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Asylum Seekers and Refugees14 December 2012Opinion piece
Treating asylum seekers well is in all our interests (2011)
The following opinion pieces have been published by the President and Commissioners. Reproduction of the opinion pieces must include reference to where the opinion piece was originally published. -
Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Social Justice14 December 2012Speech
Addressing Indigenous health inequality within a generation – a call to action: Calma (2007)
There have been some improvements in recent years. But there is a long way to go. Indigenous peoples make gains but they are often smaller than those made by the non-Indigenous population - so the disparity in life chances remains static. In fact, there has been very little reduction in this inequality gap in Australia in the past decade. -
Rights and Freedoms7 April 2013Opinion piece
Tweaking the draft bill could preserve core reforms
The proposed anti-discrimination law has critics, but it delivers a balanced package. If the release of the exposure draft of the Human Rights and Anti-Discrimination Bill 2012 was intended to stimulate public discussion about an important reform initiative, it has clearly done what it set out to do. -
Rights and Freedoms14 December 2012Opinion piece
All people have a fundamental human right to seek asylum from persecution (2010)
The following opinion pieces have been published by the President and Commissioners. Reproduction of the opinion pieces must include reference to where the opinion piece was originally published. -
14 December 2012Book page
Annual Report 1999-2000: Consultancy Services
The Commission during 1999-2000 used a range of consultancy services where there was, for example, a need for rapid access to latest technology and experience in its application; limitations on executive time; lack of in-house resources; the need for independent study; or a need for a change agent or facilitator. -
14 December 2012Book page
National Inquiry into Children in Immigration Detention
Australia is a signatory to a number of International Conventions, which are relevant to mandatory detention of children in Australia’s immigration detention centres. Under International law, each of the conventions that Australia has ratified is binding on the Australian state, which is obliged to bring its domestic laws into conformity with their stipulations. In Australia, International Conventions do not have legal force in domestic law, and cannot be directly applied by the domestic courts in Australia, unless the Australian Parliament enacts them into legislation. -
Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Social Justice14 December 2012Speech
LAUNCH OF THE NATIVE TITLE AND SOCIAL JUSTICE REPORTS
The two reports launched in Adelaide today provide a scorecard on how Australian governments are meeting their obligations to ensure that Australia's Indigenous peoples can fully exercise their rights and interests. -
14 December 2012Book page
HREOC Report No. 28
Pursuant to section 11(1)(f)(ii) of the Human Rights and Equal Opportunity Commission Act 1986 (Cth), I attach a report of my inquiry into complaints made by twenty six immigration detainees at the Curtin Immigration Reception and Processing Centre. I have found that acts or practices of the Commonwealth, namely placing some of the complainants in separation detention for periods of between three and eight months, were inconsistent with or contrary to the human rights of those detainees as provided for in Article 10(1) of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights. -
Rights and Freedoms26 October 2017Speech
National Human Rights Commissions — what’s the point?
International Bar Association Section on Public and Professional Interests 12 October 2017 Sydney by Emeritus Professor Rosalind Croucher AM President, Australian Human Rights Commission [ Professor Croucher spoke to this paper ] Acknowledgements As the Head of an Australian Government agency I begin my presentation by acknowledging the traditional custodians of this land, and pay my respect to ... -
Commission – General14 December 2012Speech
Graduation Address
I speak to you now, not as the Chancellor of this University, but as the President of Australia’s national Human Rights and Equal Opportunity Commission. And while my remarks are addressed primarily to today’s graduands, I suspect what I am about to say will resonate among parents and friends. -
14 December 2012Book page
HREOC Website: National Inquiry into Children in Immigration Detention
To those of you who have been following this Inquiry closely, it may be unclear as to why this hearing is taking place as I had said in December 2002 that those would be the last of the Inquiry's hearings. I will therefore briefly set out the history and methodology of the Inquiry to this point which will take us to why we are here today. I will then set out what steps remain to be completed after this hearing is concluded and prior to publication. Finally, I will set out the proposed procedure for today's hearing. Let us start with methodology of the Inquiry to date. -
14 December 2012Book page
National Inquiry into Children in Immigration Detention
Special thanks goes to Maritza Manojlovic, Michele Nardelli and Rosemary Thompson who skilfully helped me to elaborate the arguments of the paper. To the Middle Eastern new arrivals that warmly welcomed me into their lives, ready to reveal their deepest concerns in the belief that they would be taken seriously, I say thank you. My greatest thanks goes to Mohammed Amirghiasvand for inspiring me to continue working in this area. -
Commission – General10 December 2015Speech
The future of human rights in Australia
AHRC Awards 2015 Thank you Craig for your generosity, for the 4th time, in guiding us through the awards. Well done for your very funny and successful Media Circus. Your honours, distinguished guests, colleagues, ladies and gentlemen. I acknowledge the traditional owners of the land, the Gadigal people of the Eora Nation and respect their elders. Today, it really is about you! We are here to ... -
Race Discrimination16 March 2015Opinion piece
Free thinking?
Many say freedom of expression means nothing if it doesn’t entail a freedom to offend others. Enjoying such freedom means that you may also have to tolerate hurtful or distasteful speech. But what if the burden of tolerance is not borne equally? What if some forms of speech wound not merely sensibilities but also another person’s dignity? How should a liberal democracy treat forms of speech that ... -
Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Social Justice16 October 2015Speech
Charles Perkins Oration 2015
Acknowledgements Thank you Stephen for your sincere welcome and can I also thank Uncle Chicka for your generous Welcome to Country. I begin by acknowledging the Traditional Owners of the land on which we sit this evening, the Gadigal Peoples of the Eora Nation. I honour your Elders that have come before you, those that are here today and wait in optimistic anticipation for those Elders who are yet ... -
1 August 2014Book page
Chapter 5: The legal and policy framework
Learn about how Australia has entered international human rights obligations to stop pregnancy and return to work discrimination against women. -
Legal18 February 2020Webpage
Submission policy
Any public contribution to an inquiry is called a submission. Submissions are actively sought by the Commission from a broad cross section of the community, as well as those with a special interest in particular inquiries. -
Legal14 December 2012Webpage
Consultation on exposure draft National Human Rights Action Plan
The Australian Human Rights Commission makes this submission to the Attorney-General’s Department on the exposure draft of a new Human Rights National Action Plan which the Department has issued for comment. -
31 January 2013Webpage
2001 Human Rights Medal and Awards Winners
The 2001 Medal and Awards presentation ceremony was held on 9 December 2001 at Star Court, Darling Harbour in Sydney. The guest speaker was Professor Gillian Triggs. The judges were: Rt Hon. Ian Sinclair AC, Justice Elizabeth Evatt AC, Jackie Huggins AM, Nicholas Cowdery QC, Justice Catherine Branson, Ruth McColl SC, Mark Davis, Dr David McKnight, Vivian Schenker, Dr Peter O'Brien, Nick Xynias AO ... -
Legal14 December 2012Webpage
Australian Human Rights Commission Submission to the Joint Select Committee on Australia’s Immigration Detention Network (2011)
The Australian Government should implement reforms it announced in 2008 under which immigration detention is to be used as a last resort and for the shortest practicable period, people are to be detained in the least restrictive environment appropriate to their individual circumstances, and there is a presumption that people will be permitted to reside in the community unless they pose an unacceptable risk.