The United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights, Mr Zeid Ra’ad Al Hussein, has condemned Australia’s treatment of asylum seekers in a statement delivered to the UN Human Rights Council overnight.
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Sally Goldner is Executive Director of Transgender Victoria, Treasurer of Bisexual Alliance Victoria and the presenter of “Out of the Pan”, a weekly radio show on 3CR covering pansexual issues. Editor-at-large of Right Now, Andre Dao, recently had a quick chat with her about her activism.
Read MoreHuman rights lawyers have raised concerns that a parliamentary inquiry into charity tax law could be used to lay the groundwork for attempts to stifle important voices in the environmental movement.
Read MoreProperly paid parental leave isn't a 'rort' - it's a human right, writes the HRLC's Rachel Ball.
Read MoreA group of leading Australian and international human rights organisations are calling for an overhaul to the way the Australian government campaigns to end the death penalty, today launching a new strategy document: ‘Australian Government and the Death Penalty: A Way Forward’.
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An independent inquiry is needed into the violent bashing of an Aboriginal man in custody in the Australian Capital Territory. Less than 3 hours after being remanded, Steven Freeman was the victim of a severe assault and was taken to Canberra Hospital where he was placed in an induced coma for almost a week.
Read MoreA case has today been commenced in the High Court of Australia on behalf of a group of 10 asylum seekers and their families challenging the lawfulness of the Australian Government’s offshore detention arrangements.
Read MoreI want to tell you about one client who was denied the chance to be part of our High Court case against off-shore processing.
Read MoreThe Government’s budget proposal to reduce parental leave payments is a retrograde step that will further entrench women’s inequality.
Read MoreThe announcement from Indonesia’s President Joko Widodo that Indonesia will lift its decades-long ban on journalists travelling to its troubled Papuan provinces is a welcome step in the right direction.
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The Victorian Attorney-General recently announced the 8-year review of the Victorian Charter. The review is a significant opportunity to strengthen the legal protection and practical realisation of human rights in Victoria. This page provides information and resources about the review, making a submission, and the HRLC's key recommendations for reform.
Read MoreThe rapidly increasing over-representation of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples caught up in the criminal justice system is one of the most significant human rights issues in Australia. Today, the Human Rights Law Centre has joined with other leading Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander, community and human rights organisations to launch a ground-breaking blueprint for reversing the tide by focusing on building communities instead of prisons, and developing smarter criminal justice solutions.
Read MoreThe Australian Government has secretly returned 46 asylum seekers to Vietnam without any transparency or due process. Late on Friday 17 April, when news first broke that the asylum seekers were in Australian custody somewhere on the high seas, the Human Rights Law Centre sent a an urgent communication to the United Nations Special Rapporteur on torture and other cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment.
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Australians don’t talk about self-harm, they don’t know much about self-harm, and they often don't realise it is the leading cause of death amongst 15-24 year olds in this country. The 2014 Children’s Rights Report seeks to change this by recommending a National Research Agenda on self-harm. This will help us find out more information to better understand the problem and develop solutions, which is a push in the right direction for Australia.
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The Australian Government recently passed legislation to amend the Migration Act 1958 (Cth) and the Maritime Powers Act 2013 (Cth) making it even more difficult for asylum seeker children and children born to asylum seeker parents to be processed and settled in Australia.
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Australia was recently reviewed by the UN Committee against Torture for its compliance with the Convention against Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment, commonly referred to as the Convention Against Torture.
Read More‘How did it come to this?’ asks the Australian Human Rights Commission’s Professor Gillian Triggs about Australia rejecting fundamental human rights along with the international monitoring processes designed to give them effect.
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At the most recent United Nations Human Rights Council in March, the UN’s Special Rapporteur on Torture tabled a report outlining the current international benchmarks expected of countries when it comes to detaining children in criminal and civil contexts. The HRLC’s Senior Lawyer, Ruth Barson, said the report is a reminder that Australia needs to change its youth justice policies in order to meet international standards.
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John Tobin is a Professor in the Melbourne Law School at the University of Melbourne. In 2011 he was awarded a national citation for outstanding contribution to student learning in the area of human rights, and is currently working with Professor Philip Alston from NYU on a comprehensive commentary on the Convention on the Rights of the Child. Editor at large of Right Now, Andre Dao, recently caught up for a chat.
Read MoreVictoria is on the cusp of a reform that would see the State’s last law to directly discriminate against same-sex couples consigned to the dustbin of history, writes the HRLC's Anna Brown.
Read MoreA recent report by the Australian Bureau of Statistics shows Victoria has seen one of the largest jumps in Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander imprisonment rates in the country.
Read MoreAustralia’s steadily deteriorating human rights performance has been highlighted in a major report compiled by nearly 200 organisations around Australia. It will be presented to the United Nation’s peak human rights body in the lead up to a major review of Australia that takes place every four years.
Read MoreToday the North Australian Aboriginal Justice Agency (NAAJA) will commence a High Court challenge against the ‘paperless arrest’ regime in the Northern Territory that gives police new detention powers.
Read MoreMany children will benefit from removing discrimination in adoption laws, the independent review of Victoria’s adoption laws has been told in submissions lodged by community groups this week.
Read MoreThe United Nations’ peak human rights body will tonight be urged to question Australia on its increasingly regressive approach to human rights in the lead up to a major review.
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Samah Hadid is an international human rights and social justice campaigner, as well as an advocacy specialist. Most recently she was the Australia Director for The Global Poverty Project. She has previously completed a fellowship with the UN Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights and selected as the Australian Youth Representative to the UN in 2010. Editor at large of Right Now, Andre Dao, recently caught up for a chat.
Read MoreProposed legislation being debated today in the Western Australian Parliament risks criminalising peaceful protest in breach of international human rights guarantees.
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The mother of fifteen year old Melbourne boy, Tyler Cassidy, who was shot dead by police in 2008, has progressed her individual communication to the United Nation’s Human Rights Committee aimed at highlighting Australia’s failure to ensure police-related deaths are properly investigated by an independent body.
Read MoreThe Queensland government’s commitment to abolish voter ID requirements introduced by the previous government has been welcomed by the Human Rights Law Centre.
Read MoreThe United Nations Special Rapportuer on Torture has found that various aspects of Australia’s asylum seeker policies violate the Convention Against Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment.
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Australia’s counter-terrorism and migration laws unnecessarily and disproportionately interfere with fundamental rights and freedoms and ought to be repealed, the Human Rights Law Centre has said in a submission to the Australian Law Reform Commission’s (ALRC) inquiry into “Traditional Rights and Freedoms”.
