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Rights and Freedoms
22 April 2021Media ReleaseGreater scrutiny of emergency powers needed
The Australian Human Rights Commission has called for greater accountability to be embedded in laws that extend the Commonwealth’s power in the event of national emergencies. In its submission to a Senate inquiry examining the National Emergency Declaration Act 2020 , the Commission recommended five changes to legislation that was enacted by parliament in 2020. Human Rights Commissioner Edward ... -
Race Discrimination
29 March 2021Project
National Anti-Racism Framework
The Australian Human Rights Commission has launched a plan to develop a National Anti-Racism Framework. The Commission is working with all levels of Government, peak bodies, human rights agencies and community organisations to progress the Framework. -
Age Discrimination
9 September 2021SpeechSafety and Security for Older Women
National Summit on Women’s Safety Safety and Security for Older Women Dr Kay Patterson Age Discrimination Commissioner Via Video Conference Tuesday 7 September 2021 Introduction I would like to thank Senator the Hon Marise Payne and Senator the Hon Anne Ruston for inviting me to speak at this National Summit. I acknowledge the Kulin Nation peoples as the traditional owners of the land from which I ... -
Rights and Freedoms
1 May 2024Webpage
Your Story Portal - Submissions
The Commission wants to share the stories and experiences of everyday Australians as part of our project. We are calling for stories from people who were impacted by the national, state and community responses to the COVID-19 pandemic. This process is intended to capture varied perspectives from people across diverse Australian communities. We want to understand the impacts of pandemic responses ... -
Rights and Freedoms
17 January 2019Speech
A somewhat invisible world and extraordinary contributions of the AHRC
NSW Claims Discussion Group Inc 23 November 2018 [Professor Croucher spoke to this paper] Introduction Thank you, Dr Tim Channon, for inviting me to present this lunchtime address. I, too, pay my respects to elders past, present and emerging of the Gadigal people of the Eora Nation, the traditional custodians of the land where we meet today. I was asked to talk about my personal story and a ... -
Rights and Freedoms
16 October 2023Media Release
Finalists announced for 2023 Australian Human Rights Awards
Monday 16 October 2023: A diverse array of people and organisations from across Australia have been selected as finalists for this year’s Australian Human Rights Awards, the country’s premier national event for honouring and celebrating Australia’s human rights heroes. The 21 finalists were selected from over 260 nominations across five categories, including the prestigious Australian Human Rights ... -
Rights and Freedoms
12 August 2020Media Release
Combatting modern slavery in property and construction
The Australian Human Rights Commission and KPMG Banarra are today launching their first of five sector specific guides to help Australian businesses understand and manage their modern slavery risks. Property, Construction and Modern Slavery: Practical responses to managing risks to people , is a practical guide to help this industry respond effectively to the Modern Slavery Act 2018 (Cth). The Act ... -
Age Discrimination
17 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 ... -
Rights and Freedoms
16 July 2019Media Release
Urgent call for Federal Government to protect 30,000 refugees and asylum seekers at risk in the community
The Australian Human Rights Commission calls on the Australian Government to make urgent changes to improve protections for approximately 30,000 refugees and asylum seekers living in the Australian community. A new report released today, Lives on hold: Refugees and asylum seekers in the ‘Legacy Caseload’ , reveals the human rights situation for approximately 30,000 refugees and asylum seekers ... -
Rights and Freedoms
18 March 2022Opinion piece
Time for review on COVID-19 border and quarantine restrictions
OPINION With the McGowan Government announcing earlier this week that the Western Australian hard border will ease on February 5, 2022, Australia is inching ever closer to border closures becoming a thing of the past. But while many of us would like this to be true, it is important to realise that we’re not there yet. While border restrictions are easing around Australia and State premiers have ... -
Commission – General
23 October 2019Media ReleaseMedia statement: Use of force in immigration detention
Fourteen complaints about the use of force in immigration detention form the basis for a comprehensive thematic report by the Australian Human Rights Commission tabled in Parliament today. The report considers the practices of handcuffing detainees, use of physical force within centres including arm and elbow locks, operations conducted by the Emergency Response Team (ERT), and the use of face ... -
Children's Rights
27 October 2021News story
Child-friendly guide to help understand child sexual abuse
The Australian Human Rights Commission has worked with the National Office for Child Safety to develop a guide to help children and young people understand child sexual abuse, and how to seek help. The guide was launched today to support Australia’s first ever National Strategy to Prevent and Respond to Child Sexual Abuse. National Children’s Commissioner Anne Hollonds said: “Child sexual abuse is ... -
Business and Human Rights
15 November 2021News story
Combatting modern slavery in the health services sector
A new guide to help the health services sector manage their modern slavery risks is now available: Modern Slavery in the Health Services Sector: Practical responses to managing risks to people . The guide, developed by the Australian Human Rights Commission in collaboration with KPMG Australia, is the third in a suite of sector-specific guides which aim to help Australian businesses understand and ... -
Asylum Seekers and Refugees
17 June 2019Media ReleaseRisk management in immigration detention report released
Any significant restrictions imposed on a person held in immigration detention, including the widespread use of restraints like handcuffs, must be tailored to individual circumstances and risks, according to a new report released by the Australian Human Rights Commission today . The Commission has made 34 recommendations to improve risk management practice based on its inspections of detention ... -
Disability Rights
22 November 2023Media ReleaseNew approach to disability employment sees outstanding results
A national disability employment project has delivered exceptional success rates, and created a new blueprint for how businesses could increase employment opportunities for people with disability. IncludeAbility, a project of the Australian Human Rights Commission, ran three-month employment pilots in Perth and the Illawarra with the goal of increasing meaningful work opportunities for people with ... -
Rights and Freedoms
14 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 ... -
Disability Rights
6 October 2020Submission
People with Disability and Employment (2020)
Submission to the Royal Commission into Violence, Abuse, Neglect and Exploitation of People with Disability -
Technology and Human Rights
23 February 2024SubmissionAustralia and Lethal Autonomous Weaponry
Learn more about Australia's approach to lethal autonomous weapons systems and what this means for human rights. -
Asylum Seekers and Refugees
27 August 2021News story
Commission statement on Australia’s response to Afghanistan crisis
The Australian Human Rights Commission has serious concerns about the human rights situation in Afghanistan, heightened by the attacks on Kabul airport overnight, and the corresponding impacts on the Afghan diaspora in Australia. -
Commission – General
1 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 ...