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Rights and Freedoms

‘Free and Equal’: Making Human Rights Education a Priority

National FutureSchools Expo and Conferences 21 March 2019, Melbourne Introduction I pay my respects to the Wurudjeri peoples of the Kulin nation who are the traditional custodians of this land—to their elders, past and present, and to the future generations, the children and young people that look...

Category, Speech
Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Social Justice

Our Choices, Our Voices: Celebrating Success on National Close the Gap Day

The Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Social Justice Commissioner June Oscar AO and the Co-Chair of the National Congress of Australia’s First Peoples Rod Little, will today release the 2019 Close the Gap report – “Our Choices, Our Voices”. The report, prepared by the Lowitja Institute, is being...

Category, News
Rights and Freedoms

Winners announced - 2018 Human Rights Awards

The Honourable Justice Peter McClellan AM and Chrissie Foster have won the prestigious 2018 Human Rights Medal for their enormous contribution to the Royal Commission into Institutional Responses to Child Sexual Abuse. Chrissie Foster has long campaigned for justice for survivors of institutional...

Category, News
Rights and Freedoms

The Ongoing Legacy of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights

9th International Conference on Human Rights Education—Unleashing the Full Potential of Civil Society Emeritus Professor Rosalind Croucher AM President, Australian Human Rights Commission 27 November 2018 [ Professor Croucher spoke to this paper. Some sections were not addressed fully, given the...

Category, Speech
Commission – General

Finalists for 2018 Government Award revealed

Four finalists have been selected from a diverse range of nominations for the 2018 Human Rights Awards’ Government Award. This year marks the first time our Awards recognise Government as a stand-alone category. “There are many Government groups and individuals helping others overcome discrimination...

Category, News
Rights and Freedoms

Statement by Human Rights Commissioner Edward Santow

“The Commission will consider the Religious Freedom Review, and any proposals for reform, once the report is officially released. “Any law reform proposal must protect the rights of everyone in Australia. “The Commission made six recommendations to the Review. In addition to better public education...

Category, News
Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Social Justice

Commissioner June Oscar AO named NAIDOC Person of the Year

The Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Social Justice Commissioner June Oscar AO has been named the NAIDOC Person of the Year at the National NAIDOC Awards in Sydney. Commissioner Oscar received the award in recognition of her work championing the rights of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander...

Category, News
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...

Category, Opinion
Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Social Justice

Key Forum on Education, Garma Festival

Garma Festival 2017 June Oscar Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Social Justice Commissioner Australian Human Rights Commission Key Forum on Education Friday 4 August 2017 Acknowledgements and Intro [Introduction in Bunuba] Yaningi warangira ngindaji yuwa muwayi ingirranggu, Yolngu yani u...

Category, Speech
Rights and Freedoms

Tony Blackshield Lecture

HUMAN RIGHTS AND THE OVERREACH OF EXECUTIVE DISCRETION: CITIZENSHIP, ASYLUM SEEKERS AND WHISTLEBLOWERS It is a special pleasure for me to speak in honour of Professor Blackshield, who is a long time colleague of mine in the law. He is a constitutional law scholar of the highest order and one of the...

Category, Speech
Race Discrimination

Forty years of the Racial Discrimination Act

In October 1975, at a ceremony for the proclamation of the Racial Discrimination Act, then Prime Minister Gough Whitlam described the legislation as ‘a historic measure’, which aimed to ‘entrench new attitudes of tolerance and understanding in the hearts and minds of the people’.(1) The Act was...

Category, Opinion
Rights and Freedoms

Stand on your rights, or see them trampled (2009)

Australia is a great country to live in — for most of us most of the time. We don’t suffer the terrible poverty witnessed in some parts of the world, our judicial system works well by international standards and most of us can vote in elections by secret ballot. Most of us can live pretty safely, say what we like most of the time and, if we are so inclined, practise our faith in peace. Most of us have access to decent education and health services.

Category, Opinion

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