Read MoreThe Human Rights Law Centre welcomed today’s announcement by the Victorian Government that Michael Brett Young will lead the 8 year review of Victoria’s Human Rights Charter. Read More
The Government of Nauru should take urgent steps to respect and protect journalists, strengthen judicial independence and enact specific legislation protecting human rights defenders, the International Service for Human Rights and the Human Rights Law Centre said in a joint briefing paper on Nauru published today.
Read MoreConfirmation that the Attorney-General sought the resignation of the President of the Australian Human Rights Commission reveals the depths of the Government’s willingness to undermine Australia’s independent human rights watchdog, said the Human Rights Law Centre. “This is a blatant political attack to punish the Commission for doing its job reporting on the harm being inflicted on children in detention,” said the HRLC’s Executive Director, Hugh de Kretser. Read More
Graeme Innes AM is a lawyer, mediator and company director. He was a Commissioner at the Australian Human Rights Commission for nearly ten years, responsible for issues relating to disability, race and human rights. Editor at large of Right Now and HRLC volunteer, Andre Dao, recently had a quick chat with him about what he’s been up to.
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Sector leaders have called for a bipartisan commitment to permanently end the policy of mandatory and indefinite detention of asylum seeker children and families following the release of the Australian Human Rights Commission inquiry report. Our joint media release with Child Rights International, UNICEF Australia, Save the Children Australia, Plan International Australia and others...
Read MoreProposed new data retention laws create significant risks that private information of Australians will be unlawfully accessed and misused, said the Human Rights Law Centre in a submission to the Senate inquiry into the draft legislation.
Read MoreIf Australia wants to pursue its own military drone program, far greater levels of transparency and rigorous safeguards are absolutely essential, the Human Rights Law Centre will tell the Senate's Foreign Affairs, Defence and Trade Committee during its inquiry into Australia's potential purchase of its own drones.
Read MoreAlmost six months since Julieka Dhu’s tragic death in police custody, her family still have no answers as to how she died.
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Australia should repeal excessive restrictions on the fundamental rights to freedom of expression, association and peaceful assembly, according to a new report to be considered by the UN Human Rights Council in Geneva.
Read MoreParliament should pass a proposed law to preserve and enhance the proper oversight of counter-terrorism and national laws that have serious repercussions for human rights.
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Read our in-depth overview of the High Court case and decision regarding the detention of 157 asylum seekers on an Australian custom vessel at sea.
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The High Court will tomorrow hand down its decision on a legal challenge to the Australian Government’s high seas detention of 157 Tamil asylum seekers on board a customs vessel for nearly a month.
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The Human Rights Law Centre’s director of advocacy and research, Emily Howie, is in the UK attending a Wilton Park meeting on strengthening the UN human rights treaty monitoring system. The meeting brings together representatives from government, civil society, the UN system and national human rights systems to discuss ways to improve states’ compliance with their international human rights law obligations and their implementation of the recommendations and views of UN bodies.
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Figures released by the Australian Bureau of Statistics last month show a 10 percent jump in the number of people in Australian prisons, bringing the prison population to a 10 year high.
Read MoreOne of our passionate supporters, Sam Drummond, is about to swim an open water marathon to raise money for our work protecting and promoting human rights!
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Rights groups have welcomed the ACT Government’s announcement that it will legislate to erase the criminal records of homosexual men who were convicted for having consensual sex in the past when it was illegal.
Read MoreToday’s announcement that the Australian Government will slash the Australian Human Rights Commission’s funding by around 30% over the next three years has been denounced by the Human Rights Law Centre.
Read MoreThe Senate Legal and Constitutional Affairs References Committee today released its report into the violence inside Australia’s detention centre on Manus Island that led to the death of 23-year-old Iranian man Reza Barati and the serious injury of 70 others in February this year. Here's the HRLC's response...
Read MoreWe’re very pleased to share our Annual Report 2013/14!
Read MoreThe Human Rights Law Centre is proud to have amongst our many supporters a number of eminent human rights leaders. To support our Human Rights Week Appeal, the Hon Malcolm Fraser AC, Prime Minister of Australia from 1975-1983, has kindly offered to host an afternoon tea for one lucky donor.
Read MoreThe Australian government should cease forced returns of Sri Lankan asylum seekers until they are provided fair, thorough, and transparent processing of their protection claims, Amnesty International, the Human Rights Law Centre, and Human Rights Watch said today. On November 29, 2014, Australian authorities turned over to Sri Lankan authorities a boat carrying 37 asylum seekers.
Read MoreThis week you have an amazing opportunity to double your human rights impact by donating to the Human Rights Law Centre.
Read MoreThe United Nations Committee Against Torture has overnight condemned Australia’s asylum seeker policies and expressed serious concerns at the rates of violence against women and indigenous imprisonment.
Read MoreA push to ensure that people with disabilities fully enjoy the right to vote has been welcomed by the Human Rights Law Centre.
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Australia is in breach of its human rights obligations by allowing children to be sentenced to life in prison without the genuine possibility of parole, the United Nations Human Rights Committee has declared.
Read MoreProposed changes to migration laws would widen the Immigration Minister’s power, marginalise international law and wind back the ability of Australian courts to scrutinise the Government’s treatment of asylum seekers, leading human rights organisations will tell the Senate’s Legal and Constitutional Affairs Legislation Committee today.
Read MoreThe Human Rights Law Centre is looking to recruit a part-time Fundraising Administrator in Melbourne to coordinate and enhance its fundraising activities, so if you’re passionate about human rights and have experience in fundraising, we'd love to hear from you!
Read MoreAustralia’s asylum seeker policies and counter-terror laws came under heavy scrutiny overnight at the United Nations in Geneva when Government officials were questioned by the UN Committee Against Torture.
Read MoreAustralia’s form is bad and getting worse when it comes to the Convention against Torture and other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment, the United Nations will hear tomorrow.
Read MoreThe Human Rights Law Centre’s outstanding work defending the human rights of refugees and asylum seekers has been recognised with an award from the Migration Institute of Australia and the ANU College of Law.
Read MoreAnti-protest laws proposed by the Tasmanian Government - even following amendments – will breach international human rights law, the Human Rights Law Centre has today warned.
Read MoreRights groups today welcomed the passage of the Criminal Records Amendment (Historical Homosexual Offences) Bill 2014 through the NSW Parliament. Commenting on the significance of the announcement, NSW GLRL Convenor, Justin Koonin said that members of his community had been waiting a very long time for justice.
