Excerpt from the 2003 Mitchell Oration to be delivered by John von Doussa, QC (2003)

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Excerpt from the 2003 Mitchell Oration to be delivered by John von Doussa, QC on Monday 24 November

Opinion piece by President John von Doussa. Published in the Adelaide Advertiser, 24 November 2003

How do we go about warming the hearts of a sufficient majority to convince political leaders to make decisions that respect human rights?

Plainly, there is no easy solution. There are millions of hearts to be warmed, and what works for some may have little influence on others. There must be many programs, operating on many levels and operating incrementally so as to touch the greatest possible number of people.

In searching for solutions about how to alter community attitudes I mention two crucial areas in which the Human Rights and Equal Opportunity Commission is working.

The first concerns discrimination against Arab and Muslim communities since the September 11 and Bali terrorist attacks. The second relates to broader education on human rights.

The Commission began a dialogue with Arabic and Muslim representatives last year following concerns about continuing religious and racial discrimination. Called Isma ("listen" in Arabic), it has catalogued programs in place around Australia to tackle discrimination and violence. There are many programs - ranging from Arabic hotlines for reporting abuse, state-run conferences, seminars, information about Arabs and Muslims in Australia produced by their representative bodies, and recording of racially motivated crimes by police in some States. The responses are piecemeal; there is duplication and big differences between the actions taken in different States. To have the greatest possible effect, there needs to be more widespread adoption, greater co-operation and learning from the success of others. And in this education will be a central tool.

To be effective all human rights programs must provide information simply and directly and explain the justice of allowing everybody to participate in community life on an equal footing.

Few people would be much the wiser by wading through the text of international instruments that set human rights norms. Understanding is more likely if the notion of human rights is set out in elementary terms. This is a common failure in human rights education that alienates people and can lead to perceptions of a club that only the well-versed can join.

We are all born free and equal. There are basic freedoms that enable us to live with dignity - such as the freedom to make independent choices and to develop our potential as human beings.

Australia should be able to define itself as a nation in a way that reveals how we regard each other as human beings. My colleague, Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Social Justice Commissioner Dr Bill Jonas, has said reconciliation goes to the very core of our national identity - of what it means to be an Australian. This is a good start for our definition.

The fertile minds of primary and secondary students are a good place to begin human rights education. Programs often have to counter stereotyped views at home.

The Commission has developed educational programs for Australian schools. The Youth Challenge began as a day long human rights workshop involving schools from around Australia. It is now a comprehensive web-based program designed so that it can be slotted into the curricula of all secondary schools.

I recently attended a Youth Challenge forum in Adelaide with South Australian Equal Opportunity Commissioner Linda Matthews and federal Sex Discrimination Commissioner Pru Goward on sexual harassment, which involved students from a number of city and country high schools. The students were very perceptive and gave us heart that we can advance an understanding of human rights through the youth of today.

There is a tendency in human rights discussion to refer to the old Chinese proverb that every journey of a thousand miles must begin with a first step. In Australia we are well into the human rights journey. We have made some notable advances along the way. But when the going gets tough, as it is today, each next step becomes as important as the first.

Horror stories about human rights abuses will always be part of the debate. However, if we can influence the large number of Australians not moved by horror stories we can shift the political process. And soften the heart of the nation.

As advocates we must re-ignite old dialogues and coax the broader community to engage productively in the discussion.

As Australians let us not be damned by our silence. Or shamed by our ignorance.

Mr von Doussa will discuss these and other human rights issues in his 2003 Mitchell Oration to be held at the National Wine Centre, Adelaide on 24 November.