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LGBTIQ+22 February 2024Media Release
Call for Submissions: Current and emerging threats to TGD human rights
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Disability Rights3 April 2024Media Release
Call for submissions: Review of WWW Advisory Note
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Rights and Freedoms6 June 2024Media Release
How were you affected by COVID measures?
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Rights and Freedoms1 May 2021Media Release
Travel ban and sanctions on Australians travelling from India
The travel ban on Australian citizens returning from India, accompanied by criminal sanctions under the Biosecurity Act, raises serious human rights concerns. The Commission supports the continuation of aid to the Indian Government as it copes with the current COVID-19 crisis, but the Commission holds deep concerns about these extraordinary new restrictions on Australians returning to Australia ... -
Rights and Freedoms3 September 2019Media Release
Statement by Human Rights Commissioner Edward Santow on the draft Religious Discrimination Bill
“For more than 20 years, the Australian Human Rights Commission has called for reform to prohibit all forms of discrimination on the basis of religious and other beliefs. “Any reform in this area must protect the human rights of all people in Australia, regardless of their religion, race, gender, sexual orientation or any other status. “We will be studying the content of the draft Bill closely ... -
Race Discrimination3 February 2020Media Release
Coronavirus requires unity and support, not division
The Australian Human Rights Commission’s Race Discrimination Commissioner, Chin Tan has urged all Australians to remain calm, show consideration and unite as a community in response to the Coronavirus crisis: “Reports of racial discrimination against Chinese people in our community are disappointing. They hurt both the Chinese community and our collective community wellbeing at a time when we ... -
Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Social Justice22 October 2019Media Release
Cashless Debit Card Bill ‘not compatible’ with human rights
The Australian Human Rights Commission has warned that the proposed Cashless Debit Card Bill is not compatible with Australia’s international human rights obligations. In a submission to the Senate Inquiry into the Social Security (Administration) Amendment (Income Management to Cashless Debit Card Transition) Bill 2019, the Commission also raises concerns regarding the lack of robust evidence ... -
Commission – General12 December 2023Media Release
Positive duty for employers: Commission’s powers commence
The Commission has new regulatory powers to ensure Australian workplaces, organisations and businesses meet the positive duty requirements. -
Race Discrimination17 March 2020Media Release
Commemorating one year since the Christchurch mosque attack
Australia’s Race Discrimination Commissioner Chin Tan and Human Rights Commissioner Edward Santow have commemorated the one-year anniversary of the Christchurch mosque attack. In a joint statement, they said: “The Christchurch massacre was deeply traumatic for New Zealand’s Muslim community. That trauma has echoed throughout the Muslim community in Australia and internationally.” “One year on, we ... -
Sex Discrimination17 January 2019Media Release
Workplace Sexual Harassment Inquiry - Call for limited waiver of NDAs
Former Australian Sex Discrimination Commissioner, Kate Jenkins, is calling on Australian employers to issue a limited waiver of confidentiality obligations in non-disclosure agreements (NDAs) for the purpose of allowing people to make a confidential submission to the National Inquiry into Workplace Sexual Harassment (the National Inquiry). The National Inquiry, supported by Government, is ... -
Children's Rights30 October 2020Media Release
Anne Hollonds commences as National Children’s Commissioner
Anne Hollonds has commenced in her role as Australia’s new National Children’s Commissioner. Commissioner Hollonds emphasised the need for greater recognition of the importance of childhood in Australia. “Childhood is quite rightly described as critically important for people's social, health and economic outcomes, but the value of childhood is not only about the future adult that a child may ... -
Commission – General10 December 2020Media Release
Rosemary Kayess gives 2020 Human Rights Oration
Leading disability rights advocate Rosemary Kayess will give the 2020 Human Rights Day Oration today. Last year’s Human Rights Medal winner, and a contributor to the drafting of the UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (CRPD), Rosemary Kayess will discuss the social transformation of CRPD and the impact it has had on the community as well as her work with the Disability Royal ... -
Race Discrimination27 September 2019Media Release
Submission on the draft Religious Discrimination Bill
The Australian Human Rights Commission supports reform to improve protections against religious discrimination for all people in Australia. While supporting much of the draft Religious Discrimination Bill, the Commission urges that the Bill be amended to avoid limiting other human rights and overriding existing anti-discrimination laws. “The Commission has advocated for more than 20 years for a ... -
Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Social Justice15 September 2023Media Release
The Voice is an opportunity for unity: June Oscar AO
The Voice is a once in a lifetime opportunity to unite all Australians. It is the first time in Australia’s history that we are on a collective path to recognising First Nations peoples’ deep connection to this continent, and our remarkable civilisation. It is an opportunity to have a society of inclusion, unity and recognition. The referendum is also an opportunity to overcome division, to step ... -
Children's Rights30 January 2022Media Release
Children urged to share COVID-19 experiences
As most Australian children return to school today, they are being invited to share their stories about how the COVID-19 pandemic has affected their wellbeing, and how they have coped. -
Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Social Justice8 March 2021Media Release
Celebrating First Nations women on IWD
On International Women’s Day (IWD) the Commission pays tribute to the tireless and important work of First Nations women across Australia. Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Social Justice Commissioner June Oscar AO has called for recognition and celebration of the power and potential of deadly First Nations women all over the country who are leading, nurturing and growing the oldest living ... -
Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Social Justice25 March 2021Media Release
Joint Statement: Rights of Children in the NT
Australia’s National Children’s Commissioner Anne Hollonds and Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Social Justice Commissioner June Oscar AO have urged the Northern Territory government to reconsider its proposals for youth offending, announced yesterday. The NT Government yesterday said it would put in "automatic revocation of bail" for young people who reoffend or breach their bail conditions ... -
Rights and Freedoms31 January 2020Media Release
Commission warns on Religious Discrimination Bill overreach
In its submission on the latest draft of the Religious Discrimination Bill, the Australian Human Rights Commission warns that elements of the Bill are inconsistent with international human rights law. The Commission is particularly concerned that exemptions for ‘statements of belief’ in the Bill would override existing federal, state and territory discrimination laws on grounds such as race, sex ... -
Age Discrimination17 January 2019Media Release
Too old to work at 50: Survey
A new survey on attitudes to employing older workers has found that up to 30 per cent of Australian employers are still reluctant to hire workers over a certain age, and for more than two thirds of this group, that age was over 50. The survey of more than 900 human resource professionals was conducted by the Australian HR Institute supported by the Australian Human Rights Commission. It builds on ... -
Children's Rights25 October 2023Media Release
National Children’s Commissioner urges governments to monitor child rights
Australia’s National Children's Commissioner Anne Hollonds is urging governments and service providers to implement a new national toolkit to help improve laws and policy decisions and monitor their impacts on children.