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Jared Genser and Bruno Stagno Ugarte (eds), The United Nations Security Council in the Age of Human Rights, Cambridge University Press, 2014 reviewed by the HRLC’s Emily Howie
Read MoreWelcome to the 100th edition of Rights Agenda – the monthly bulletin of the Human Rights Law Centre!
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As Executive Director of the freshly established HRLC in May 2006, Phil Lynch started the HRLC’s monthly bulletin as six page word document that he circulated via email amongst the centre’s small (but impressive) supporter base. Today, he tells us he still gets excited when it appears in his inbox.
Read MoreLast week the High Court heard a challenge to the lawfulness of the Australian Government’s detention of 157 Sri Lankan asylum seekers for almost a month on board a customs vessel.
Read MoreThe HRLC’s Director of Advocacy and Strategic Litigation Anna Brown has been recognised for her work to advance the rights of lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and intersex people.
Read MoreSeventy seven organisations have united to warn that Australia’s standards are sliding when it comes to the prevention of torture and cruel treatment.
Read MoreA broad coalition of Australia’s leading academics, media, human rights, legal and migrant organisations today called on the Australian Government to delay the passage of its proposed anti-terror laws to allow more comprehensive scrutiny of the legislation.
Read MoreTonight the Victorian Parliament became the first Australian jurisdiction to formally acknowledge that sex between consenting men should never have been a crime.
Read MoreAustralia is scheduled to be reviewed under the Universal Periodic Review of Australia ('UPR') in 2015. This is an opportunity for non-government organisations (‘NGOs’) across Australia to prepare a joint NGO submission to the UPR.
Read MoreThe most significant changes to Australia’s counter-terrorism laws in over a decade proposed under the Counter-Terrorism Legislation Amendment (Foreign Fighters) Bill 2014 are extraordinary in nature and encroach on fundamental human rights, the Human Rights Law Centre has said in a submission to the Parliamentary Joint Committee on Intelligence and Security on its review of the Bill.
Read MoreThe HRLC is one of twelve organisations to sign a joint statement calling on the Northern Territory Government to rethink their proposal to lock up young people in a run-down jail, deemed unfit for adults. The Northern Territory is one of the only jurisdictions in Australia to have increasing youth detention rates. Almost all of the young people in detention in the Northern Territory are Aboriginal, and many come from disadvantaged backgrounds including being exposed to drug and alcohol misuse, violence, and neglect.
Read MoreIn its rush to expel – via a sub-standard screening process – Sri Lankans who arrive in Australia by boat, Australia places those people at risk of torture, rape and ill treatment in Sri Lankan custody.
Read MoreThe United Nations Human Rights Council has adopted a landmark resolution on combating violence and discrimination based on sexual orientation and gender identity. The HRLC’s Directory of Advocacy, Anna Brown, was present in Geneva and worked together with advocates on the passage of resolution.
Read MoreThere is plenty of devil in the detail of the Immigration Minister’s latest reforms, introduced into Federal Parliament today.
Read MoreThe United Nations Human Rights Council is set to vote on an historic resolution tackling violence and discrimination against sexual minorities. The HRLC's Directory of Advocacy, Anna Brown, is present in Geneva and delivered a statement to the Council calling on the international community to support a resolution condemning violence and discrimination against lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender people.
Read MoreA formal OECD complaint has been lodged against multinational security contractor G4S for failing to meet international standards and committing serious human rights violations in relation to conditions and abuse of asylum seekers detained at the Manus Regional Processing Centre.
Read MoreThe Supreme Court of Papua New Guinea is due tomorrow to consider whether an important PNG National Court inquiry examining the lawfulness of the Manus Island detention centre should be allowed to resume.
Read MoreThe United Nation’s Human Rights Council – the world’s peak human rights body – has been alerted to Australia’s rapidly increasing imprisonment rates of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples.
Read MoreThe NSW Government will join Victoria in erasing the criminal records of men who were convicted for having consensual sex in the past when homosexuality was illegal.
Read MoreThe Human Rights Law Centre and the Victorian Gay & Lesbian Rights Lobby today welcomed the Victorian Government's announcement that it will introduce legislation to erase the criminal records of people convicted of unjust crimes before 1981 when homosexuality was illegal.
Read MoreThe Australian Bureau of Statistics released figures last week showing that Australia now imprisons 18 per cent more Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander women than it did 12 months ago.
Read MoreIn his maiden speech to the United Nations Human Rights Council, the new United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights, Mr Zeid Ra’ad Al Hussein, will condemned Australia for violating the human rights of asylum seekers.
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Each year, King & Wood Mallesons and the National Children’s and Youth Law Centre, work with the Human Rights Law Centre to publish a special edition of our Monthly Bulletin, Rights Agenda, that focuses exclusively on human rights and legal issues affecting children and young people.
Read MoreProposed amendments to the ASIO Act introduced into Federal Parliament today would ensure that refugees indefinitely detained on the basis of ASIO security assessments would have the same right to appeal those assessments as everyone else.
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The High Court will sit in Canberra on the 14 and 15 of October to consider the legality of the Australian Government’s decision to detain 157 Tamil asylum seekers on board a customs vessel on the High Seas for nearly a month.
Read MoreProposed amendments to the Migration Act would significantly increase the risk of people being returned to persecution, the HRLC has said in a submission to the Legal and Constitutional Affairs Legislation Committee.
Read MoreThe election of a new Indonesian President presents the Australian Government with an opportunity to review its relationship with the Indonesian military.
Read MoreThe Human Rights Law Centre has welcomed the announcement that the Australian Government has “taken off the table” proposals drafted by the Commonwealth Attorney General, George Brandis, to weaken Australia’s racial discrimination laws.
Read MoreLawyers for the 157 Tamil asylum seekers today revealed that Australian Government officers told the group they would be forced to go to India in three orange lifeboats dropped into the ocean somewhere off the coast of India.
Read MoreLawyers assisting 157 asylum seekers secretly sent overnight to Nauru today condemned the Government’s actions.
Read MoreAustralia’s current laws on marriage leave same-sex couples in a maze of legal uncertainty when it comes to recognition of foreign marriages, and are inconsistent with international law.
Read MoreNew figures revealed today show that a large majority of submissions to the Australian Government oppose controversial proposed changes to Australia’s racial vilification laws.
Read MoreGovernments should ensure that people with disabilities fully enjoy the right to vote by ensuring that all people who express a wish to vote are provided necessary supports and assistance.
Read MoreImmigration Minister Scott Morrison has confirmed reports that the Australian customs vessel carrying 157 Tamil asylum seekers is on its way to Australian territory.
