Refine results
-
Children's Rights
23 August 2024Media ReleaseA step backwards for child justice and community safety in Queensland
The Queensland Government’s ‘Community Safety Act’ allowing more children to be locked up in the first instance is another step backwards for child justice and community safety, National Children’s Commissioner Anne Hollonds said. “We all want to live in communities where kids can flourish and where everyone is safe, especially children. But this approach to offending by children doesn’t… -
Children's Rights
11 October 2024Media Release
We must ‘help way earlier’ – united call to address systemic failures of Australia’s youth justice systems
Joint media release: Justice Reform Initiative and Australian Human Rights Commission Law and justice leaders, parliamentarians, First Nations leaders, child safety advocates, community service providers, peak organisations, and people with lived experience of child imprisonment from around Australia will come together for a landmark parliamentary event in Canberra on Thursday. Amid an… -
Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Social Justice
30 August 2024Media ReleaseCall for urgent child justice reforms following death of teenager in WA youth detention centre
Australia’s Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Social Justice Commissioner Katie Kiss, National Children's Commissioner Anne Hollonds, and Human Rights Commissioner Lorraine Finlay have expressed their sadness and disappointment following the death yesterday of a First Nations teenager who was incarcerated in Western Australia’s Banksia Hill youth detention centre. -
Children's Rights
19 July 2024Media Release
Australian Human Rights Commission condemns children’s isolation cells
Grave concern over recently released CCTV footage depicting a First Nations child of 13 years of age with an intellectual disability, being forcibly restrained -
Children's Rights
20 August 2024Media Release
New report proposes transforming Australia’s approach to child justice and wellbeing
In a major new report, Australia’s National Children’s Commissioner is calling for significant changes to how our federal, state and territory governments approach child justice and the wellbeing of children who are or who are at risk of being caught up in the criminal justice system. -
Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Social Justice
14 June 2024Speech
4th National Indigenous Empowerment Summit
‘Framing Indigenous empowerment with human rights: using the Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples for real change’ Wednesday 12 June 2024 Good Morning All My name is Katie Kiss. I am a proud Kaanju, Biri/Widi woman from North Queensland. I was born and raised on the lands of the Darumbal peoples in Rockhampton, in Central Queensland. Before I begin today, I pay my respects to the … -
Children's Rights
2 September 2024Media Release
A tragic start to National Child Protection Week
As the launch of National Child Protection Week throws the spotlight on creating better futures where children and young people flourish, the National Children’s Commissioner Anne Hollonds is speaking up for the thousands of children whose futures are bleak because Australian governments do not prioritise their human rights to safety, care and protection. Commissioner Hollonds said: “It was… -
Rights and Freedoms
11 November 2022Media ReleaseHuman Rights Commissioner to raise juvenile and immigration detention concerns with UN torture committee in Geneva
Australia’s Human Rights Commissioner is set to appear before the United Nations Committee Against Torture in Geneva next week to provide analysis of how Australia measures up against our obligations under the UN’s Convention Against Torture (CAT) and its associated Optional Protocol (OPCAT). -
Asylum Seekers and Refugees
10 July 2013WebpageSpeeches, events and media about immigration detention, asylum seekers and refugees
Discover a history of speeches, events and media about immigration detention, asylum seekers and refugees at the Human Rights Commission. -
Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Social Justice
10 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… -
Rights and Freedoms
14 March 2024Speech
The Perils of Independence
The Australian Human Rights Commission’s role in protecting human rights in Australia Sir Ronald Wilson Lecture 2021 Emeritus Professor Rosalind Croucher AM President, Australian Human Rights Commission Acknowledgements Thank you Matthew McGuire for your welcome to country and Kendra Turner as MC. I am speaking from the traditional lands of the Gadigal people of the Eora nation, in the city… -
Children's Rights
29 September 2021Webpage
About Children's Rights
Just like adults, children have human rights across the full spectrum of civil, cultural, economic, political and social rights. -
5 February 2015Book page
11 Children indefinitely detained
11.1 Refugees with adverse security assessments 11.2 Sydney Detention Centre 11.3 Findings in relation to children indefinitely detained As of August 2014 there were nine children in detention centres in Australia with parents who had received adverse security assessments from the Australian Security Intelligence Organisation (ASIO). These children are indefinitely detained in Australia… -
Rights and Freedoms
21 January 2022Opinion piece
Novak Djokovic drew global attention to Australia's immigration detention regime. Now we need proper scrutiny of all places of detention
Novak Djokovic’s recent detention at Melbourne’s Park Hotel drew international attention to Australia’s use of hotels as Alternative Places of Detention by immigration authorities. But while Djokovic’s detention was measured in days, others still remaining in the Park Hotel measure their detention in years. Hotels are simply not appropriate places to detain people for extended periods. The… -
6 February 2015Book page
Appendix 1 – Review of detention policy and practices 2004–2014
1.1 Overview 1.2 Key findings and recommendations from A last resort? 1.3 Key legislative and policy changes 1.4 New Directions in Detention policy 1.5 Third country processing 1.6 Indefinite detention on Christmas Island 1.7 Rapid offshore processing after September election 2013 1.8 Other policy decisions 1.9 Implementation of policy 1.10 Numbers and length of detention of children 2004 –… -
Commission – General
5 August 2020E-bulletin (Monthly)August ebulletin
We have heard the words human rights quite a lot in recent weeks, in varied and sometimes inaccurate settings. Measures to protect our health and safety must be balanced with our rights and freedoms, but if there was ever a time to articulate where that line is, it would be now. Which is why last week, I took the step of writing a piece for a mainstream publication. While the pandemic… -
Rights and Freedoms
3 March 2023Speech
Promoting and protecting human rights in Australia
The Australian Human Rights Commission: promoting and protecting human rights in Australia St Andrew’s College, University of Sydney, 14 July 2022 Emeritus Professor Rosalind Croucher AM FAAL Abstract This presentation explores the role of the Australian Human Rights Commission in the context of the international human rights treaties and its establishment as part of the domestic mechanisms … -
14 December 2012Book page
National Inquiry into Children in Immigration Detention
"There have been times in our history when Australia has been generous and open hearted and times when it has been very mean. In 1938 at the Evian Conference about dealing with Jewish and other refugees from Hitler, Australia took a flint hearted position, saying that we did not want to import Europe's problems, or to increase racial differences, and that refugees should get back in the… -
28 October 2013Book page
2 Onshore detention and processing
2.1 Mandatory immigration detention It is mandatory under the Migration Act for every non-citizen who is in Australia without a valid visa to be detained, regardless of his or her individual circumstances. [24] Once detained, unlawful non-citizens must remain in detention until they are either granted a visa or removed from Australia. [25] The majority of unlawful non-citizens are detained… -
14 December 2012Book page
HREOC - Annual Report 2001 - 2002: Chapter 1: The Commission
The Commission is a national independent statutory body established under the Human Rights and Equal Opportunity Commission Act 1986. It has a President and five Commissioners. The five positions are currently held by three persons.