News

Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Social Justice

Let the healing begin

Prime Minister, the Hon Kevin Rudd; Opposition Leader, Brendan Nelson; the Minister for Indigenous Affairs, the Hon Jenny Macklin; former Prime Ministers, Professor Bruce Wilson representing the late Sir Ronald Wilson, Stolen Generations patrons Dr Lowitja O’Donoghue and Bobby Randall, NSDC Chair Helen Moran and SGA Chair Christine King, Ministers; Members of Parliament; Senators, members of the stolen generations and your families; my Indigenous brothers and sisters; and distinguished guests from around Australia and overseas.

Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Social Justice

UN DPI NGO 63rd World Conference on Global Health (2010)

I'd like to begin by acknowledging the traditional owners of the land we are meeting on today, the Wurundjeri people of the Kulin nation, and pay my respects to their Elders and Ancestors.

Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Social Justice

2009 Speech: Bilingual Education

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

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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

Speech: 6th Indigenous Environmental Health Workers Conference

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

WA Law Reform Commission Report into Aboriginal Customary Laws

I would like to begin by acknowledging the Noongar people on whose land we are today and pay my respects to their elders. The recent recognition of the Noongar as traditional owners of this land sets a significant context for the launch of the Western Australian Law Reform Commission Report on Aboriginal Customary Laws. The recognition of Noongar native title through Australian law is the most powerful confirmation possible that as a society they possessed, and continue to possess, well-developed systems of law and custom.

Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Social Justice

Achieving Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander health equality

Tom Calma, Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Social Justice Commissioner, ‘The Right to Health of Indigenous Australians’ seminar, University of Melbourne Law School, 16 March 2006.

Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Social Justice

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It is now more than 5 years since the Human Rights and Equal Opportunity Commission completed its national inquiry into the separation of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children from their families with the publication of Bringing them home.

Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Social Justice

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On 14 May 2002 the Attorney-General tabled the Social Justice Report 2001, my annual review of the exercise of human rights by Indigenous Australians, and the Native Title Report 2001, my annual review of native title developments, in federal Parliament.

Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Social Justice

Building co-existence: Dodson

Under clear blue skies on a warm afternoon, Yankunytjatjara members of Anangu Pitjantjatjara peoples are sitting in the shade of large gum trees on the banks of a broad, dry creek bed. They have come from far and wide to be at this important meeting. There is a good turn up, despite a number of people having to attend to other responsibilities.

Sex Discrimination

Effective access to services: What does it mean for sexual assault?

Let me also acknowledge that we are meeting on the traditional land of Ngunnawal people. I pay my respects to their elders past and present, and all the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander men and women who have worked so committedly to eliminating sexual assault.

Rights and Freedoms

"The local face of global justice policy": Dr Sev Ozdowski OAM (2004)

Firstly I would like to acknowledge the traditional custodians of the land on which we stand and by so doing remind ourselves that Australia's cultural traditions stretch back many thousands of years and express our aspirations for Australians of the future to be socially just and inclusive.

Rights and Freedoms

Rights for All: A human rights perspective on regional development: Chris Sidoti (1999)

I would like to thank the Royal Australian Planning Institute for inviting me to speak today at Planning in the Hothouse and in particular on this panel, 'Forgotten Communities'.

Commission – General

President Speech: A fair chance for every child: The right to survival and development (2010)

First, may I acknowledge the traditional owners of the land on which we meet, the Ngunnawal people, and pay my respects to their elders, both past and present.

Commission – General

President speeches: Human Rights in Australia

Thank you for inviting me here today to speak about human rights in Australia. I would like to use this opportunity to focus on how human rights are protected in Australia; and how you, as human rights educators, can help students to understand these protections. I will also seek to shed some light on the role of the Human Rights and Equal Opportunity Commission and some of our responses to some current human rights issues.