Read MoreOn the eve of the World AIDS Conference 2014, Victorian Health Minister David Davis announced plans to amend the Crimes Act to remove discrimination against people living with HIV. The announcement was cautiously welcomed by NGOs, but clarification was sought on key details.
Read MoreThe Human Rights Law Centre has joined with 12 other NGOs to urgently call for greater accountability for police misconduct in Victoria in the wake of a UN Human Rights Committee finding in favour of Ms Corinna Horvath who was brutally assaulted by police in 1996 and is yet to receive adequate compensation for her injuries.
Read MoreThe UN Human Rights Council has adopted two new resolutions on business and human rights.
Read MoreThe HRLC has taken a range of urgent steps to prevent Sri Lankan asylum seekers being handed over to the very regime they claim to be fleeing.
Read MoreThe HRLC last night sent a request for urgent action to the UN Special Rapporteur on torture and other cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment. The request relates to two groups of Sri Lankan asylum seekers, including at least 37 children, who were reportedly travelling to Australia to claim protection but have not been heard from for four days after reportedly being intercepted by Australian authorities.
Read MoreThe HRLC’s Director of Advocacy and Strategic Litigation, Anna Brown, said Australia was failing to live up to a number of the promises it made three years ago when its human rights record came under scrutiny during its regular review by its peers at the UN – a process known as the Universal Periodic Review.
Read MoreAustralia’s unlawful and increasingly punitive treatment of asylum seekers has once again been condemned on the world stage. Overnight a statement prepared by the Human Rights Law Centre was delivered to the UN’s Human Rights Council in Geneva, the world’s peak human rights body.
Read MoreIt’s that time of year again when we gather an eclectic collection of goods, services and experiences for our Fundraising Auctions to be held at the Annual Human Rights Dinners that we host with Justice Connect – this year in Melbourne on 13 June and in Sydney on 20 June.
Read MoreNew laws to oversee the Northern Territory's prison system will not address the endemic over-imprisonment of Aboriginal people and fail to respect basic rights, warns the North Australian Aboriginal Justice Agency and the Human Rights Law Centre.
Read MoreAmnesty International and the Human Rights Law Centre have appeared at the Senate, Legal and Constitutional Affairs References Committee Inquiry into the events that occurred on Manus Island in February of this year that left one asylum seeker dead.
Read MoreIn a joint open letter sent to Attorney-General George Brandis today, over 120 Aboriginal, ethnic, community, union, legal, religious and human rights organisations urged the Federal Government to abandon its controversial proposal to roll back racial vilification protections.
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The HRLC is delighted to announce the appointment of Ruth Barson as a Senior Lawyer. Ruth has joined us from the Centre for Innovative Justice, and prior to that has worked at Victoria Legal Aid as well as various Aboriginal legal services in the Northern Territory and Western Australia.
Read MoreAustralia’s new approach to development assistance focuses on private sector development and pays insufficient attention to the human rights goals and obligations that should be central to our aid program.
Read MoreIt has been revealed during a Senate Estimates hearing that the Australian Government has made payments towards the Papua New Guinean Government’s legal costs for proceedings relating to the asylum seeker detention centre on Manus Island.
Read MoreThe key recommendation of a Government-commissioned investigation into the recent violence inside the Manus Island detention centre is to process and resettle asylum seekers quickly and fairly.
Read MoreOver the past 18 months, the Human Rights Law Centre, together with our partners the National Aboriginal & Torres Strait Islander Legal Services, has been working to bring key national agencies together to address the national crisis that is the over imprisonment of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples.
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The Queensland government has passed the first voter ID laws in Australia limiting the right of Queenslanders to vote, particularly members of already marginalised and disadvantaged groups.
Read MoreThe recent violence inside the Manus Island detention centre was a foreseeable and preventable result of the circumstances in which asylum seekers have been transferred and detained, the Human Rights Law Centre has told the Senate Legal and Constitutional Affairs References Committee in a written submission.
Read MoreIt is essential that Australia retain robust oversight of the extraordinary powers granted to police and ASIO under Australia’s counter-terrorism laws, the Human Rights Law Centre has told the Senate Legal and Constitutional Affairs Committee.
Read MoreThe Australian Government should introduce laws that would minimise the risk of Australian policing or military assistance supporting human rights violators.
Read MoreThe Australian Government should not proceed with proposed changes to racial vilification laws, the Human Rights Law Centre has recommended in its submission to the public consultation process on proposed changes to the Racial Discrimination Act.
Read MoreThe Australian Government should not introduce reforms which prioritise administrative convenience over protection from persecution, the HRLC has said in a submission to the Senate Legal and Constitutional Affairs Legislation Committee.
Read MoreA significant judgment today restored some balance to equal opportunity laws but has sparked calls for reform to limit discrimination by religious groups.
Read MoreNoble defences of unlimited free speech make for good debate, but a poor society. The hardest cases help us find the boundaries of acceptable speech, write Rachel Ball and Anna Brown.
Read MoreThe Human Rights Law Centre has released an Information Paper to help individuals and organisations give feedback to the Federal Government on the proposed changes to racial vilification laws. The paper provides an overview of the current law and the proposed changes and also summarises the HRLC’s views on the changes.
Read MoreThe High Court has delivered a landmark judgment that recognises sex other than male or female, representing a victory for growing numbers of gender diverse people across Australia.
Read MoreIn an extremely unprincipled foreign policy decisions, Australia’s Foreign Minister, Julie Bishop, has aligned Australia with countries known for their obstructionist approach at the UN with her comments expressing disappointment with the UN Human Rights Council’s decision to initiate an independent investigations into war crimes and human rights abuses in Sri Lanka.
Read MoreAmnesty International, assisted by the Human Rights Law Centre, was granted leave to participate in the PNG National Court’s inquiry examining whether PNG human rights laws are being breached by the detention of asylum seekers on Manus Island.
Read MoreThe United Nations Human Rights Council should pass resolution 25/1 to establish an international investigation into alleged war crimes committed in the final months of the Sri Lankan civil war, according to a statement jointly delivered to the UN in Geneva today by the Public Interest Advocacy Centre and the Human Rights Law Centre.
Read MoreThis page contains materials and background information on Australia’s racial vilification laws, as well as link to further materials.
Read MoreAustralia has one last opportunity this week to publicly support a US-led initiative at the United Nations to end impunity for war crimes and crimes against humanity committed during the final phases of Sri Lanka’s civil war in 2009.
Read MoreThe Human Rights Law Centre strongly criticised proposed new racial vilification legislation released earlier today by Attorney-General George Brandis.
