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Pursuant to section 11(1)(f)(ii) of the Human Rights and Equal Opportunity Commission Act 1986 (Cth), I attach a report of an inquiry by the former President of the Commission into complaints made by immigration detainees against the Commonwealth of Australia. The former President found that the Commonwealth had breached the human rights of the complainants pursuant to articles 10(1) and 17(1) of…

On my right is Professor Trang Thomas, Professor of Psychology at the Royal Melbourne Institute of Technology and on my left Mrs Robin Sullivan, who is also the Queensland Children's Commissioner. Before the hearing commences I would like to note the following matters. First, the issue of confidentiality and privacy. The Commission believes it is important to respect the privacy of individuals…

One of the major events of the period covered by this report was the handing down of the decision by the full Federal Court in the Croker Island case (1) on appeal from the decision of Justice Olney. (2) It is the major test case on the recognition of native title sea rights and represents the most authoritative statement of the law in Australia at the present time. It was a split decision and…

‘CATSI’ is an acronym for the Commonwealth’s Corporations (Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander) Act 2006 (Cth), which came into effect on 1 July 2007. The Act ‘primarily provides for the incorporation and regulation of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Corporations’. It replaces the Aboriginal Councils and Associations Act 1976 (Cth) (the ACA Act).

The literature review pulls together some of the main concepts and findings about Indigenous young people with cognitive disabilities and/ or mental health issues from involvement with the juvenile justice system. However, we are also interested in finding out what is actually happening on the ground for these young people.

The recognition of native title by the High Court in 1992 was a significant development in the legal apparatus for protecting Indigenous culture. Under the concept of native title it is possible that sacred and significant sites and objects might be protected, not within the historical category of Aboriginal heritage, but as matters valued in contemporary Indigenous culture with current…

This submission has been prepared by staff and law students from the Southern Communities Advocacy Legal and Education Service Inc (SCALES). The students worked on this submission as part of a course offered through Murdoch University School of Law in Advanced Clinical Legal Education. This unit is conducted at the School's Law Clinic - SCALES which is also a community legal centre that provides…

Family violence and abuse occurs at unacceptable rates in Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander (Indigenous) communities. We have heard many tragic stories of women, children and young people who have experienced devastating sexual abuse and family violence. It is a scourge that is causing damage and trauma among Indigenous communities, to our women and children, and to the fabric of Indigenous…

The landscape of the Murray-Darling Basin (MDB) is under severe ecological stress. Issues such as salinity, poor water quality, stressed forests, dried wetlands, threatened native species, feral animals and noxious weeds are commonplace within the MDB. The reasons for this dramatic decline in river health are caused by water mismanagement including reversal of natural flow cycles and over…

DR OZDOWSKI: My name is Dr Ozdowski and I am the Human Rights Commissioner and we are conducting an Inquiry into Children in Detention. To my left is Mrs Robin Sullivan who is Assistant Commissioner for the Inquiry and in her other life, she is Queensland Children's Commissioner and to my right is Professor Trang Thomas, Professor of Psychology at the Melbourne Institute of Technology and she is…

Indigenous imprisonment rates in Australia are unacceptably high. Nationally, Indigenous adults are 13 times more likely to be imprisoned than non-Indigenous people[1] and Indigenous juveniles are 28 times more likely to be placed in juvenile detention than their non-Indigenous counterparts.[2]

The most distressing aspect about the level of juvenile justice intrusion in the lives of young Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people is the fact that entry into the system is usually the start of a long career of incarceration for many (SNAICC submission 309 page 28).