News

Commission – General

President Speech: Mandatory immigration detention of children in Australia: how far have we come and where to from here? (2010)

I knew Brad well and admired him a great deal. We met when he joined the Crown Solicitor’s Office and we worked closely together in that office for a number of years. He was appointed Crown Solicitor of South Australia when I left that position to practice at the private Bar. He was subsequently appointed Solicitor-General of South Australia, the office from which, I believe, he made his greatest contribution to Australian public law.

18 November, 2010

Rights and Freedoms

All people have a fundamental human right to seek asylum from persecution (2010)

The following opinion pieces have been published by the President and Commissioners. Reproduction of the opinion pieces must include reference to where the opinion piece was originally published.

2 November, 2010

Commission – General

President Speech: Conservation, Participation and Human Rights

First, may I acknowledge the traditional owners of the land on which we meet, the Gadigal people of the Eora nation, and pay my respects to their elders, both past and present.

1 September, 2010

Rights and Freedoms

Opening a door on the bleak truth of homelessness (2010)

The following opinion pieces have been published by the President and Commissioners. Reproduction of the opinion pieces must include reference to where the opinion piece was originally published.

18 June, 2010

Commission – General

President Speech: The role of the Australian Human Rights Commission in protecting and promoting human rights in Australia

I would like to begin by saying how delighted I am to be here speaking this evening about the work of the Australian Human Rights Commission. I hope also to learn more about the protection of human rights in Japan and about your proposal for a national human rights institution in Japan. This is my first time to Japan and I am thrilled to be here. I am grateful for all the work that has gone into the preparation for this session and for my visit. And I thank those who have looked after me so well since I arrived in your country.

27 April, 2010

Commission – General

President speech: The role of culture and human rights in promoting human development

[1] According to the 2003 Convention for the Safeguarding of the Intangible Cultural Heritage, the intangible cultural heritage (ICH) – or living heritage – is the mainspring of our cultural diversity and its maintenance a guarantee for continuing creativity. It is defined as follows: Intangible Cultural Heritage means the practices, representations, expressions, knowledge, skills – as well as the instruments, objects, artefacts and cultural spaces associated therewith – that communities, groups and, in some cases, individuals recognize as part of their cultural heritage.

8 July, 2009

Rights and Freedoms

Stand on your rights, or see them trampled (2009)

Australia is a great country to live in — for most of us most of the time. We don’t suffer the terrible poverty witnessed in some parts of the world, our judicial system works well by international standards and most of us can vote in elections by secret ballot. Most of us can live pretty safely, say what we like most of the time and, if we are so inclined, practise our faith in peace. Most of us have access to decent education and health services.

18 March, 2009

Commission – General

Preventing injustice before it can happen – Let’s bring human rights home (2008)

What sort of Australia do we want to live in? I'm quite sure most people, like me, would say they want to live in a society where respect for the individual is recognised as precious. Where everyone is valued, whether they are male or female, young or old, an Aboriginal or Torres Strait Islander, whatever their faith, whether or not they have a disability - everyone.

10 December, 2008

Commission – General

2008 Human Rights Day Oration

I would like to begin by acknowledging the Gadigal people of the Eora nation, the traditional owners of the land on which we meet today, and pay my respects to their elders past and present.

10 December, 2008

Rights and Freedoms

Don Dunstan Oration (2008)

People often ask me why I feel so strongly about human rights. Perhaps it is fate - both the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and I were born 60 years ago. But I think it is simpler than that - I want to feel proud of the Australia that I live in.  

28 November, 2008

Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Social Justice

Indigenous Studies and Indigenous Knowledge Conference

I begin by paying my respects to the Mouhenenner people, the traditional owners of the land where we gather today. I pay my respects to your elders, to the ancestors and to those who have come before us.

3 July, 2008

Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Social Justice

Can the end ever justify the means?

Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Social Justice Commissioner and acting Race Discrimination Commissioner, Human Rights and Equal Opportunity Commission

18 September, 2007

Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Social Justice

Indigenous health: real solutions for a chronic problem (2007)

I would like to acknowledge the Yolngu people on whose land we are today. I would also like to thank Charles Darwin University for inviting me to speak at this Garma festival where we celebrate the Yolngu culture and world view.

6 August, 2007

Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Social Justice

Addressing Indigenous health inequality within a generation – a call to action: Calma (2007)

There have been some improvements in recent years. But there is a long way to go. Indigenous peoples make gains but they are often smaller than those made by the non-Indigenous population - so the disparity in life chances remains static. In fact, there has been very little reduction in this inequality gap in Australia in the past decade.

4 April, 2007

LGBTIQ+

Opinion Pieces - It's hard to argue against equality (2007)

Federal laws prohibit discrimination against women, older people, people with disability and people of different races. However, there are 60-plus pieces of federal legislation which specifically deny financial and work-related benefits to same-sex couples.

1 March, 2007