Tony Abbott says the government is committed to cracking down on "politically-motivated hate crime" amid calls for tough new anti-terror laws to be delayed and concerns over the gathering of biometric data.
Human rights and Islamic groups have written to Attorney-General George Brandis calling on the government to slow the introduction of new measures for dealing with foreign fighters.
The laws will restrict personal freedom and aren't needed to crack down on home-grown extremists, they say.
Mr Abbott defended the legislation, saying Australians are entitled to protection from an outbreak of politically-motivated hate crime in Australia.
"That's what terrorism is, it's politically-motivated hate crime," Mr Abbott told reporters in Melbourne.
Under the proposed laws people travelling to terrorism hot-spots without a valid reason could be jailed for five years, and enforcement agencies will get extra powers to investigate, arrest and prosecute those who advocate terrorism.
A parliamentary inquiry into the foreign fighters bill is due to report on Friday, with the government hoping to push through the legislation when parliament resumes next week.
Mr Abbott said he was confident the committee would ensure the laws that come forward is legislation that all reasonable Australians would support.
But Labor's foreign affairs spokeswoman Tanya Plibersek, who sits on the committee, said the time they spent scrutinising the anti-terror bill had been "very short".
Parliament had to consider requests for tougher national security powers very carefully, and the committee would benefit from more time, she said.
"And when we grant them, if we grant them, we need to ensure that there is a great deal of scrutiny, transparency and safeguard attached," she said.
A coalition of 43 groups including Amnesty International, Civil Liberties Australia and the Australian National Imams Council say the government must better explain why the terror laws are necessary.
"Australia already has laws to meet the threat posed by foreign fighters," the letter says.
"In light of this, it is not clear why some of the changes in the bill are necessary, particularly where they could have a major impact on the human rights of every Australian."
Meanwhile, privacy advocates are concerned about the expansion of biometric data collection, as part of the bill, with the Department of Immigration to store details of millions of Australians travelling in and out of the country.
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