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Children's Rights4 April 2023Media Release
National Children’s Commissioner calls for action after ‘shocking’ research on child maltreatment in Australia
Australia’s National Children’s Commissioner Anne Hollonds says ”confronting new findings from the Australian Child Maltreatment Study provide evidence, for the first time, of the scale of child maltreatment in Australia. "Child maltreatment is a much bigger problem than we thought, leading to serious negative lifelong harms for children, and massive costs to the community. “The ground-breaking ... -
Technology and Human Rights27 May 2021Media Release
Australians Deserve Technology that Protects Human Rights
Learn more about how ethical AI, facial recognition and biometrics technologies can embody human rights if designed and deployed appropriately. -
Sex Discrimination9 June 2023Media Release
Commission welcomes passage of new ACT intersex laws
New legislation protecting the rights of people in the Australian Capital Territory who have variations in sex characteristics (VSC) has been welcomed by the Commission. Yesterday the ACT Parliament passed the Variation in Sex Characteristics (Restricted Medical Treatment) Bill 2023 establishes legal protections and processes to support people with VSC to make their own decisions about permanent ... -
Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Social Justice30 March 2023Media Release
Deadline extended for no-cost applications to attend landmark First Nations women’s summit
The deadline for sponsored delegate applications for the Wiyi Yani U Thangani National Summit has been extended to Sunday 2 April 2023. -
Rights and Freedoms14 April 2023Media Release
Commission welcomes banning of spit hoods by AFP
A decision by the Australian Federal Police to end the use of spit hoods has been welcomed by the Australian Human Rights Commission. Today the AFP announced the AFP and ACT police will no longer use spit hoods, and instead the AFP will provide ‘alternative equipment and implement procedures to better protect officers from spitting and biting.’ The decision follows a review initiated last year by ... -
Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Social Justice27 May 2024Media Release
Social Justice Commissioner: now more than ever, Australia must reconcile with its First Nations people
Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Social Justice Commissioner, Katie Kiss, has marked the start of Reconciliation Week by calling on Australians to finally overcome generations of disadvantage and division when it comes to First Nations rights, and forge a path for unity. The Commissioner warned that systemic failures facing Indigenous communities in all sectors of society including health ... -
Commission – General1 August 2022Media Release
Commission urges passage of new Bill to strengthen integrity
The Australian Human Rights Commission is urging all federal parliamentarians to support the passage of the new Australian Human Rights Commission Legislation Amendment (Selection and Appointment) Bill 2022. Commission President, Emeritus Professor Rosalind Croucher AM, has welcomed the introduction to Parliament of the new Bill by Attorney-General, the Hon Mark Dreyfus QC MP, last week. The Bill ... -
Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Social Justice7 May 2023Media Release
Young First Nations women to raise their voices at historic forum
150 young First Nations women will gather in Canberra tomorrow to help set an agenda for change in relation to the rights, health, safety, wellbeing and prosperity of young Indigenous women and girls. The Wiyi Yani U Thangani (Women’s Voices) Youth Forum is a precursor to the landmark Wiyi Yani U Thangani National Summit (May 9 – 11), Australia’s most significant gathering ever of First Nations ... -
Sex Discrimination28 November 2022Media Release
Time for respect: One third of workers say they have experienced sexual harassment
The survey found that reporting of workplace sexual harassment remains alarmingly low, at only 18%. Women (41%) were far more likely than men (26%) to experience harassment, and more than three quarters of harassers were men (77%). -
Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Social Justice25 June 2019Media Release
Hear Us, See Us exhibition launched at UN Human Rights Council
The Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Social Justice Commissioner June Oscar AO has launched the Hear Us, See Us exhibition at the United Nations Human Rights Council in Geneva, Switzerland. The exhibition includes photos and videos of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander women and girls who took part in national consultations for the Wiyi Yani U Thangani (Women’s Voices) project ... -
Sex Discrimination4 September 2023Media Release
