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Rights and Freedoms
60% student discount announced for landmark national human rights event
Organisers of a major national human rights conference have just announced a 60% discount for students who want to attend the historic gathering in June during the Vivid Sydney festival. Presented by the Australian Human Rights Commission, the Free + Equal Human Rights Conference is set to attract...
Commission – General
April 2024: Commission news | President's letter
Our Free + Equal project at the Castan Centre, conference and Rights On Time panel show in Sydney in June and new commissioners start.
Commission – General
October ebulletin
Eye opening video on elder abuse What does elder abuse look like? It may be physical, financial or psychological, but many Australians do not see the abuse that older people sometimes suffer. Last week, on International Day of Older Persons, Age Discrimination Commissioner Dr Kay Patterson...
Commission – General
August ebulletin
We have heard the words human rights quite a lot in recent weeks, in varied and sometimes inaccurate settings. Measures to protect our health and safety must be balanced with our rights and freedoms, but if there was ever a time to articulate where that line is, it would be now. Which is why last...
Commission – General
Community update: COVID-19 (June 2020)
Commission News June 2020 Commissioner update COVID-19 Dear friends, The last few weeks have seen a gradual return to some of our pre-pandemic freedoms in many parts of Australia. While physical distancing remains a vital element to maintaining low infection rates, it is clear that we welcome...
Commission – General
Community update: COVID-19 (May 2020)
Stay safe. Stay connected. Stay informed.
Disability Rights
25 years of the Disability Discrimination Act
It was 25 years ago this month that the Disability Discrimination Act 1992 (Cth) (the ‘DDA’) commenced operation. On 1 March 1993, Australians with a dis¬ability had a national law that was designed to provide them with equality in many areas of life. Over the past quarter of a cen¬tury, the DDA...
Race Discrimination
The AHRC and the Racial Discrimination Act: setting the record straight
Federal racial hatred legislation and the complaints-handling processes of the Australian Human Rights Commission (AHRC) are currently the subjects of an inquiry by the Parliamentary Joint Committee on Human Rights. The Committee’s ‘Freedom of speech in Australia’ inquiry, due to report by 28...
Rights and Freedoms
Another 'aberration' shows that 18C is the problem and must be changed
State and federal governments should reform laws that make offensive acts unlawful and refocus them on protecting free speech and stopping workplace and public harassment. This week a news story broke about a complaint made under section 18C of the Racial Discrimination Act by a Queensland University...
Rights and Freedoms
Is freedom under pressure globally?
Behind human rights is the still revolutionary idea that every human being is free and equal, that individuals own their own bodies and should be free to pursue their lives, opportunities and enterprise. Human rights provide the foundation for our liberal democracy, our market economy and our civil...
Rights and Freedoms
Free speech is best medicine for the bigotry disease
THE proposed amendments to the Racial Discrimination Act provide the basis for correcting the legal limits of free speech, promoting pluralism, opposing reprehensible racism and highlighting the importance of responsibility. Arguably the most important change is assessing an 18C violation based on...
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