Support for global push for UN Convention on the Rights of Older Persons

The Age Discrimination Commissioner, Robert Fitzgerald AM is joining voices around the world during the Global Rally for Older People’s Rights (1–7 February) to call for stronger international protections for older people and an end to systemic age discrimination.

Organised by the Global Alliance for the Rights of Older People (GAROP), the Global Rally brings together communities, advocates and organisations worldwide through local events and digital campaigns, timed to coincide with critical United Nations discussions. Its central aim is to push for a new UN Convention on the Rights of Older Persons, a long‑overdue step to strengthen human rights protections, address ageism and ensure the full participation of older people in society.

‘Despite the fact that populations are ageing rapidly across the globe and here in Australia, there is still no binding international human rights instrument dedicated to older people,’ Commissioner Fitzgerald said.

‘This stands in stark contrast to the protections that exist for other groups, including on the basis of race, sex, disability and for children.’

The 2026 Global Rally marks a particularly significant moment. In April 2025, the UN Human Rights Council resolved to establish an Intergovernmental Working Group (IGWG) to begin drafting a Convention on the Rights of Older Persons. And the first meeting will take place in February 2026.

‘This is a historic opportunity to ensure that older people’s rights are clearly recognised, protected and promoted at the international level,’ the Commissioner said. ‘Australia has an important role to play by actively supporting such an international convention.

‘We welcome the Australian Government‘s support of this process and its commitment to participate meaningfully and constructively in UN processes to help develop a strong convention that explicitly addresses ageism and age discrimination.

‘We call on the Australian Government to ensure that the voices of older people, in all their diversity, are heard, and that civil society organisations supporting them are able to engage fully in the process, including through hybrid participation,’ he said.

The Commissioner also highlighted the Human Rights as We Age Network, established in June 2025, which brings together key civil society organisations, peak bodies and individuals committed to advancing the human rights of older people in Australia and internationally. The Commissioner is proud to serve as co‑Chair of the Network.

‘Older people are rights‑holders,’ Commissioner Fitzgerald said. ‘The Global Rally is about momentum, solidarity and accountability. Everyone deserves to age with dignity, equality and respect and have those principles enshrined in an International Convention.’

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