Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Social Justice
At the outset, I would like to extend my warmest thanks for the invitation addressed to me to present my views concerning on timing and important subject entitled: "the participation of Indigenous Peoples in the political institutions of the United Nations system."
Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Social Justice
I would like to begin by acknowledging the Eora people, the traditional owners, custodians and kinsfolk of the land where this conference is being held.
Disability Rights
I want to start, though, by talking for a few minutes about the broader legislative context under the Disability Discrimination Act and about what all of this is for in terms of achieving access and inclusion.
Disability Rights
I will not speak in detail about human rights conventions and disability because this topic is addressed by my co-speaker in this session, Karl Lachwitz. I will say though that international human rights law and human rights debate has not yet acknowledged adequately or sufficiently clearly that people with a disability are part of what the "human" in human rights means. Equally, there has not always been enough attention to human rights dimensions in disability discourse.
Rights and Freedoms
It's great to be here today. I can't think of a better time to be taking stock of developments in human rights law and policy in Australia, or a better place to be doing this than Victoria. As a Sydney-sider I have to admit I haven't always been fully appreciative of the number plates down here, which proclaim: ‘Victoria: The Place to Be!’ But there's no doubt that Victoria is the place to be right now, when it comes to human rights developments.
Rights and Freedoms
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.
Rights and Freedoms
Forty eight years ago this Tuesday, on December 10 1948, the United Nations General Assembly adopted the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. The declaration was a response to the trauma that many of the worlds nations had experienced in World War II. The trauma was especially strong among the nations of Europe, particularly because of the Holocaust, but it was also evident in East Asia, South Asia, South East Asia and the Pacific.
Commission - General
We are gathered this evening on the land of the Ngambri people, from whom Canberra takes its name, and I pay my respects to their elders past and present.
Commission - General
I speak to you now, not as the Chancellor of this University, but as the President of Australia’s national Human Rights and Equal Opportunity Commission. And while my remarks are addressed primarily to today’s graduands, I suspect what I am about to say will resonate among parents and friends.
Commission - General
In May last year I stepped down from my position as a Judge of the Federal Court to accept the role as President of HREOC. It has been a time of new challenges, such as the need to balance the legislative and administrative responsibilities that the Commission has been given by the federal government, with the important role of advocating for the rights of those on the margins of Australian society.
Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Social Justice
Tom Calma, Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Social Justice Commissioner and Chair of the Close the Gap Steering Committee for Indigenous Health Equality
Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Social Justice
Good evening distinguished guest, ladies and gentleman. Friends, I would like to begin by acknowledging the traditional owners of the land on which we meet today, the Wurundjeri people of the Kulin Nations.
Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Social Justice
We are on Aboriginal land – and as a mark of respect to the traditional owners of this country – I want to recognise their culture and their law because they are integral to what we now call Coogee.
Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Social Justice
I would like to begin by acknowledging the Wurundjeri people, the traditional owners and custodians of the land where we meet and to pay my respects to the elders.
Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Social Justice
It is the intention of this paper to explore the concept of citizenship, and some associated ideas in order to present a perspective on the relevance of citizenship to Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people. I will seek to examine some key principles in relation to citizenship which must be established in order to ensure full and just respect for the rights and aspirations of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples.
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