Read MoreAustralia’s unlawful and increasingly harsh and punitive treatment of asylum seekers arriving by boat will once again be brought the attention of the world’s peak human rights body this evening when the Human Rights Law Centre addresses the UN’s Human Rights Council in Geneva.
Read MoreAmnesty International, assisted by the Human Rights Law Centre, has been granted leave to participate in a powerful PNG National Court inquiry examining whether PNG human rights laws are being breached by the detention of asylum seekers on Manus Island.
Read MoreAustralia violates its international law obligations by aiding the Sri Lankan government to intercept asylum seekers fleeing that country, the United Nations Human Rights Council has been told overnight in Geneva.
Read MoreThe Federal Government’s mooted changes to racial vilification protections, reported today in The Australian, have caused serious concern among community organisations that work with people affected by racist hate speech.
Read MoreA new report highlights various ways in which Australia's co-operation with Sri Lanka’s military puts asylum seekers at risk. The report includes a DFAT cable obtained under Freedom of Information laws that reveals the Australia Federal Police declined to interview a man claiming to have been severely tortured after being sent back to Sri Lanka by Australia.
Read MoreA new report has found that Australia’s cooperation with Sri Lanka to prevent would-be-refugees from seeking protection is riddled with human rights risks and should be stopped immediately.
Read MoreThe Melbourne City Council is facing legal action over its failure to ensure safe access medical services at an East Melbourne health clinic.
Read MoreThe Human Rights Law Centre today rejected comments by Lord Mayor Robert Doyle who claimed the Melbourne City Council felt “impotent” to act against anti-abortion protestors who for decades have beset the East Melbourne Fertility Control Clinic. Cr Doyle welcomed new laws allowing police to move on protesters and said they would help remove the protestors from the front of the clinic.
Read MoreAustralia must review its offshore processing arrangements with PNG and Nauru to ensure the basic rights of asylum seekers are being respected, says the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights, Navi Pillay. Ms Pillay has released the opening statement on her 2013 Annual Report, discussing issues of worldwide human rights concern.
Read MoreAdvocates for sex and gender diverse communities will make written submission in a landmark case before the High Court examining whether legal documents should recognise sex categories other than just male and female.
Read MoreIt has been discovered that the acting head of the Manus Island detention centre on PNG is a former Sri Lankan military commander. Among the detainees at Manus Island are 30 Tamil asylum seekers – people who may well have experienced significant suffering at the hands of the Sri Lankan military.
Read MoreR. P. B. v the Philippines, Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination against Women, Views: Communication No 34/2011, 57th sess, UN Doc CEDAW/C/57/D/34/2011 (23 May 2011)
The Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination against Women has found that the Philippines breached the rights of a mute and hearing impaired girl to non-discrimination under the Convention on the Elimination of Discrimination against Women (CEDAW), in the investigation and trial of her alleged rape. The Philippines had, in investigating the crime and in the trial, failed to provide a free interpreter and had used stereotypes and gender-based myths, disregarding the victim’s specific situation as a girl who is both mute and hearing impaired. The Committee noted that the obligations of the State include the obligation to consider the specific situation of the complainant, being her age and disability.
Read MoreOn 12 December the Senate announced an inquiry into the Telecommunications (Interception and Access) Act 1979. The Act, among other things, allows for the interception and access of telecommunications data by Government agencies in certain circumstances. In some cases this means access by local governments and agencies to your personal data without a warrant, or indeed any judicial oversight
Read MoreA new complaints mechanism under the UN Convention on Rights of Child is about to take effect. On 14 January 2014, Costa Rica became the tenth state to ratify the Third Optional Protocol to the Convention on the Rights of the Child on a Communications Procedure, meaning that three months’ time, on 14 April 2014, the complaints mechanism will come into force.
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From 20-28 November 2013, Australia joined 121 other States Parties, members of civil society and other stakeholders in The Hague for the 12th annual Assembly of States Parties (ASP) to the Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court (ICC). As the governing and legislative body of the ICC, the ASP discusses and decides on issues central to the Court's operations. The main topics of debate set for the 12th session were cooperation and the impact of the Rome Statute system on victims; however, at the request of the African Union, a special segment was held on the indictment of sitting heads of State and government and its consequences for peace, stability, and reconciliation.
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Urgent action from the United Nations has been requested in an attempt to prevent the Queensland Government from passing draconian youth justice laws. The reforms include removing the principle that the detention of juveniles be a measure of last resort.
Read MoreGiving evidence to a parliamentary inquiry today, the HRLC’s Director of Legal Advocacy, Daniel Webb, said proposed reforms place ASIO assessments at the centre of refugee processing but contain no safeguards to ensure the security assessment process is fair or accountable.
Read MoreProposed new ‘move-on’ powers for police in Victoria will unreasonably limit human rights and are susceptible to misuse. The Human Rights Law Centre’s Executive Director, Hugh de Kretser, said protest rights and free speech are particularly threatened, but the proposed laws may also have an impact on young people and the homeless.
Read MoreWhen it comes to protecting people from serious human rights violations, we need a better system than one depending entirely on non-reviewable decisions made by the Immigration Minister, the HRLC has said in a submission to the Legal and Constitutional Affairs Legislation Committee.
Read MoreThe Australian Government should scrap discriminatory laws that prevent persons “of unsound mind” from voting, the Human Rights Law Centre has said in a submission to the Australian Law Reform Commission.
Read MoreThe Queensland Government should scrap plans to introduce voter ID laws that could unnecessarily prevent an unknown number of Queenslanders from voting, the Human Rights Law Centre has told a parliamentary committee.
Read MoreThe rights of refugees shouldn’t be contingent on secretive, non-reviewable ASIO assessments, the HRLC has said in a submission to the Legal and Constitutional Affairs Legislation Committee.
Read MoreRights groups have welcomed the Victorian Government’s announcement today that it will legislate to erase the criminal records of homosexual men who were convicted for having consensual sex in the past when it was illegal.
Read MoreGender stereotyping and discrimination undermine women’s rights to equality before the law and a fair trial, particularly in the case of sexual offences.
Read MoreFreedom of speech is a right which throws up particular challenges as we seek to maintain, and indeed strengthen, social cohesion in contemporary Australia. It throws up those challenges because the balance between freedom of speech and other fundamental human rights needs always to be responsive to present circumstances.
Read MoreThe Parliamentary Committee that conducted an inquiry into NSW racial vilification laws tabled its Final Report on 3 December 2013. The Law and Justice Committee of the NSW Legislative Council was charged with a review of section 20D of the Anti-Discrimination Act 1977 (NSW), which sets out the criminal offence for serious racial vilification. The Human Rights Law Centre made a submission to the inquiry earlier this year.
