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Rights and Freedoms10 August 2015Speech
NSW Council for Civil Liberties
I was pleased to have been invited to speak to the NSW Council for Civil Liberties at this your annual fund raising dinner for you are, above all, best placed to understand the phenomenon of the last few years that is of concern to the Australian Human Rights Commission; that is, the encroachment of executive discretion on fundamental rights and freedoms. Senator Cory Bernardi calls this a “Power ... -
14 December 2012Book page
A last resort? - Summary Guide: The facts about immigration detention in Australia
Since 1992, Australia's migration law has made it mandatory for any person in Australia without a valid visa to be detained until they are issued with a visa or removed from Australia. This law applies equally to adults and children. -
Legal14 December 2012Webpage
Date Index - Submissions to the Commonwealth Parliament and law reform bodies
Submissions to the Parliaments and law reform bodies Date Index On the instructions of the Commission, another function of the Legal Section is to prepare submissions to the Commonwealth Parliament. See below for some of the submissions prepared by the Legal Section and other units in the commission: See also Submissions sorted by committee sorted by subject other submissions 2018 ... -
Rights and Freedoms14 December 2012Speech
Association of Childrens Welfare Agencies Conference
I am delighted to be invited to speak today at the Biennial Conference of the Association of Childrens Welfare Agencies, in association with partner organisations dedicated to the wellbeing of children. -
14 December 2012Book page
Commission Website: National Inquiry into Children in Immigration Detention
This submission has been produced by the Queensland Program of Assistance for Survivors of Torture and Trauma (QPASTT) and the Youth Advocacy Centre (YAC). The submission is also endorsed by a number of individuals and organisations working directly or indirectly with asylum seekers and refugees (See list on page 2). Their staff hear similar stories and reports from their clients and have come to similar or the same conclusions as those in this report. -
Legal14 December 2012Webpage
Migration Amendment (Review Provisions) Bill 2006
In order to ensure that the views of the children in conflict with the law are duly taken into account, the following must be provided as a minimum in order to ensure their participation in accordance with articles 12 and 40 of the Convention; -
14 December 2012Book page
Commission Website: National Inquiry into Children in Immigration Detention
This submission will consider the issue of ‘statelessness’ and its consequences for the nationality of children in detention [2], focussing specifically on those children who are born into immigration detention in Australia. It will address the first term of reference [3] for the Inquiry. The submission will first consider the right to nationality at international law and the problem of ‘statelessness’, before discussing Australia’s domestic law. -
Legal14 December 2012Webpage
Inquiry into the Migration Amendment (Removal of Mandatory Minimum Penalties) Bill 2012
The Commission supports the repeal from the Migration Act 1958 (Cth) (Migration Act) of the mandatory minimum penalties currently applicable to the aggravated offence of people smuggling. -
14 December 2012Book page
HREOC - Annual Report 2001 - 2002: Statement from the President
The Human Rights and Equal Opportunity Commission occupies a unique place in Australian society. It sits independent of Government, yet it is not what is traditionally known as a non-government organisation (NGO) or an advocate. -
Asylum Seekers and Refugees8 November 2013Webpage
Index of Commission's work
Major publications The Forgotten Children: National Inquiry into Children in Immigration Detention 2014 (2015) Asylum seekers, refugees and human rights: snapshot report 2013 Human rights standards for immigration detention (2013) An age of uncertainty: Inquiry into the treatment of individuals suspected of people smuggling offences who say that they are children (2012) A last resort? National ... -
14 December 2012Book page
A last resort? Findings and recommendations
Media Pack Homepage Statements by Dr Sev Ozdowski, Human Rights Commissioner (Audio Files for Download) Inquiry Commissioner and Assistants Biographies About the Inquiry Inquiry Methodology Terms of Reference Useful Links and Resources -
14 December 2012Book page
1 Introduction and background
Between 1 September 2008 and 22 November 2011, 180 young Indonesians who said that they were children arrived in Australia, having worked as crew on boats bringing asylum seekers to Australia. These young people were often fishermen from impoverished communities in the south and east of Indonesia. Many of them have spent long periods of time in immigration detention without being charged, or prior to being charged, with an offence. -
14 December 2012Book page
National Inquiry into Children in Immigration Detention
The National Inquiry into Children in Immigration Detention refers to the adequacy and appropriateness of Australia’s treatment of child asylum seekers and other children who are, or have been, held in immigration detention, including: -
Legal14 December 2012Webpage
Questions on Notice 8 May 2003
I refer to the Questions on Notice received by the Human Rights and Equal Opportunity Commission ("HREOC") after it gave evidence before the Senate Legal and Constitutional Legislation Committee's Reference on the Australian Human Rights Commission Legislation Bill 2003 ("AHRC Bill") on 29 April 2003 and provide the following responses. -
14 December 2012Book page
Commission Website: National Inquiry into Children in Immigration Detention
The Equal Opportunity Commission of Victoria (the Commission) commends the enquiry by the Human Rights and Equal Opportunity Commission into the circumstances of children in immigration detention and the longer-term effects of detention on children who have entered the Australian community. This submission considers the post-detention experience and treatment of children and young adults released into the community as recognised refugees, with particular reference to, -
Rights and Freedoms14 July 2015Speech
What are the proper limits on the power of Parliament?
Distinguished guests, friends and colleagues - thank you for your welcome to this Law Institute of Victoria seminar. I acknowledge the traditional owners of the land and pay my respects to their elders past and present. I will always have a soft spot for the Law Institute of Victoria. I was admitted to practice in 1969 after completing my articles with Williams Winter and Higgs, and practiced for ... -
Rights and Freedoms14 July 2015Speech
What are the proper limits on the power of Parliament?
Distinguished guests, friends and colleagues - thank you for your welcome to this Law Institute of Victoria seminar. I acknowledge the traditional owners of the land and pay my respects to their elders past and present. I will always have a soft spot for the Law Institute of Victoria. I was admitted to practice in 1969 after completing my articles with Williams Winter and Higgs, and practiced for ... -
Rights and Freedoms19 August 2016Speech
Tony Blackshield Lecture
HUMAN RIGHTS AND THE OVERREACH OF EXECUTIVE DISCRETION: CITIZENSHIP, ASYLUM SEEKERS AND WHISTLEBLOWERS 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 the highest order and one of the most influential figures in Australian legal education over the last 50 years. I have two memories ... -
14 December 2012Book page
Annual Report 2008-2009: Chapter 8
2008-09 has been a year of positive developments in the human rights area. While many human rights challenges lie ahead, as Human Rights Commissioner, I have been excited by the progress that Australia has made in human rights, both domestically and internationally during the year. -
14 December 2012Book page
GSL response to the Commission's Report
I am writing in response to the Summary of HREOC's Observations following your Inspection of Mainland Immigration Detention Facilities in 2007. We welcome your observations and recommendations which will further enhance our ability to deliver a consistently high level of service to the clients in our care. It is particularly pleasing to note that the favourable comments which you made in 2006 regarding our staff's approach and attitude remained evident in 2007.