Refine results
-
Commission – General4 November 2016Webpage
2016 Human Rights Medal and Awards Winners
The Human Rights Medal is awarded to an individual who has made an outstanding contribution to the advancement of human rights in Australia. The medal has a rich history of prestigious winners. -
4 February 2015Book page
7 Preschoolers in detention
7.1 Forming relationships 7.2 The detention environment 7.3 Opportunities for play, learning and development 7.4 Impacts on preschoolers 7.5 Findings specific to preschoolers In preschool children we have seen regressed or disturbed behaviour such as needing to cling to parents at night and refusing to sleep in their own bed; separation anxiety; incontinence; uncharacteristic aggression; the ... -
Children's Rights19 April 2021Media Release
Governments must prioritise raising the age
National Children’s Commissioner, Anne Hollonds and Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Social Justice Commissioner, June Oscar AO have urged all Australian governments to raise the age of criminal responsibility as a matter of priority. A report commissioned by a meeting of Attorneys-General in July last year recommended that all jurisdictions raise the age and ensure younger teenagers are not ... -
14 December 2012Book page
HREOC Website: National Inquiry into Children in Immigration Detention
Commissioners: DR SEV OZDOWSKI, Human Rights Commissioner MRS ROBIN SULLIVAN, Queensland Children's Commissioner PROFESSOR TRANG THOMAS, Professor of Psychology, Melbourne Institute of Technology MS VANESSA LESNIE, Secretary to the Inquiry -
5 February 2015Book page
9 Teenagers in detention
9.1 Needs and development of teenagers 9.2 Physical environment of detention 9.3 Emotional wellbeing and self-harm 9.4 Safety 9.5 Security measures and dignity 9.6 Relationships with parents 9.7 Relocations 9.8 Provision of medical services 9.9 Education 9.10 Recreation 9.11 Findings specific to teenagers I am a bird in a cage (14 year old girl, Christmas Island detention centre, 15 July 2014) ... -
Rights and Freedoms14 December 2012Speech
Launch of Human Rights Week, Tasmania
I’d also thank the Human Rights Week Organising Committee here in Tasmania, and congratulate them on their 20th Anniversary. Human Rights Week has been successfully and continuously marked with a number of events each year over the past 20 years in Tasmania. And that in itself, is a remarkable achievement. -
Disability Rights30 June 2015Publication
Mental Health Legislation and Human Rights
This paper presents an indicative analysis of the mental health legislation in each State and Territory in terms of recently agreed international standards - the UN Principles for the Protection of Persons with Mental Illness and for the Improvement of Mental Health Care. The legislation in every Australian jurisdiction breaches the standards prescribed in the UN Principles in a number of ways. In some jurisdictions these breaches constitute fundamental violations of basic human rights. -
12 February 2013Book page
3 Promotion and protection of human rights on the ground
3.1 Equality before the law and non-discrimination A prominent theme throughout Australia’s UPR was the unacceptable level of disadvantage experienced by Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Peoples , with 50 of the countries that spoke during the interactive dialogue referring to issues affecting Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples. [15] Since its appearance the Australian Government ... -
Rights and Freedoms11 October 2016Speech
Peering through human rights-tinted glasses
Annual Lecture, Castan Centre for Human Rights Law. Given at the State Library of Victoria on 7 October 2016. This year, we celebrate (or mourn, according to your perspective) the 60th anniversary of the first computer to defeat a human in chess. It occurred, predictably enough, in Los Alomos, and the human was a novice. Over the next 30 years, the best humans easily saw off the best computers ... -
Children's Rights21 October 2015Opinion piece
The human rights of children are at risk if control orders are placed on 14-year-olds
On Tuesday this week Attorney-General George Brandis foreshadowed extending laws concerning control orders to fourteen- and fifteen-year-old children. Brandis said the fact that a 15-year-old boy had been inspired to perform a terrorist act demonstrated that the reach of Islamic State and IS surrogates and agents in Australia is extending to people younger and younger. In announcing the extension ... -
Rights and Freedoms14 December 2012Speech
Human Rights Protection and Resolution Through the Law
Mr. Neil Brown QC, Mr. Michael Shand QC, members of the Victoria Bar and of Chartered Institute of Arbitrators, distinguished guests, ladies and gentlemen, all. -
14 December 2012Book page
Human rights - what do I need to know? (2008)
All Australians have human rights. Human rights are universal: they are for everyone, everywhere, everyday. Human rights are based on values such as freedom, equality and dignity and seek to protect our quality of life. -
Legal14 December 2012Webpage
Submission to National Human Rights Consultation (2009)
The Australian Human Rights Commission (the Commission) welcomes the opportunity to make this submission to the National Human Rights Consultation (the Consultation). -
Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Social Justice10 May 2023Media Release
First Nations women respond to Banksia Hill riots with call for immediate reform to youth justice
First Nations female leaders from across Australia are demanding immediate reform to Western Australia’s approach to youth justice in the wake of today’s riots at the Banksia Hill Juvenile Detention Centre. Hundreds of First Nations women are attending the Wiyi Yani U Thangani National Summit in Canberra this week, including Commissioner for Children and Young People WA Jacqueline McGowan–Jones ... -
10 April 2015Book page
2 Background and framework for promotion and protection of human rights
2.1 Scope of international obligations 2.2 National framework 2.3 Equality before the law and non-discrimination 2.4 Migrants, refugees and asylum seekers 2.5 Right to life, liberty and security of the person 2.1 Scope of international obligations Australia prides itself on its commitment to the promotion and protection of human rights and has announced its candidacy for election to the Human ... -
Commission – General14 December 2012Webpage
Taking stock of Australia’s human rights record – Submission by the Australian Human Rights Commission under the Universal Periodic Review process (2010)
This significant new process involves a review of the human rights record of each member of the UN on a periodic basis (at present, every four years). Australia makes its first appearance in January 2011. -
Commission – General14 December 2012Speech
President speeches: Human Rights in Australia
Thank you for inviting me here today to speak about human rights in Australia. I would like to use this opportunity to focus on how human rights are protected in Australia; and how you, as human rights educators, can help students to understand these protections. I will also seek to shed some light on the role of the Human Rights and Equal Opportunity Commission and some of our responses to some current human rights issues. -
Rights and Freedoms1 May 2013Publication
Human rights issues raised by the third country processing regime
The Commission recognises the importance of effective border management and recognises that Australia has a right as a sovereign State to exclude non-citizens from its territory. However, Australia also has international obligations in relation to asylum seekers who come here, including those who arrive by boat, which must be observed in its border management practices. This paper provides a brief outline of the recent changes and highlights the key human rights concerns raised by the third country processing regime. -
Commission – General14 December 2012Speech
2008 Human Rights Day Oration
I would like to begin by acknowledging the Gadigal people of the Eora nation, the traditional owners of the land on which we meet today, and pay my respects to their elders past and present. -
Asylum Seekers and Refugees22 October 2013Publication
Asylum seekers, refugees and human rights - Snapshot Report
The purpose of this report is to provide an overview – or ‘snapshot’ – of the key human rights issues that arise from Australia’s approach to asylum seekers and refugees who arrive by boat.