Read MoreOn 21 November 2013 Queensland’s Attorney-General, Jarrod Bleijie, introduced the Electoral Reform Amendment Bill into Queensland’s parliament. Among other things, the bill contains provisions to give effect to Queensland’s new policy in which voters in Queensland elections must show identification in order to be able to vote.
Read MoreOn behalf of the Australian Human Rights Commission, Professor Gillian Triggs, the Commission’s President, has welcomed the appointment of the Commission’s seventh Commissioner, Mr Tim Wilson.
Read MoreThe Australian Government’s decision to cut funds to vital Aboriginal legal services will make justice more remote for Australia’s most marginalised and disadvantaged communities.
Read MoreThank you to all our supporters who generously donated to our Human Rights Week Challenge 2013.
Your support, and the matching donations of King & Wood Mallesons, Allens, Oak Foundation and our board members, raised over $100,000 toward vital human rights litigation, education and advocacy.
Read MoreAlthough disappointed that the High Court has today overturned the ACT’s new same-sex marriage laws, marriage equality advocates have welcomed the court’s confirmation that the Federal Parliament does have the ability to legislate for marriage equality.
Read MoreAttorney-General George Brandis has asked the Australian Law Reform Commission to audit Commonwealth laws to identify laws that “encroach upon traditional rights, freedoms and privileges” and assess whether the encroachment is justified.
Read MoreAlthough disappointed that the High Court has today overturned the ACT’s new same-sex marriage laws, marriage equality advocates have welcomed the court’s confirmation that the Federal Parliament does have the ability to legislate for marriage equality.
Read MoreA damning report into the operation of Victoria’s corrections system has identified the mistreatment of young people in detention and again highlighted the need for a fully independent prison watchdog. The Victorian Ombudsman’s report follows an investigation into the mistaken transfer of five children into the adult prison system.
Read MoreRacism remains widespread in the community and important protections against racial vilification must be retained in Australian law, says a broad coalition of organisations.
Read MoreRacism remains widespread in the community and important protections against racial vilification must be retained in Australian law, says a broad coalition of organisations.
Read MoreWe’re pleased to present our 2012/13 Annual Report. The quality, volume and impact of the work detailed in this report is a great example of why donations to the Human Rights Law Centre were this year ranked as one of the Top 50 Philanthropic Gifts ever made in Australia.
Read MoreMarriage equality advocates, defending laws allowing same-sex couples to marry, will tomorrow apply to intervene in the Australian Government’s attempt to strike down the ACT's new same-sex marriage laws in the High Court.
Read MoreAustralian Prime Minister Tony Abbott has been asked to revoke his statement, made during his recent visit to Sri Lanka for the Commonwealth summit, that suggested that the use of torture can be justified in “difficult circumstances”.
Read MoreA new report by the HRLC's Rachel Ball considers the benefits and challenges of storytelling in human rights and social justice advocacy. The report, ‘When I Tell My Story, I’m in Charge: Ethical and Effective Storytelling in Advocacy’, sets out a range of approaches, techniques and examples to inform community legal centres in their advocacy efforts for systemic change.
Read MoreIf we don't stand against war crimes and crimes against humanity resulting in the death of 40,000 people, what do we stand for? asks the HRLC's Emily Howie
Read MoreAustralia must publicly acknowledge and condemn the human rights and rule of law crisis in Sri Lanka particularly given the escalation of international condemnation of Sri Lanka’s human rights record ahead of the Commonwealth Heads of Government (CHOGM) in Colombo.
Read MoreUsing aid to offset asylum seeker costs is regarded by many people as an abuse – but that is not the worst of it writes Robin Davies, the Associate Director of the Development Policy Centre at the Australian National University.
Read MoreWhat does it mean to have a non-conforming sex, sexual orientation or gender identity? What counts as serious harm? Can effective protection be found elsewhere? These are just a few of the recurring questions that confront lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, intersex and queer (LGBTIQ) asylum seekers seeking refuge from persecution.
Read MoreThe Department of Justice has conducted an extensive review of sexual offences in Victoria and has prepared a consultation paper which identifies and analyses the main problems with sexual offence laws.
Read MoreThe NSW Government is seeking to restrict the defence of provocation under a new Bill released for discussion on 17 October 2013.
Read MoreThe Senate Committee on Community Affairs has released a report following an inquiry into the forced sterilisation on intersex infants. The practice of surgery on intersex infants raises serious human rights concerns, given that the surgery is not undertaken with consent and is irreversible.
Read MoreThe Australian Law Reform Commission has released the Issues Paper, Serious Invasions of Privacy in the Digital Era (ALRC Issues Paper 43, 2013), to begin the consultation process for its invasions of privacy Inquiry.
Read MoreThe report on the findings of the sixth Scanlon Foundation Mapping Social Cohesion Survey, conducted in 2013, has recently been published. This report builds on the knowledge gained through the five earlier Scanlon Foundation surveys conducted in 2007, 2009, 2010, 2011 and 2012. The Scanlon-Monash Index of Social Cohesion provides an overview in the five core domains of social cohesion: belonging, worth, social justice, participation, and acceptance and rejection.
Read MoreAmnesty International has recently released a report on US drone strikes in Pakistan. This report is not a comprehensive survey of US drone strikes in Pakistan; it is a qualitative assessment based on detailed field research into nine of the 45 reported strikes that occurred in Pakistan's North Waziristan tribal agency between January 2012 and August 2013 and a survey of publicly available information on all reported drone strikes in Pakistan over that period.
Read Morenew expert panel report, entitled The Health Effects of Conducted Energy Weapons, was released by the Council of Canadian Academies in collaboration with the Canadian Academy of Health Sciences.
Read MoreThe Asian Human Rights Commission and Human Rights and Peace for Papua launched a report on the human rights abuses that took place in the central highlands of Papua, Indonesia between 1977–1978.The report discusses violations under the Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of the Crime of Genocide and aims at truth-building. The report, which was concluded after three years of research by the AHRC, reveals the death of over 4,000 indigenous Papuans, including minors, as a result of operations conducted by the Indonesian military in the area.
Read MoreTwo weeks after being announced as one of Australia’s Top 50 Philanthropic Gifts ever, the seed funding for the Human Rights Law Centre yesterday came in at number three in the People’s Choice award.
Read MoreAustralia should come clean about its role in the controversial American armed drone program after two United Nations human rights experts called for an end to the secrecy shrouding the US program.
