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Complaints

Asylum Seekers and Refugees

Immigration detention and human rights

A fenced area with several portable buildings on a reddish dirt field under a blue sky with scattered clouds. Sparse greenery is visible in the background.
The human rights of people who are in immigration detention are of special concern to the Commission. Liberty is a fundamental human right, recognised in major human rights instruments to which Australia is a party.

Statistics about Refugees and People Seeking Asylum

Tuesday 25 March, 2025

A person seeking asylum is a person seeking protection in another country because they have a well-founded fear of being persecuted in their country of origin on the basis of their race, religion, nationality, political opinion, or membership of a particular social group.

A refugee is a person who requested protection and has been granted refugee status.

Human Rights Commissioner says NZYQ Nauru resettlement announcement raises more questions than it answers  

Content type: Media Release
Published:
Australia’s Human Rights Commissioner has written to Home Affairs Minister Tony Burke seeking clarity and transparency around an Australian Government decision to resettle three members of the NZYQ cohort in Nauru, saying the announcement raises serious human rights concerns and prompts more questions than it answers.

Women in immigration detention are trapped in a system designed for men. Many have not hugged a family member in years

In an opinion piece published in The Guardian, Human Rights Commissioner Lorraine Finlay Commissioner Finlay describes the harrowing experiences faced by many women in immigration detention and calls for urgent reform to address these human rights failures. It follows the release of the AHRC report into the issue.

Women in immigration detention at serious risk of harassment and violence

Content type: Media Release
Published:
The Australian Human Rights Commission has called for significant reform to the country’s immigration detention system, after a new report into the treatment of women in detention found their rights, safety and wellbeing are being widely overlooked. These failures, it found, are compounding the risk to women of harassment, violence, and ill health.

'Not Just An Afterthought’ - Women in Immigration Detention Report

Date
The Australian Human Rights Commission has called for significant reform to the country’s immigration detention system, after a new inspection report into the treatment of women in detention found their rights, safety and wellbeing are being widely overlooked.

Explainer: Commission does not support the Migration Amendment Bill

The Australian Government has introduced new migration laws into Parliament to expand search and seizure powers in immigration detention centres. The Commission does not support the Migration Amendment (Prohibiting Items in Immigration Detention Facilities) Bill 2024

Submission on the Migration Amendment Bill 2024

The Australian Human Rights Commission has made a submission to the Parliamentary Committee that is considering the Migration Amendment Bill 2024.

Migration Amendment Bill 2024

Summary

Learn more about the Migration Amendment Bill 2024 and how it impacts human rights.

Learn more about the Migration Amendment Bill 2024 and how it impacts human rights.

Albanese’s cabinet reshuffle is a chance to reset the rhetoric on immigration and multiculturalism

As Race Discrimination Commissioner Giridharan Sivaraman writes for The Guardian Australia, the language used when speaking about those seeking our protection matters. He writes that Australia must take action against discrimination and racism – starting from the top.