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Commission – General
9 October 2017Opinion pieceRespect is essential to debates in civilised Australia society
We can all have our say within the bounds of law Respect is the essence of a civil society. It is the cornerstone of human rights - the "active voice" of dignity that links all the international conventions to which Australia has committed. Respect is tolerance. It is a fundamental basis of our democratic society to be able to express our thoughts and feelings, and to respect those of others… -
Asylum Seekers and Refugees
13 February 2017Opinion pieceProtecting refugees
As recent reports allege asylum seekers are being removed from Manus Island and returned to their place of origin, Commission President, Professor Gillian Triggs, reflects on the nation's responsibilities. -
Rights and Freedoms
13 February 2017Opinion pieceOPCAT could revolutionise Australia's treatment of detainees
The federal government has announced it will ratify and implement the OPCAT treaty . Few people will have heard of OPCAT (Optional Protocol to the Convention against Torture). It creates no new legal rights. Yet it could be the single most positive step this decade in improving conditions in all Australian places of detention. OPCAT will enhance how independent bodies inspect places of… -
Race Discrimination
7 February 2017Opinion pieceThe 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 February 2017, is giving particular attention to sections 18C and 18D of the Racial Discrimination… -
24 January 2017Opinion piece
We need a national picture of domestic violence homicides
Authors Sex Discrimination Commissioner Kate Jenkins and President of the Australian Human Rights Commission Professor Gillian Triggs In March 2010, shortly after making the decision to leave her abusive husband after more than 20 years of violence, Zahra Abrahimzadeh was stabbed to death in front of 300 witnesses inside the Adelaide Convention Centre. Two years later, her husband was… -
Rights and Freedoms
23 November 2016Opinion piece
Striking the right balance on free speech
Discover how a former Human Rights Commissioner was asked whether the Racial Discrimination Act impinges on freedom of expression under international law. -
Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Social Justice
10 March 2016Opinion pieceChildren's rights must come first, says Mick Gooda
The recent death of a 10-year-old in the Kimberley is a tragedy and I pass on my condolences to her family at this particularly distressing time. This tragedy has heightened my conviction that the lives of all of our children in Australia are precious and should be protected at all costs. Nearly 20 years after the Bringing Them Home Report documented the experiences of the Stolen Generations… -
Rights and Freedoms
8 February 2016Opinion piece
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 of Technology employee. Section 18C makes it unlawful to "offend, insult, humiliate or… -
Rights and Freedoms
3 February 2016Opinion piece
Logic says Valizadeh shouldn't get a visa
Daryush "Roosh" Valizadeh’s freedom of speech won’t be suppressed if the Immigration Minister, Peter Dutton, denies him a visa. In the past few days there have been increasing calls on the Federal Government to block so-called ‘neo-masculinist’ Valizadeh from entering Australia. Outraged politicians have called for him to be denied a visa. Online petitions have been set up to “let the NSW… -
Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Social Justice
27 January 2016Opinion piece
Government’s Healthy Welfare Card no solution to alcohol abuse
In Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander communities across the country, old wounds are being reopened. Many of our people are being forced to revisit the past trauma of income management and stolen wages. The federal government’s Healthy Welfare Card has created great concern and contention, as the measure will disproportionately affect Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people, and…