Read MoreThe Human Rights Law Centre and has made public the legal advice it obtained from Mr Bret Walker SC and Perry Herzfeld, on behalf of Australian Marriage Equality, that confirms that the NSW Same-Sex Marriage Bill would be constitutionally valid. The advice follows reports that the Bill will be introduced and debated in the NSW Upper House on October 31st.
Read MoreLeading constitutional law experts have warned that the ACT’s marriage equality reforms will remain vulnerable to a High Court challenge unless they the ACT Government delivers on its commitment to pass amendments next week.
Read MoreEmily Howie, Director – Advocacy & Research at the Human Rights Law Centre, argues that an unusual admission of regret by one of America’s top judges throws new light on Queensland’s misguided attempts to tackle the non-existent problem of voter fraud.
Read MoreA “game changing” expert legal opinion has found that a state-based same-sex marriage law proposed in Tasmania is constitutionally valid.
Read MoreThe Government’s $42 million funding cut to Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Legal Services will exacerbate the shocking rate of Indigenous over-imprisonment writes Carolyn Bond AO from the Community Law Australia campaign.
Read MoreWhen Australia – one of the ICC’s strongest supporters – was elected to the Security Council for 2013 and 2014, Amnesty International and other supporters of international justice hoped that it would work to challenge many aspects of the Security Council’s approach writes Amnesty International's Legal Adviser, Jonathan O'Donohue.
Read MoreQueensland’s Newman government says it will change laws that protect juvenile offenders' identities next year to allow the names of children as young as 10 to be revealed if they commit a second offence.
Read MoreFrom 15-17 November 2013, Sri Lanka will host the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting, following which Sri Lanka will chair the Commonwealth for two years. Many rights groups have raised concerns about Sri Lanka’s suitability to host CHOGM, and to hold the position as chair, given the serious human rights issues that remain unresolved in the country.
Read MoreProposed legislation for the G20 in Queensland would infringe fundamental human rights and stifle legitimate protest, the Human Rights Law Centre has told the Queensland parliament’s Legal Affairs and Community Safety Committee.
Read MoreThe donations that established the Human Rights Law Centre, the first Australian legal centre dedicated to human rights law, have been announced as one of Australia’s Top 50 Philanthropic Gifts of all time.
Read MoreThe High Court has dismissed an appeal against a mandatory minimum sentence imposed under the Migration Act 1958 (Cth). The Human Rights Law Centre is disappointed by the decision in Bonang Darius Magaming v The Queen, which reveals gaps in human rights protection in Australia’s laws.
Read MoreJubilee Australia has a new campaign to stop the abuses of Australian companies overseas and to increase their accountability to people around the world.
Read MoreOn 4 September, the UK introduced a new national action plan entitled “Good Business: Implementing the UN Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights”. The action plan is intended to help UK companies understand and manage human rights and to articulate the UK Government’s expectations about business behaviour, both in the UK and overseas.
Read More“Free speech is the cornerstone of democracy. Australian law must adequately protect essential democratic rights such as freedom of expression and the right to peaceful assembly. Whilst the decision is a mixed bag, it is an important vindication for the protestors who believed that the actions taken against them where arbitrary and unlawful," said Ms Brown.
Read MoreIn a case about free speech and protest rights, the Federal Court has today found that council by-laws regarding advertising and camping do not infringe human rights, but some of the ways in which they were used by the City of Melbourne against a group of peaceful protesters in a public space were unlawful.
Read MoreOn 26 September 2013, the Tasmanian parliament passed the Anti-Discrimination Amendment Bill 2012 (Tas) that introduced new protections against discrimination and offensive conduct and also improved the capacity of the Tasmanian Anti-Discrimination Commissioner to deal with complaints.
Read MoreSeptember 2013: The Human Rights Law Centre's Director of Communications, Tom Clarke, speaks to ABC News24's Weekend Breakfast show about new Prime Minister Tony Abbott's first trip to Indonesia and the pressing need to raise concerns about the human rights situation in West Papua.
Read MorePrime Minister Tony Abbott has been urged to use his first visit to Indonesia tomorrow to cast aside the wilful blindness previous Australian Governments have had when it comes to the serious human rights violations occurring a stone's throw away in Indonesia's Papua provinces.
Read MoreThe head of a UN-appointed inquiry into human rights in North Korea reported that testimony heard so far by his panel pointed to widespread and serious violations in every area it had been asked to investigate. “What we have seen and heard so far – the specificity, detail and shocking character of the personal testimony – appears without doubt to demand follow-up action by the world community, and accountability on the part of the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea,” Michael Kirby, chair of the UN Commission of Inquiry on Human Rights in the DPRK, said in an oral update to the Geneva-based UN Human Rights Council.
Read MoreAustralia is violating the fundamental human rights of people seeking its protection, the UN Human Rights Council will hear this evening.
Read MoreIn the wake of new federal anti-discrimination protections on the basis of sexual orientation, gender identity and intersex status, Tasmania’s Anti-Discrimination Bill 2012 has stalled in the parliament.
Read MoreThis election marriage equality has received an unprecedented level of coverage. However lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and intersex (LGBTI) rights are broader than simply marriage equality.
Read MoreAustralian Ambassador to Russia, Paul Myler, has expressed deep concern about Russia’s ‘homosexual propaganda’ laws. The Ambassador urges Russia to recognise that human rights are universal, indivisible and independent and should be available to all people regardless of their sexual orientation or gender identity.
Read MoreThe Asia Pacific Forum has produced a new resource aimed at helping national human rights institutions (NHRI) investigate allegations of human rights violations.
Read MoreRegardless of your political allegiances, we hope you can take a moment to appreciate the fundamental democratic freedoms we enjoy in Australia and join us in working to protect and strengthen them even further.
Read MoreTasmania’s acting Commissioner for Children Elizabeth Daly has released the Alternatives to Secure Youth Detention in Tasmania report advocating for a justice reinvestment framework. The report calls for young offenders to be diverted away from the criminal justice system in compliance with the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child.
Read MoreFormer High Court Judge Ian Callinan’s Review of the Parole System in Victoria recommends that the Victorian Parole Board remain exempt from procedural fairness and human rights protections under the Charter of Human Rights and Responsibilities.
Read MoreMarginalised communities risk being shut out of the democratic process by proposed laws requiring voters to show ID in order to cast a vote in Queensland elections.
Read MoreThe fatal shooting of a man last night in Windsor by a Victoria Police officer highlights the need for independent investigations into police-related deaths. The Human Rights Law Centre’s Director of Advocacy and Strategic Litigation, Anna Brown, said that the current practice of police investigating themselves undermined public confidence in police and breached international human rights guarantees.
