second-largest and third-most populous state in Australia. It is bordered by the Northern Territory, South Austr ...

and

Victorian Victorian or Victorians may refer to: 19th century * Victorian era, British history during Queen Victoria's 19th-century reign ** Victorian architecture ** Victorian house ** Victorian decorative arts ** Victorian fashion ** Victorian literatur ...

governments to inquire into various drug trafficking and related criminal activities of Terry Clark and his associates. However, the commission would spend much of its time examining how criminals were using and abusing the passport system for criminal purposes including the fact that Clark had 5passports under different names with him when he was arrested in 1978. The commission was headed by

New South Wales Supreme Court The Supreme Court of New South Wales is the highest state court of the Australian State of New South Wales. It has unlimited jurisdiction within the state in civil matters, and hears the most serious criminal matters. Whilst the Supreme Court ...

Judge Donald Stewart. The Commission published its final report in 1983,Stewart Royal Commission 1983, ''Report of the Royal Commission of Inquiry into Drug Trafficking in Australia'', AGPS, Canberra. making recommendations on how to prevent abuses in the issue of passports, most of which were acted upon by the government. The report made 40 recommendations, including that applicants for a passport attend a passport office and that mailed applications cease; that passports be issued only to citizens, so that British subjects cease to be entitled to a passport; that birth certificates not to be accepted as a sufficient proof of identity; that passports cease to be issued via travel or other agents; that all persons who change their names, whether by choice, marriage or adoption, be required to register the change with the state registrar of births, deaths and marriages and photocopied documents were not acceptable. Amongst the recommendations which were not accepted by the Fraser government was for a national

fingerprint A fingerprint is an impression left by the friction ridges of a human finger. The recovery of partial fingerprints from a crime scene is an important method of forensic science. Moisture and grease on a finger result in fingerprints on surfa ...

based identity system.

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1983 disestablishments in Australia Drug Trafficking, Royal Commission into Drug policy of Australia Organised crime in Australia Illegal drug trade in Australia 1981 establishments in Australia {{Australia-law-stub

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