Dr Anna Cody commences as Australia’s Sex Discrimination Commissioner
Today the Australian Human Rights Commission welcomes Dr Anna Cody to the Commission as Australia’s new Sex Discrimination Commissioner. Dr Cody’s commencement as Commissioner follows the announcement of her appointment by the Federal Attorney-General in early July. Dr Cody said: “I’m honoured to be starting in the role and I’m aware of the responsibility it holds as well as the potential for ... -
Children's Rights25 August 2023Media Release
National Children’s Commissioner slams ‘shocking’ new Qld youth justice laws
The National Children’s Commissioner has expressed alarm at the Queensland Government rushing through legislation to allow children to be detained indefinitely in adult detention facilities, in a further contravention of the Queensland Human Rights Act. -
Commission – General6 November 2023Media Release
Commission welcomes A-status re-accreditation from international standards body
The Australian Human Rights Commission has welcomed its re-accreditation as an A-status National Human Rights Institution (NHRI) by the Global Alliance of National Human Rights Institutions (GANHRI), the international NHRI standards body. GANHRI conducts reviews of its members every five years to determine if they operate in accordance with the UN Principles on National Institutions (commonly ... -
Race Discrimination4 March 2024Media Release
Giridharan Sivaraman commences as Race Discrimination Commissioner
Australia’s new Race Discrimination Commissioner, Giridharan Sivaraman, said a united approach to anti-racism was essential if our society is to better address and ultimately dismantle systemic racial discrimination in all its forms. Commissioner Sivaraman, who commenced in the role today, said his immediate priority will be to progress a National Anti-Racism Framework as a central reference point ... -
Rights and Freedoms30 May 2024Media Release
Government must seize the moment for a National Human Rights Act
A new parliamentary report recommending a National Human Rights Act as part of a revitalised Human Rights Framework brings Australia closer than ever before to establishing the basic legal protections that Australians need. The report, tabled in Federal Parliament today, includes an example of legislation for a National Human Rights Act, building on decades of work and reinforcing recommendations ... -
Commission – General17 January 2023Webpage
Senate File Listing: 1 July 2022 – 31 December 2022
Senate File List for the Australian Human Rights Commission for 1 July 2022 – 31 December 2022. < See previous Prefix File Name Created Date DC Defence Materials - Roundtable summaries 11/07/2022 1:34 DC Defence Materials - Block 6_Hobart 1 August 2022 11/07/2022 23:55 DC Defence Materials - Key RC publications and submissions 11/08/2022 1:10 DC Defence Materials - Public hearing transcripts and ... -
Race Discrimination7 November 2022Media Release
Attorney-General commits Government to anti-racism strategy in Kep Enderby Memorial Lecture
“Australia’s continued success as a multicultural nation must include an ongoing commitment to addressing racism,” the Attorney-General Mark Dreyfus said. -
Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Social Justice20 March 2024Media Release
Commission celebrates official launch of the Wiyi Yani U Thangani Institute
Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Social Justice Commissioner June Oscar AO has launched a dedicated Institute to elevate the voices and solutions of First Nations women and girls – the Wiyi Yani U Thangani Institute for First Nations gender justice. The Australian-first Institute, housed at the Australian National University (ANU) on Ngunnawal and Ngambri Country, ensures the continuation of ... -
Rights and Freedoms12 March 2024Media Release
Historic forum to build momentum for Australian Human Rights Act
Revitalising Australia’s human rights framework – including efforts to introduce an Australian Human Rights Act – will be the focus of a landmark conference in June during the Vivid Sydney festival. Presented by the Australian Human Rights Commission, the Free + Equal Human Rights Conference will take place over 6 and 7 June at the Hyatt Regency in Sydney and will include 12 engaging sessions and ... -
Rights and Freedoms7 December 2023Media Release
Report tabled: Revitalising Australia’s commitment to human rights
Commonwealth Attorney-General, the Hon Mark Dreyfus KC MP has tabled a report by the Australian Human Rights Commission that calls for a renewed National Human Rights Framework and National Human Rights Act to better protect the rights of all people in Australia. The report, Revitalising Australia’s commitment to human rights , provides 12 recommendations to improve government accountability ...