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Rights and Freedoms

“Child Migrants and Human Rights in our Time”: Dr Sev Ozdowski OAM (2005)

I should add, at this point, that my work over the past few years and my inquiry on children in immigration detention (CIDI), in Australia, the report of which "A last resort?" was tabled in the Australian Federal parliament in May of 2004, has made me even more keenly aware of the fragility of child asylum seekers. But more on that later!

Category, Speech
Rights and Freedoms

Rural health: A human right for rural people: Chris Sidoti (1999)

Over the past year I have travelled to about 30 communities in all States and Territories from large regional cities like Cairns and Bunbury to small towns like Bourke and Peterborough, to remote communities like Papunya and Yuendumu. Wherever I have gone I've heard of the hard work and commitment of rural nurses in their local communities.

Category, Speech
Commission – General

Why we need an Australian Bill of Rights - a Joint Forum

The first is that HREOC has been suggesting for a considerable time that there needs to be renewed public debate on whether Australia should have a charter of human rights of some sort. It seems that the launch of the New Matilda campaign will give momentum to such a debate. A lot has changed, both nationally and internationally since the unsuccessful attempts of the 1970s and the 1980s to interest Australians in a bill of rights. As is so often said, Australia has now become the only major Western democracy that does not have a bill of rights.

Category, Speech
Commission – General

H R Law Masterclass: Federal Anti-discrimination Law in an Employment Context: recent developments, likely future directions and the lessons from the past

To some of you the role of The Human Rights and Equal Opportunity Commission (HREOC) in the industrial relations scene in Australia will be well known, others of you may be wondering why a representative of a human rights body would be speaking on this occasion. I propose therefore to briefly summarise HREOC's role in the administration of federal anti-discrimination law, including its complaint handling function, and to give some recent statistics.

Category, Speech
Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Social Justice

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I would like to begin by acknowledging all the traditional owners of the land where we meet, the Gadigal people of the Eora Nation. Thank you Megan Davis for your welcome and for inviting me to be here today.

Category, Speech
Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Social Justice

Indigenous Peoples Permanent Sovereignty Over Natural Resources

Furthermore, I would like to thank Professor Mick Dodson and Mr. Parry Agius for the invitation addressed to me to deliver this lecture within the framework of the National Title Conference. In particular, I express my warmest thanks to the Acting Chairperson of the Conference Mr. Parry Agius for his very kind words about my humble work in the field of the protection of the rights of the world's Indigenous Peoples and my background.

Category, Speech
Disability Rights

RIGHTS DENIED (2009)

I also want to thank Bill Shorten for being with us, and acknowledge the energy and leadership he is providing on disability issues within Government, both on specific issues and on the big picture cross government and inter-governmental issues.

Category, Speech
Commission – General

INCORPORATING HUMAN RIGHTS PRINCIPLES INTO NATIONAL SECURITY MEASURES

Since the terrorist attacks on September 11 2001, Governments around the world have created a raft of new counter-terrorism laws. In Australia alone, over 40 new laws have created new criminal offences, new detention and questioning powers for police and security apparatus, new powers for the Attorney-General to proscribe terrorist organisations, new ways to control people’s movement and activities without criminal convictions, and new investigative powers for police and security agencies.

Category, Speech
Rights and Freedoms

"Immigration Detention - the Current Position"

The Australian HR protection system is a direct result of the history and development of white settlement in this country. If you compare us with the United States, we Australians had no free settlement, no War of Independence and little or no nation building by private entrepreneurship; rather it was done by way of British government fiat.

Category, Speech

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