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Age Discrimination
16 May 2023SpeechHuman Rights Don't Diminish With Age (2023)
Hon. Dr Kay Patterson AO Age Discrimination Commissioner Speech to Chris Barnard Nursing Agency (CBNA) MACG Grand Cedar, Ashwood VIC, 3 May 2023 CHECK AGAINST DELIVERY Welcome everyone - I wish to acknowledge the Wurundjeri Woi Wurrung and Bunurong people as the traditional owners of the lands from which I speak and pay respect to their Elders, past, present and emerging. I also want to -
Asylum Seekers and Refugees
9 October 2019Media ReleaseCourt finds asylum seekers entitled to fair process
Up to 71 asylum seekers who missed out on making an application for a protection visa were still entitled to a fair assessment of their claims the Full Federal Court has held. The Court accepted submissions from the Australian Human Rights Commission that an internal process established by the Department of Home Affairs should have provided them with procedural fairness. As a result of the … -
Asylum Seekers and Refugees
5 May 2021Media Release
Media Statement: Federal Court improves pathways to protection for more than a thousand asylum seekers taken to Ashmore reef
More than 1,000 asylum seekers have a greater ability to apply for protection in Australia following a landmark judgment by the Federal Court on Tuesday. “When a person seeks asylum in Australia, it’s vital that their application be processed quickly, fairly and transparently. This judgment will remove administrative barriers for a vulnerable group of people who have been waiting too long to… -
Disability Rights
29 September 2023Media ReleaseCommission welcomes ‘historic and transformative’ Disability Royal Commission report
Read our media release welcoming the release of the final report from the Disability Royal Commission, noting the huge significance the report’s contents will have for people with disability and their loved ones for decades to come. -
Commission – General
27 August 2021Publication
Corporate Plan 2021 - 2022
Respect for human rights and freedoms is the cornerstone of a cohesive and peaceful society in which everyone can make a contribution and feel safe and included. This Corporate Plan shows how we achieve our purpose and promote an Australian society where human rights are enjoyed by everyone, everywhere, everyday -
Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Social Justice
1 November 2022News storyStatement of condolence for Cassius Turvey's family and community
We are deeply saddened by the death of 15-year-old Cassius Turvey last week in Perth. As this matter is before the courts, it would not be appropriate for us to make comment on the circumstances surrounding Cassius’s passing. -
Commission – General
28 August 2020Publication
Corporate Plan 2020 - 2021
Respect for human rights and freedoms is the cornerstone of a cohesive and peaceful society in which everyone can make a contribution and feel safe and included. This Corporate Plan shows how we achieve our purpose and promote an Australian society where human rights are enjoyed by everyone, everywhere, everyday. It has been prepared in accordance with s 35(1)(b) of the Public Governance -
1 March 2024Event
Livestream the Launch of Wiyi Yani U Thangani Institute
Launch of the Wiyi Yani U Thangani Institute and Change Agenda for First Nations Gender Justice Livestream Join us virtually to celebrate the official launch of the Wiyi Yani U Thangani Institute, and the Wiyi Yani U Thangani Change Agenda for First Nations Gender Justice! This historic event will be accessible via l ivestream from 6:15pm (AEDT) on Tuesday 19 March 2024. This is a free… -
Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Social Justice
31 October 2023Opinion piece
Now is the time to act. The referendum must not lead to despair, but to a search for new ways to secure justice
This opinion piece by Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Social Justice Commissioner June Oscar AO, appeared in The Guardian Australia on Sunday 29 October 2023 The day the proposal for a constitutionally enshrined Indigenous voice was rejected by the majority of my fellow Australians will be remembered by many as a sombre day in our country’s history. After the result, there is much pain… -
Asylum Seekers and Refugees
2 December 2020Publication
Inspections of Australia's immigration detention facilities 2019 Report
