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Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Social Justice Commissioner Katie Kiss today paid tribute to Minister for Indigenous Australians Linda Burney, who has resigned from the frontbench and will not contest the next election.

Age Discrimination Commissioner Robert Fitzgerald AM has warned the ongoing cost-of-living crisis is likely to lead to an increased risk of elder abuse with Australia needing to further bolster its efforts to address the nationwide problem. Elder abuse is when harm is done to an older person by someone they know and trust, often a family member. It can take many forms, including neglect,…

The report identifies data collection and education on racism, and cultural safety as key themes. It also identifies media regulation, standards, and legal protections as priority areas for action. 

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…

Waleed Aly, Michael Kirby, Jennifer Robinson, Adam Spencer and Nazeem Hussain are part of a unique and compelling show during the upcoming Vivid Sydney festival which will explore how an Australian Human Rights Act could help stop rights going wrong in the future. Part of the Vivid Ideas program, Rights On Time puts a fresh spin on the panel format by locating Nazeem Hussain in a…

Australia’s Human Rights Commissioner is set to appear before the United Nations Committee Against Torture in Geneva next week to provide analysis of how Australia measures up against our obligations under the UN’s Convention Against Torture (CAT) and its associated Optional Protocol (OPCAT).

Vivid Sydney festivalgoers looking for some fabulous intellectual entertainment can now have double the fun at the Rights On Time panel show on Thursday 6 June with a 2-for-1 ticket offer now available! Get set for the time of your rights as ‘sleek geek’ Adam Spencer corrals some of Australia’s favourite TV personalities, comedians, legal eagles and social justice advocates as they travel…

A new parliamentary report recommending a National Human Rights Act as part of a revitalised Human Rights Framework brings Australia closer than ever before to establishing the basic legal protections that Australians need. The report, tabled in Federal Parliament today, includes an example of legislation for a National Human Rights Act, building on decades of work and reinforcing…

The Respect@Work Council, chaired by National Sex Discrimination Commissioner Kate Jenkins, has launched a new website that will help employers prevent and respond to sexual harassment, and will support them to create gender inclusive, safe, and respectful workplaces.

Sport and human rights leaders are encouraging all Australians to “stand for inclusivity”, launching new guidelines that promote the inclusion of transgender and gender diverse people in sport. National Guidelines for the inclusion of transgender and gender diverse people in sport were launched in Melbourne today. The Guidelines were developed by the Australian Human Rights Commission in

Leading human rights advocates from across Australia and around the world are set to give a massive boost to efforts to introduce an Australian Human Rights Act at a historic forum in June during the Vivid Sydney festival. The final line-up of speakers has just been announced with more than 60 eminent experts, thought leaders, social justice advocates and community heroes set to provide a…

Australia’s Age Discrimination Commissioner, Robert Fitzgerald AM, has called on the Federal Government to formally endorse the creation of a UN Convention on the Rights of Older Persons, in what he said remains a missing piece in the international human rights framework. Currently, there is no binding international instrument dedicated to the rights of older persons, like there is for race,…

The Australian Human Rights Commission, the New Zealand Human Rights Commission along with FIFA have today published a Human Rights Risk Assessment for the next FIFA Women's World Cup, to be held in Australia and Aotearoa New Zealand in 2023. The assessment examined the potential human rights impact of the FIFA Women’s World Cup 2023™ on players, spectators, workers and local communities in …

Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Social Justice Commissioner, Katie Kiss, has marked the start of Reconciliation Week by calling on Australians to finally overcome generations of disadvantage and division when it comes to First Nations rights, and forge a path for unity. The Commissioner warned that systemic failures facing Indigenous communities in all sectors of society including…

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…

The Australian Human Rights Commission will undertake further anti-racism work to support communities in Australia affected by the war in Gaza and the Middle East, supported by a $2 million grant from the Commonwealth. The grant responds to an increase in racism targeting Palestinian, Muslim, Arab, and Jewish communities within Australia since the outbreak of the conflict. Australian Human…