Opinion Pieces - Scrutinising our counter-terrorism laws (2008)
In 2006, I was a member of the Government-appointed Sheller Committee, which recommended the establishment of an independent review of counter-terrorism laws.
In 2006, I was a member of the Government-appointed Sheller Committee, which recommended the establishment of an independent review of counter-terrorism laws.
Five years ago I began my term as the President of the Australian Human Rights Commission, confident in the ability of the common law and a robust democracy to protect human rights. I leave convinced we need a major legal and cultural overhaul in order to deal with the human rights challenges of the 21st century.
The new century has thrown up enormous challenges, as well as breathtaking opportunities to us all. One such challenge is the protection of human rights.
As the Government points out on its Australia 2020 Summit website, the new century has thrown up enormous challenges, as well as breathtaking opportunities to us all.
This is an often depressing tour that we at the Human Rights and Equal Opportunity Commission (HREOC) undertake every year to monitor the conditions of immigration detention in Australia for compliance with internationally recognised human rights obligations. We tour and inspect the facilities, interview the staff and meet with the detainees themselves.
In the post-September 11 world, debate about counter-terrorism is often characterised as an argument between 'the realists', who appreciate the need for tough new counter-terrorism laws, and 'the out of touch', who fail to take the terrorist threat seriously.
Click here to return to the Articles and Opinion Pieces Index Letter to the The Australian from Dr Sev Ozdowski OAM - 6 April 2005 As an Australian citizen who was born in Poland, the death of Pope John Paul II fills me with two principal emotions. On one hand...
Media reports and repeated allegations of the abuse of Iraqi prisoners in US custody have raised fundamental questions about Australia's human rights obligations as part of the "coalition of the willing" .
Four weeks ago today, a report was tabled in Federal Parliament that detailed numerous and repeated breaches of the human rights of children in our detention centres.
"A system of tyranny, the most galling, the most horrible, the most undisguised in all its parts and attributes that has stained the page of history or disgraced the annals of the world." British Prime Minister William Pitt, 10 November 1797, speech to the House of Commons concerning France under the government of the Directory.
Ronald Wilson President Human Rights and Equal Opportunity Commission World Conference on Religion and Peace 2 February 1991 Monash University Speech notes Synopsis: I. Introduction II. United Nations Charter III. The Universal Declaration 1. Place of religious freedom among human rights (a) A...
Learn more about the Australian Human Rights Commission's summary of issues in Australian adult corrections and youth detention.
First, it's great to celebrate our national day with such a large, diverse and - as we've seen - talented group of Australians. And may I particularly congratulate those who've chosen to join us as Australians today.
Firstly I would like to acknowledge the traditional custodians of the land on which we stand and by so doing remind ourselves that Australia's cultural traditions stretch back many thousands of years and express our aspirations for Australians of the future to be socially just and inclusive.
Thank you for inviting me to speak today. It is almost a year since I spoke about the Human Rights Commission's Bush Talks consultations at the 1999 national conference of the Australian Association of Rural Nurses in Adelaide. I spoke in particular about some of the health concerns raised in the consultations. Today I would like to look beyond Bush Talks in more detail at some of the areas of particular concern which were raised and then explain some of the Commission's continuing work on human rights in rural Australia.