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This submission addresses some of the issues and questions raised in the background papers prepared by the Human Rights and Equal Opportunity Commission (HREOC) and in relation to the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child (1989) and the Convention Relating to the Status of Refugees (1951) and its 1967 Protocol (the Refugee Convention). The conclusions drawn in this submission arise out of the experiences of staff and members of the Uniting Church in Australia. We do acknowledge that the evidence presented here is therefore anecdotal.

DR OZDOWSKI: It is 9.30 so we will start another day off, formal hearings. My name is Dr Sev Ozdowski and I'm the Human Rights Commissioner. To my right is Dr Trang Thomas, Professor of Psychology at the Royal Melbourne Institute of Technology and to my left Mrs Robin Sullivan, Queensland's Children's Commissioner. Both of them do assist me with the Inquiry as Assistant Commissioners. Also, on my left Ms Vanessa Lesnie who is Secretary to the Inquiry.

Lutheran Community Care, South Australia is pleased to use the opportunity to make a submission to the above Inquiry, based upon extensive experience and expertise in working with families, including refugee families.

During these ten years, thousands of individuals and organisations have used the DDA to create change, either by making complaints of discrimination, using the law as a basis for negotiating broad social change or educating organisations on their responsibilities.

This is a Report of the findings and reasons for findings made by the Human Rights and Equal Opportunity Commission (the Commission) following an inquiry conducted by the Commission.[1] The inquiry related to a complaint by Amnesty International Australia (Amnesty) against the Commonwealth of Australia (the Commonwealth), Department of Immigration, Multicultural and Indigenous Affairs (the Department).

As this Committee knows well, in April 2006 the Human Rights and Equal Opportunity Commission launched the Same-Sex: Same Entitlements National Inquiry. Since that time we have travelled around Australia to hear, first hand, about the impact of discriminatory laws on same-sex couples and their children. We produced two discussion papers and received 680 written submissions from across Australia. And our final report was tabled in Parliament on 21 June 2007.

Underpinning the Government’s partnerships approach to Indigenous policy is the belief that economic development is the key to sustainable improvement in the quality of life of residents of Indigenous communities.1

1. The provisions made by Australia to implement its international human rights obligations regarding child asylum seekers, including unaccompanied minors

Centacare Newcastle is the official welfare arm of the Catholic Diocese of Maitland-Newcastle. The service was established in 1961 and is one of the longest standing welfare agencies in the Hunter. Centacare aims to provide high quality services concerned with the alleviation of conditions which lead to injustice or misery through poverty, alienation, unemployment, marital disharmony, child abuse, neglect and rejection, helplessness or other forms of suffering and distress.

Disability is a normal part of life. Anyone in the community might experience a disability at some stage of their life - men and women, young and old, city and country dwellers. In fact, almost 20% of Australians - 3.96 million - have some sort of disability.