Human Rights Commissioner’s foreword For several decades, the Australian Human Rights Commission has expressed deep and longstanding concern about the human rights of people held in Australia’s immigration detention facilities. As a result of our most recent inspection process, that concern has deepened. Some of the issues of greatest concern to the Commission are as follows. A number of… -
Rights and Freedoms
21 April 2020Opinion pieceResisting extremism in a pandemic
When the COVID-19 pandemic spread to this big island of ours, our leaders made a momentous decision: they decided to save as many human lives as possible. This was the right decision. It shows we as a country care about human life above all else. But now we face an even harder question: how to save lives while preventing economic collapse and staying true to our democratic values? In order… -
Commission – General
15 September 2021Speech
Human Rights Day Oration 2020: Rosemary Kayess and Nas Campanella
The 2020 Human Rights Day Oration was delivered by leading disability rights advocate Rosemary Kayess, winner of the 2019 Human Rights Medal, and a contributor to the drafting of the UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (CRPD). Ms Kayess discussed the social transformation of CRPD and the impact it has had on the community as well as her work with the Disability Royal -
Rights and Freedoms
13 March 2024Speech
The Commission’s model for a Human Rights Act for Australia
The Australian Human Rights Commission's model proposes a national Human Rights Act, safeguarding rights for all Australians and addressing human rights concerns. It aims to modernize the legal framework. -
Disability Rights
3 May 2022Publication
RetroFit Kit exhibition (2022)
The RetroFit Kit exhibition demonstrates how common Australian housing types could be systemically modified to achieve seamless and dignified home environments for people with disability, their families, carers and future occupants. -
Rights and Freedoms
28 September 2023Opinion piece
COVID-19 Inquiry a missed opportunity
Read the Human Rights Commissioner, Ms Lorraine Finlay's op-ed about the terms of reference for the inquiry in Australia's pandemic response. Understanding the full human cost of the pandemic is vital for ensuring a more effective response for future public emergencies. -
Age Discrimination
8 August 2023Speech
Building a better cultural inheritance for an ageing Australia
Hon Dr Kay Patterson AO Age Discrimination Commissioner Keynote Address to National Press Club of Australia, Canberra Wednesday, 28 June, 2023 CHECK AGAINST DELIVERY Welcome Thank you Andrew Tillett (National Press Club Vice President) for your kind introduction. I am sometimes introduced incorrectly, but maybe more accurately, as the Ageing Discrimination Commissioner. I wish to acknowledge… -
Children's Rights
17 January 2019SpeechMegan Mitchell at the National Press Club
I would like to acknowledge the Traditional Owners of the land we gather on today, and across Australia, and pay my respects to Elders past, present and future. Thanks to UNICEF for the opportunity to share the moment in which both our reports are submitted, and Anne Sherry in particular. Congratulations also to UNICEF and the Child Rights Taskforce on this fabulous report. When Australia… -
14 April 2022Conciliation register
2020-04-03
The complainant has schizophrenia and a back injury and was employed in an IT role with the respondent government agency. He alleged he was treated less favourably because he has schizophrenia, including by being excluded from the workplace, being given excessive work to perform at home, having his personal property tampered with and being referred to as ‘weird’. He also alleged the agency… -
Age Discrimination
15 June 2023Media Release
New multicultural education campaign seeks to reduce elder abuse via later life planning
A new education campaign is urging older Australians from a range of culturally diverse backgrounds to safeguard themselves against elder abuse by organising their wills, enduring powers of attorney and other important legal documents. Launching on this year’s World Elder Abuse Awareness Day, the Have You Thought About Later Life? campaign has been produced by the Australian Human Rights -
Rights and Freedoms
17 January 2019Media Release
Modern Slavery and Beyond
As the Federal Senate debates the Modern Slavery Bill this week, the 2018 Australian Dialogue on Business and Human Rights takes place in Sydney today with modern slavery prevention as the key theme. It’s the fifth time the Global Compact Network Australia and the Australian Human Rights Commission have joined forces to address the ongoing challenges facing business, government, civil…