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Rights and Freedoms
11 November 2022Media ReleaseHuman Rights Commissioner to raise juvenile and immigration detention concerns with UN torture committee in Geneva
Australia’s Human Rights Commissioner is set to appear before the United Nations Committee Against Torture in Geneva next week to provide analysis of how Australia measures up against our obligations under the UN’s Convention Against Torture (CAT) and its associated Optional Protocol (OPCAT). -
Rights and Freedoms
17 January 2019Speech
Echoes of breaking glass: reflections on Kristallnacht
CHECK AGAINST DELIVERY We know the basic facts of Kristallnacht. On the 9th and 10th of November 1938, mobs attacked Jews in Germany and neighbouring states. They did so freely; without restraint. Many Jews were killed, many more were injured, and many more than that were arrested and sent to concentration camps. Jewish businesses were destroyed; schools and cemeteries vandalised. Over 1000 … -
Rights and Freedoms
26 September 2016Speech
Human rights and the overreach of executive discretion: citizenship, asylum seekers and whistleblowers
HUMAN RIGHTS AND THE OVERREACH OF EXECUTIVE DISCRETION: CITIZENSHIP, ASYLUM SEEKERS AND WHISTLEBLOWERS GILLIAN TRIGGS [*] (Annual Tony Blackshield Lecture delivered at Macquarie Law School, Macquarie University, 5 November 2015) I 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… -
Rights and Freedoms
15 March 2024Speech
Free + Equal: Australian Conversation on Human Rights Closing Remarks
Closing Remarks Emeritus Professor Rosalind Croucher AM President, Australian Human Rights Commission Check against delivery For a start, thank you Julia, Dr Baird for that wonderful MC-ing of the day. What an array of fantastic insights! I said at the beginning that it would be challenging, insightful and exciting and I'm sure that, from my perspective, it's been every one of those things… -
Asylum Seekers and Refugees
8 November 2013Project
Refugees with adverse security assessments
Refugees with adverse security assessments face indefinite detention. -
Rights and Freedoms
16 October 2023Media Release
Finalists announced for 2023 Australian Human Rights Awards
Monday 16 October 2023: A diverse array of people and organisations from across Australia have been selected as finalists for this year’s Australian Human Rights Awards, the country’s premier national event for honouring and celebrating Australia’s human rights heroes. The 21 finalists were selected from over 260 nominations across five categories, including the prestigious Australian Human… -
Asylum Seekers and Refugees
15 June 2021Media Release
Commission urges immediate action on COVID-19 risk to people in immigration detention
The Australian Government must act urgently to reduce the number of people in closed immigration detention in response to the ongoing risks posed by COVID-19, according to a new report by the Australian Human Rights Commission. Management of COVID-19 risks in immigration detention recommends new safety measures be introduced to protect people in immigration detention, and the wider community… -
8 October 2024Webpage
Stats & Facts
Explore statistics and facts to learn about different human rights topics in Australia. -
Commission – General
12 March 2024SpeechA Revitalised National Human Rights Framework for Australia
Marking the 75th anniversary of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights Fraser Oration Emeritus Professor Rosalind Croucher AM FAAL FRSA FACLM(Hon) Introduction Vice-Chancellor, Duncan Maskell, Dean Matthew Harding, Mrs Tamie Fraser and the Fraser family, Melbourne Law School staff, distinguished guests, friends I would like to begin by acknowledging the traditional custodians of the land… -
Asylum Seekers and Refugees
14 December 2012Speech
Current issues Australia faces in relation to its treatment of refugees (2012)
Speech delivered to the United Nations Association of Australia (WA Division) -
Children's Rights
4 December 2013SpeechYoung people seeking asylum – protecting their rights in Australia
Young people seeking asylum – protecting their rights in Australia Practitioners Workshop, ‘Improving Services for Unaccompanied Minors & Young People Seeking Asylum’ CHECK AGAINST DELIVERY 1. Acknowledgments Thank you, Pino, for your introduction. Thank you also to Australian Red Cross for the invitation to speak on this panel today. I acknowledge the traditional custodians of the land… -
Asylum Seekers and Refugees
7 December 2023Opinion piece
Hasty detainee laws raise human rights concerns
Read an opinion piece from Australia's Human Rights Commissioner Lorraine Finlay raising concerns about the passage of new laws responding to the fallout from the recent NZYQ High Court decision. -
Commission – General
8 December 2023Media Release
Australia’s human rights champions put social justice and equality centre stage
Women’s equity and racial equality advocate Juliana Nkrumah AM has been awarded the prestigious Human Rights Medal at the 2023 Australian Human Rights Awards in Sydney tonight. Other awards went to Gabriel Osborne (Young People’s Award), Northern Pictures (Media and Creative Industries Award), Advocacy Tasmania (Community Award) and the Aboriginal Legal Service of Western Australia (Law… -
Rights and Freedoms
9 October 2020Project
Australia's Third Universal Periodic Review (UPR)
Learn about how every five years, the Universal Periodic Review (UPR) considers the progress of every country in the realisation of all human rights. -
Commission – General
10 January 2024Video
Australia's human rights progress
Australia is widely considered the land of the "fair go". And while that may ring true for many people, not all in our country are yet afforded the dignity and basic rights set out in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. As the final episode in our series commemorating the Declaration’s 75th anniversary explores, its promise in Australia remains a “work in progress”. Learn more about… -
Rights and Freedoms
14 December 2012Speech
“Child Migrants and Human Rights in our Time”: Dr Sev Ozdowski OAM (2005)
I should add, at this point, that my work over the past few years and my inquiry on children in immigration detention (CIDI), in Australia, the report of which "A last resort?" was tabled in the Australian Federal parliament in May of 2004, has made me even more keenly aware of the fragility of child asylum seekers. But more on that later! -
Commission – General
17 January 2019Media Release
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 and isolation and building tolerance and respect in the community and further afield,” said … -
Asylum Seekers and Refugees
20 June 2023Media Release
Inspection report: Serious human rights concerns in hotel detention
Explore an inspection report by the Commission that found serious human rights concerns persist in the use of hotels as alternative places of detention. -
Rights and Freedoms
21 January 2022Opinion piece
Novak Djokovic drew global attention to Australia's immigration detention regime. Now we need proper scrutiny of all places of detention
Novak Djokovic’s recent detention at Melbourne’s Park Hotel drew international attention to Australia’s use of hotels as Alternative Places of Detention by immigration authorities. But while Djokovic’s detention was measured in days, others still remaining in the Park Hotel measure their detention in years. Hotels are simply not appropriate places to detain people for extended periods. The… -
Commission – General
5 August 2020E-bulletin (Monthly)
August ebulletin
We have heard the words human rights quite a lot in recent weeks, in varied and sometimes inaccurate settings. Measures to protect our health and safety must be balanced with our rights and freedoms, but if there was ever a time to articulate where that line is, it would be now. Which is why last week, I took the step of writing a piece for a mainstream publication. While the pandemic…