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Asylum Seekers and Refugees
12 December 2024Opinion pieceWomen in immigration detention are trapped in a system designed for men. Many have not hugged a family member in years
In an opinion piece published in The Guardian, Human Rights Commissioner Lorraine Finlay Commissioner Finlay describes the harrowing experiences faced by many women in immigration detention and calls for urgent reform to address these human rights failures. It follows the release of the AHRC report into the issue. -
Asylum Seekers and Refugees
9 December 2024Media Release
Women in immigration detention at serious risk of harassment and violence
The Australian Human Rights Commission has called for significant reform to the country’s immigration detention system, after a new report into the treatment of women in detention found their rights, safety and wellbeing are being widely overlooked. These failures, it found, are compounding the risk to women of harassment, violence, and ill health. -
Asylum Seekers and Refugees
27 November 2024News story
Explainer: Commission does not support the Migration Amendment Bill
The Australian Government has introduced new migration laws into Parliament to expand search and seizure powers in immigration detention centres. The Commission does not support the Migration Amendment (Prohibiting Items in Immigration Detention Facilities) Bill 2024 -
Asylum Seekers and Refugees
25 November 2024News story
Submission on the Migration Amendment Bill 2024
The Australian Human Rights Commission has made a submission to the Parliamentary Committee that is considering the Migration Amendment Bill 2024. -
Asylum Seekers and Refugees
2 December 2024Publication
'Not Just An Afterthought’ - Women in Immigration Detention Report
The Australian Human Rights Commission has called for significant reform to the country’s immigration detention system, after a new inspection report into the treatment of women in detention found their rights, safety and wellbeing are being widely overlooked. -
Rights and Freedoms
16 July 2019Media ReleaseUrgent 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… -
Asylum Seekers and Refugees
26 July 2019Media Release
Transferring asylum seeker families to Nauru – human rights report
The practice of sending to Nauru families with young children who arrived in Australia seeking asylum is the subject of an inquiry report by the Australian Human Rights Commission tabled in Parliament today. [1] Mr Richard Lancaster SC, as delegate of the President, found that the regional processing centre on Nauru was not an appropriate place to send families with young children… -
Asylum Seekers and Refugees
16 July 2019Publication
Lives on hold: Refugees and asylum seekers in the 'Legacy caseload' (2019)
This report examines the human rights implications of policies affecting asylum seekers in the ‘Legacy Caseload’. -
Asylum Seekers and Refugees
25 November 2024Submission
Migration Amendment Bill 2024
Learn more about the Migration Amendment Bill 2024 and how it impacts human rights. -
Commission – General
27 August 2024News storyStatement by Commission President Hugh de Kretser
Australian Human Rights Commission President Hugh de Kretser has expressed concerns about calls for Palestinians fleeing Gaza to be denied entry to Australia. -
Asylum Seekers and Refugees
19 April 2024News story
Inspection report: “serious concerns” at Yongah Hill Detention Centre
An inspection report by the Australian Human Rights Commission has found that a high-security immigration detention centre in Western Australia was, in part, “no longer fit for purpose”, and raised serious concerns over safety conditions and the level of care for detainees and staff. The Yongah Hill Immigration Detention Centre Inspection Report followed a two-day inspection of the adult… -
Education25 February 2015Webpage
Face the facts: Asylum Seekers and Refugees
Statistics from 2014 Back to main Face the Facts page All people are entitled to protection of their human rights, including the right to seek asylum, regardless of how or where they arrive in Australia. Australia has ratified the Convention Relating to the Status of Refugees 1951. This Convention defines who is a refugee, sets out the basic rights that countries should guarantee to refugees… -
14 December 2012Book page
Questions and Answers About Refugees & Asylum Seekers
According to the United Nations Convention and Protocol relating to the Status of Refugees (also called the Refugee Convention), a refugee is someone who is outside their own country and cannot return due to a well-founded fear of persecution because of their: -
Commission – General
14 December 2012Speech
President speech: Human Rights, Refugees and Asylum Seekers
I would like to begin this morning by acknowledging the traditional owners of the land on which we meet, the Gadigal People of the Eora Nation. I pay my respects to their elders past and present. -
Asylum Seekers and Refugees
22 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. -
14 December 2012Book page
Community arrangements asylum seekers, refugees + stateless persons
“In Australia, if you have a pet, you take your pet out at least once a week. I haven’t had an excursion in the two years I’ve been in detention ... I don’t even know what Australians look like.” -
14 December 2012Book page
Community arrangements for asylum seekers, refugees and stateless persons
There are a host of benefits associated with community arrangements for asylum seekers, refugees and stateless persons. Community arrangements are more closely aligned with international human rights law and standards than models of indefinite closed immigration detention. They also provide for far more humane treatment of people seeking protection. -
Asylum Seekers and Refugees
10 July 2013Webpage
Speeches, 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. -
Race Discrimination
7 August 2024Webpage
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. -
Rights and Freedoms
14 December 2012Speech
Human rights issues for young refugees and asylum seekers
The globalisation of the world economy, including much improved communication and transportation, has increased flows of people across borders. This includes the movement of children, both with their family and unaccompanied. Separated children crossing borders may be refugees, humanitarian asylum seekers, trafficked girls who will be forced to work as prostitutes, or simply children lost in…