Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Social Justice
Good morning friends, supporters, Dr’s Peter Toyne and Lester-Irabinna Rigney and distinguished guests. I would also like to acknowledge my Indigenous sisters and brothers who have travelled here to be with us and to share your experiences and stories.
Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Social Justice
I begin by acknowledging the Gadigal people of the Eora nation, the traditional owners of the land where we meet today, and pay my respects to their elders. I would also like to thank the LIME conference organisers -- and Gregory Phillips and Lisa Jackson-Pulver in particular -- for inviting me to speak tonight and for organising this event and for ensuring that Indigenous health – so often overlooked in the ongoing debates about health and health reform in Australia – receives the attention it deserves in this context.
Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Social Justice
I begin by acknowledging the Gimiy Walubara Yidinji people, the traditional owners of the land where we meet today, and paying my respects to their elders. I also thank the National Indigenous Environmental Health Forum, the Conference Organising Group and Queensland Health for organising this event and inviting me to open this conference. And thank you to Shane Nicolls for his opening words and introduction.
Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Social Justice
Good afternoon, I’d like to begin by acknowledging the Noongar people, the traditional owners and custodians of the land where we are gathered today, and pay my respects to their elders. I’d also like to acknowledge my distinguished fellow speakers. My presentation today is focused on customary law. I will refer to Aboriginal customary law, though the points that I will make are equally relevant to Torres Strait Islanders and to their distinct systems of law and governance.
Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Social Justice
Good afternoon, as a Kamilaroi woman I would firstly like to acknowledge the traditional owners of the land we meet on today, the Gadigal people of the Eora Nation and pay my respects to Uncle Charles for his welcome and acknowledge the elders past and present.
Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Social Justice
Dr Kidd has made an enormously valuable contribution to our understanding of the history of relations between Indigenous peoples in Queensland and government. Because of her commitment and tenacity in obtaining access to, and then exposing the contents of, government records about the administration of Indigenous peoples' lives, we now know far more about the precise details, the extent and the nature of the control exercised by governments in Queensland over the lives of Indigenous peoples over the past 100 years than we otherwise would.
Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Social Justice
The title of this session on the conference program is 'The history of human rights in Australian law'. I have chosen to slightly change the topic for a number of reasons. The main reason is because Indigenous peoples' struggle for recognition of their human rights remains to a large extent unfulfilled. Consequently, it is not, and has never been, well reflected in Australian law. Second, because human rights continue to be poorly and rather patchily implemented in our legal system.
Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Social Justice
Throughout many western democracies contemporary beliefs about the role of the media are directly shaped by enlightenment ideals and the struggle against state despotism. Although somewhat tarnished, these ideals continue to inspire resistance to oppression, and sustain battles for freedom of conscience, speech, and individual liberty, for political self determination and democratisation.
Race Discrimination
Until a few weeks ago, this was an article of faith on the part of every politician. Now we are told we need to make significant policy changes to address weaknesses in our citizenship laws.
Rights and Freedoms
I would like to open today by reading you part of an e-mail that a work colleague of mine received recently from a young Australian woman in her early twenties, who recently completed her Bachelor of Communications degree from UTS in Sydney. As it happens she also holds Polish citizenship and is currently visiting her grandparents in Warsaw.
Rights and Freedoms
I am very pleased to be here tonight at the Rural Ageing Seminar dinner. Thank you, to Dame Roma and the Rural Ageing Seminar Reference Group, for inviting me to attend an event that (for once) takes place where it counts - in rural South Australia.
Commission – General
I would like to begin by acknowledging the Traditional Owners of this land, the Pambalong clan of the Awabakal people, and pay my respect to their elders, past and present. Today I would like to explore the question: ‘What does it mean to believe in human rights in Australia today?’ This is an ambitious project, and I am aware that the question does not have a short and simple answer.
Commission – General
I would like to acknowledge the Larrakia people on whose traditional land we meet today. I would also like to thank the Northern Territory Anti-Discrimination Commission for hosting this event at such short notice. What I plan to do today is to talk briefly about a few of the issues which are currently on HREOC’s agenda. The first issue is HREOC’s Same-Sex Same Entitlements Inquiry.
Commission – General
The Australian Human Rights and Equal Opportunity Commission (hereafter the Australian Human Rights Commission) is one of the oldest National Human Rights Institutions in the Asia Pacific region. It was originally established in 1981 as the Human Rights Commission and then restructured in 1986 to become the Human Rights and Equal Opportunity Commission. It is a founding member and a strong supporter of the Asia Pacific Forum of National Human Rights Institutions.
Commission – General
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