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This is a Report of the findings and reasons for findings made by the Human Rights and Equal Opportunity Commission (the Commission) following an inquiry conducted by the Commission.[1] The inquiry related to a complaint by Amnesty International Australia (Amnesty) against the Commonwealth of Australia (the Commonwealth), Department of Immigration, Multicultural and Indigenous Affairs (the…

2.1 Mandatory immigration detention It is mandatory under the Migration Act for every non-citizen who is in Australia without a valid visa to be detained, regardless of his or her individual circumstances. [24] Once detained, unlawful non-citizens must remain in detention until they are either granted a visa or removed from Australia. [25] The majority of unlawful non-citizens are detained…

Human rights principles require that Indigenous people's relationships to land, based on traditional laws and customs, be given legal recognition and protection. International legal principles also recognise that Indigenous peoples have economic, social and cultural human rights. Native title, as it is constructed through the Australian legal system, has a limited capacity to meet these human…

a) Do Indigenous peoples have a right to self-determination? b) What is Indigenous self-determination? c) Summary - Defining Indigenous self-determination

In September 2002, the South Australian Coroner brought down his findings in the inquests into the deaths of Kunmanara[1] Ken (who died on 3 August 1999), Kunmanara Hunt (who died on 27 January 2001) and Kunmanara Thompson (who died on 26 June 2001). Each of these young Anangu was a chronic petrol sniffer (they had been sniffing for at least ten years) in their mid to late twenties living on the…

The application of human rights principles to native title has been the subject of an ongoing dialogue taking place both nationally and internationally in the reporting period.

Explore a report prepared for the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Commission in relation to Indigenous deaths in custody and police practices.

The prohibition on discrimination in employment is a relatively recent, but now well-established, feature of the Australian legal environment. Laws prohibiting discrimination in the workplace in Australia date back to 1966 when South Australia introduced the Prohibition of Discrimination Act 1966 (SA), to prohibit discrimination on the grounds of race in aspects of employment and in the provision…

The ownership, particularly communal ownership of land by Indigenous people began in 1976 with the introduction of land rights legislation in the Northern Territory (the Aboriginal Land Rights (Northern Territory) Act 1976 (Cth) (ALRA (NT)).

On 27 July 2000, the Commonwealth government and the Northern Territory Government signed an agreement for the establishment of a juvenile pre-court diversion scheme in the Northern Territory (NT). This agreement arose specifically as a response to the continued criticism of the NT’s mandatory minimum imprisonment laws and their impact on juveniles and Indigenous people. By establishing the…

1.1 Introduction 1.2 Machinery of Government changes 1.3 The 2014 Budget 1.4 Leadership, representation and engagement 1.5 Constitutional recognition 1.6 Indigenous Jobs and Training Review 1.7 Closing the Gap 1.8 Stolen Generations 1.9 International developments 1.10 Australian Human Rights Commission complaints 1.11 Conclusion 1.1 Introduction At the beginning of this reporting period, we…

In recent years a mutual obligation approach has been adopted to reform public policy on welfare and employment issues. There has been much discussion about the applicability of this approach within an Indigenous policy context. It is seen by many as consistent with Indigenous cultural values such as reciprocity and an emphasis on community, as well as suggesting an antidote to the damage caused…

Bringing Them Home - the Report of the National Inquiry into the Separation of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Children from Their Families (the National Inquiry) - made 54 'head' recommendations, 83 recommendations in total [1], to address what was referred to as 'the continuing devastation of the lives of Indigenous Australians'. The implementation of most recommendations requires action…

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…

It has now been over two years since the federal government introduced new arrangements for the administration of Indigenous affairs. One of the catchcries of the new arrangements is that they are aimed at ‘harnessing the mainstream.’ This is to be achieved by removing or reducing the barriers that prevent Indigenous peoples from accessing existing mainstream services on an equitable…