Read MoreThe UN Human Rights Committee has found that Australia’s indefinite detention of 46 recognised refugees (42 Tamils from Sri Lanka, three Rohingya from Myanmar and a Kuwaiti) held in immigration detention for over two and a half years on ‘security grounds’ was inflicting serious psychological harm and amounted to cruel, inhuman and degrading treatment contrary to article 7 of the ICCPR.
Read MoreIn a joint letter, the Human Rights Law Centre and Human Rights Watch (HRW) have asked the UN Special Rapporteur on Counter Terrorism to expand a current investigation into the civilian impact of US drone strikes so it also examines Australia's role in locating targets through operations at the joint Aus/US Pine Gap military base.
Read MoreUrgent reform is needed to Victoria Police training and policies to end the harm caused by racial discrimination and deliver more efficient and effective policing.
Read MoreThe refugee policy unveiled by the Opposition is cruel, violates international human rights law and it does nothing to address the underlying problem.
Read MoreKaren was farewelled by the Victorian human rights community in a function held at the Commission’s offices in Carlton in July. Staff, government representatives and community leaders alike spoke of her capacity for innovation and strategic thinking to achieve practical outcomes and positive change. Her leadership, drive and appetite for tackling challenging and significant human rights issues will certainly be missed.
Read MoreThe Victorian Government has appointed Australia’s first Aboriginal Children's Commissioner. The newly-appointed Commissioner for Aboriginal Children and Young People, Andrew Jackomos, will focus on reducing the high number of Aboriginal children who are in the justice system or who are at risk of abuse.
Read MoreAttorney-General Mark Dreyfus QC has asked the Australian Law Reform Commission to inquire into how to reduce legal barriers to people with disabilities.
Read MoreThe Attorney-General, the Hon Mark Dreyfus MP, has announced a new inquiry for the Australian Law Reform Commission ‒ a review of the Native Title Act 1993 (Cth).
Read MoreIn July, the Commonwealth Minister for the Status of Women, the Hon Julie Collins MP, and the Victorian Minister for Community Services, the Hon Mary Wooldridge MP, launched a new organisation, the Foundation to Prevent Violence Against Women and their Children. The Foundation has been set up to raise awareness and engage the community to prevent violence against women and their children. Natasha Stott Despoja AM has been appointed as Chair of the Foundation.
Read MoreThe Australian Human Rights Commission President, Professor Gillian Triggs, has welcomed the appointment of Dr Tim Soutphommasane as Australia’s Race Discrimination Commissioner.
Read MoreOn July 10 and 11 the UN Human Rights Committee reviewed Indonesia’s implementation of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights.
Read MoreIn the lead-up to Prime Minister Rudd's announcement of the government’s disastrous Papua New Guinea refugee ‘solution’, an event took place that understandably escaped much public attention.
Read MoreThe office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights launched a new public information campaign to raise awareness of homophobic and transphobic violence and discrimination and to promote respect for the rights of LGBT people. The campaign will focus on the need for legal reforms and public education.
Read MoreIf citizens are to have rights worth having, they can only be guaranteed by constitutional entrenchment or by the Parliament scrutinising legislation and the Courts continuing to apply the principle of legality, writes Federal Court judge, Steven Rares.
Read MoreA damning report into the operation of Western Australia’s youth corrections system has identified systemic failures and regular mistreatment of young people in detention. Ben Schokman, a lawyer at the Human Rights Law Centre, said the youth justice system is entirely failing Western Australia’s young people.
Read MoreA Queensland jail worker at the Brisbane Women's Correctional Centre has been granted bail after facing charges for a number of offences, including raping inmates, attempted sexual assaults and attempting to procure a sexual act by intimidation.
Read MoreTasmania’s move to decriminalise abortion has been welcomed by the Human Rights Law Centre in a submission to a Parliamentary Committee reviewing the proposed laws.
Read MoreLong overdue legal protections for lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and intersex (LGBTI) people have coming into effect have been welcomed, but also highlight the need for systemic reform to Australia’s outdated discrimination laws.
Read MoreRemoving the Adult Parole Board’s exemption from Victoria’s Human Rights Charter would strengthen community safety and reduce the risk of mistakes like the failure to cancel Adrian Bayley’s parole.
Read MorePlans to send all asylum seekers to Papua New Guinea breach international law and condemn thousands of people to significant suffering.
Read MoreThe Human Right Law Centre's Daniel Webb on ABC News24 responds to the announcement by the Rudd Government that no asylum seekers arriving in Australia by boat will ever be settled in Australia.
Read MoreThe Tasmanian Government is calling for submissions regarding the proposal to decriminalise abortion through the introduction of the Reproductive Health (Access to Terminations) Bill 2013.
Read MoreFlemington & Kensington Community Legal Centre’s Anthony Kelly looks at Victoria Police’s efforts to lift its game on tackling racist attitudes within the force.
Read MoreThe Parliamentary Joint Committee on Human Rights has expressed concern about whether the Stronger Futures package of legislation complies with Australia’s human rights obligations.
Read MoreThese new national guidelines ensure that transgender, intersex and gender diverse people are treated respectfully and sensitively by federal government departments and agencies in the collection of records and information.
Read MorePublic housing tenants in Victoria are once again able to engage with the political process following legal advocacy by the Human Rights Law Centre which highlighted that the rights to freedom of expression and peaceful assembly are protected by Victoria’s Charter of Human Rights.
Read MoreA range of proposed reforms to the youth justice system currently being considered by the Queensland Government would be harmful, ineffective and raise serious human rights concerns, according to the HRLC.
Read MoreThe Senate Standing Committee on Foreign Affairs and Trade has recommended greater transparency, accountability and focus on human rights and environmental consequences when the statutory Export Finance and Insurance Corporation (EFIC) makes decisions to finance local and international projects involving Australian companies.
Read MoreThe Australia Council for the Arts has amended its guidelines for assessing applications for funding from Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples for Indigenous Arts grants following a submission provided on behalf of well-known Aboriginal actor Uncle Jack Charles.
Read MoreThe passage of the Sex Discrimination (Sexual Orientation, Gender Identity and Intersex Status) Amendment Bill 2013 is an historic advance for the rights of LGBTI people and their families.
Read MoreAustralia recently announced its intention to seek election to the UN Human Rights Council in 2018. The Council is the UN’s peak human rights body. It is responsible for strengthening the promotion and protection of human rights around the globe, for addressing situations of human rights violations and making recommendations on them. The Council comprises 47 UN Member States, which are elected by the UN General Assembly.
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