News
Stop mass incarceration to prevent deaths in custody
Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Social Justice Commissioner, June Oscar AO said Australia must stop the “mass incarceration” of its Indigenous people or else deaths in custody will continue to occur. Commissioner Oscar said her thoughts are with all the families who have lost loved ones over...
Australia needs a National Anti-Racism Framework
Speech by the National Race Discrimination Commissioner, Chin Tan, ahead of the International Day for the Elimination of Racial Discrimination. Hello everyone, wherever you are in Australia. I join you from the lands of the Bunurong Boon Wurrung and Wurundjeri Woi Wurrung peoples of the Eastern...
2020 Kep Enderby Memorial Lecture
How has Australia’s response to the Coronavirus pandemic affected diverse communities? What lessons can be learned? And how can we ensure diverse communities are included in the road to recovery?
Kep Enderby Memorial Lecture
Kep Enderby Memorial Lecture: Racial Equality in the Time of COVID The COVID-19 pandemic has dramatically affected Australia’s diverse communities. From the racial targeting of Asian Australians to the hard lockdown imposed on residents in Melbourne’s public housing towers, the pandemic has also...
Commemorating one year since the Christchurch mosque attack
Australia’s Race Discrimination Commissioner Chin Tan and Human Rights Commissioner Edward Santow have commemorated the one-year anniversary of the Christchurch mosque attack. In a joint statement, they said: “The Christchurch massacre was deeply traumatic for New Zealand’s Muslim community. That...
Submission on the draft Religious Discrimination Bill
The Australian Human Rights Commission supports reform to improve protections against religious discrimination for all people in Australia. While supporting much of the draft Religious Discrimination Bill, the Commission urges that the Bill be amended to avoid limiting other human rights and...
Race Discrimination Commissioner, Mr Chin Tan, on Nelson Mandela Day
Thank you for the very kind welcome. May I extend particular thanks to the Nelson Mandela Day Commemorative Committee (NMDCC) for the invitation and for having me here this evening. Let me start by acknowledging the traditional custodians of this land where we gather tonight, the Wurundjeri people...
National Consultations with Australian Muslims
The Race Discrimination Commissioner Chin Tan will today announce a series of national consultations with the Muslim community in Australia about their experiences of hate speech and violence and about their ideas for change. Commissioner Tan will make the announcement at a Harmony Day Event in...
Reconciliation Australia Barometer shows steady progress, but still work to do
The Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Social Justice Commissioner June Oscar AO and the Race Discrimination Commissioner Chin Tan have welcomed today’s release of the Reconciliation Barometer. The survey conducted every two years since 2008, measures the progress of reconciliation between...
Australian leadership falls short on cultural diversity
Race Discrimination Commissioner Tim Soutphommasane has revisited his Leading for Change (2016) report and found a persistent lack of cultural diversity among leaders in business, politics, government and universities. On 11 April 2018, the Commissioner launches new research that establishes Anglo...
Graduation speech: Moral courage
Speech given at University of South Australia Graduation Ceremony Check against delivery It is wonderful to be joining you this afternoon. To all those who will be graduating very shortly, my warmest congratulations to you. And my congratulations as well to the proud families of graduands. In...