For 12 years Australia has has inflicted cruelty and punishment on refugees and asylum seekers who came here seeking safety.

An explainer on the Yoorrook Justice Commission's final reports released on 1 July 2025.

The Victorian Government is proposing four major restrictions on the right to protest.

The family of Kumanjayi Walker have sought truth, justice and accountability since his death on 9 November 2019. This page details key updates and a timeline of the family’s fight. 

If passed, new laws in NSW would have wide-ranging implications for the right to peaceful assembly and may lead to the criminalisation of conduct which does not impact on the rights of people to practice their religion and be protected from racial or religious hatred.

The Queensland Crisafulli Government’s latest legislation, the Making Queensland Safer Act 2024 (Act), substantially changes how children are treated by Queensland’s police, courts and prisons, including by making prison sentences significantly longer. The Queensland Government concedes that the changes are ‘more punitive than necessary to achieve community safety’ and ‘in direct conflict with international law standards’. ¹ 

A legal explainer of the Migration Amendment (Removal and Other Measures) Bill 2024 , with a brief analysis of its operation. The Bill permits the Minister to direct certain people to take steps to facilitate their removal from Australia. It also prohibits nationals from certain countries from making a valid application for any visa to come to Australia.

The Human Rights Law Centre’s explainer on the Albanese Government’s laws to give the Minister sweeping powers to ban almost any item, including everyday items like mobile phones, and give officers virtually unchecked powers to conduct searches with no basis.  

The Human Rights Law Centre’s explainer on the Albanese Government’s brutal laws to deport and punish refugees and people seeking asylum after the High Court of Australia ruled that ankle bracelets and curfews were punitive and unconstitiutional for people who were released from indefinite immigration detention.

The High Court handed down its decision in YBFZ v Minister for Immigration, Citizenship and Multicultural Affairs [2024] HCA 40 determining by majority that the Albanese Government’s imposition of punitive visa conditions is unconstitutional.

This explainer was created by the Human Rights Law Centre, WestJustice, and the Asylum Seeker Resource Centre to help you know your rights when interacting with the Australian Border Force.

The Parliamentary Joint Committee of Human Rights inquiry has recommended the Albanese Government should legislate an Australian Human Rights Act. Read the Human Rights Law Centre’s explainer of of the final report here.