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Rights and Freedoms
4 February 2022SubmissionMonitoring of Places of Detention (Optional Protocol to the Convention Against Torture) Amendment Bill 2022 (Bill)
The Australian Human Rights Commission welcomes the opportunity to make this submission to the Northern Territory Department of the Attorney-General and Justice with respect to its consultation on the draft Monitoring of Places of Detention (Optional Protocol to the Convention Against Torture) Amendment Bill 2022 (Bill). -
Rights and Freedoms
10 December 2021Publication
Free and Equal: A reform agenda for federal discrimination laws (2021)
This Position Paper sets out the Australian Human Rights Commission’s proposals for reforming federal discrimination law in Australia. It forms part of the Commission’s Free and Equal project: A National conversation on human rights. -
Rights and Freedoms
12 October 2021Webpage
COVID-19 vaccinations and federal discrimination law
This page provides general information on COVID–19 vaccinations and federal discrimination law and is intended as a guide only. It gives guidance on the most frequently asked questions we receive on this subject. -
Rights and Freedoms
5 September 2021Webpage
About Rights and Freedoms
Learn about the fundamental rights and freedoms protected in Australia. -
Rights and Freedoms
3 September 2021Webpage
Human rights considerations for vaccine passports and certificates
Learn how vaccine passports are more likely to be consistent with human rights principles when they are used as a tool to improve public health outcomes. -
Rights and Freedoms
29 July 2021Webpage
Face masks and federal discrimination law
At various times during the COVID-19 pandemic, state and territory governments in Australia have made it a requirement for people to wear a face mask in certain settings. The different rules and exemptions around face masks are set out in the relevant state and territory public health orders. The latest mask-wearing requirements can be found on the appropriate state and territory government… -
Rights and Freedoms
15 June 2021Publication
Ms PQ and Ms PR v Commonwealth of Australia (Department of Home Affairs) (2021)
Report into a failure to treat persons deprived of their liberty with humanity and respect for their dignity -
Rights and Freedoms
27 May 2021Video
Accountable AI decision making: Human Rights and Technology 2021
Artificial Intelligence offers great opportunities – but it also has the potential to do great harm. The Australian Human Rights Commission’s new Human Rights and Technology report recommends safeguards to protect the community, as Human Rights Commissioner Ed Santow explains. Read more: https://tech.humanrights.gov.au -
Rights and Freedoms
27 May 2021Video
Accessible technology: Human Rights and Technology 2021
New technology can make our community more inclusive – but we need smart design that works for everyone. The Australian Human Rights Commission's new report on Human Rights and Technology recommends new standards to ensure accessible technology for all, as Human Rights Commissioner Edward Santow explains. Read more: https://tech.humanrights.gov.au -
Rights and Freedoms
1 May 2021Media Release
Travel ban and sanctions on Australians travelling from India
The travel ban on Australian citizens returning from India, accompanied by criminal sanctions under the Biosecurity Act, raises serious human rights concerns. The Commission supports the continuation of aid to the Indian Government as it copes with the current COVID-19 crisis, but the Commission holds deep concerns about these extraordinary new restrictions on Australians returning to… -
Rights and Freedoms
22 April 2021Media Release
Greater scrutiny of emergency powers needed
The Australian Human Rights Commission has called for greater accountability to be embedded in laws that extend the Commonwealth’s power in the event of national emergencies. In its submission to a Senate inquiry examining the National Emergency Declaration Act 2020, the Commission recommended five changes to legislation that was enacted by parliament in 2020. Human Rights Commissioner… -
Rights and Freedoms
20 January 2021Webpage
International engagement
Understand how The Australian Human Rights Commission, as the accredited national human rights institution for Australia, engages with UN mechanisms to promote and protect human rights both domestically and internationally. -
Rights and Freedoms
24 December 2020Publication
LF v Commonwealth of Australia (Department of Home Affairs) (2020)
Read about the case of LF v Commonwealth of Australia (Department of Home Affairs) 2020. -
Rights and Freedoms
11 December 2020Video
Rosemary Kayess: Human Rights Day Oration 2020
Watch Human Rights Medal winner Rosemary Kayess present the 2020 Human Rights Day Oration. Rosemary Kayess is a leading human rights advocate for people with disability in Australia and worldwide. Rosemary contributed to drafting the United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (CRPD) and successfully lobbied for its ratification in Australia. Last year, Rosemary was … -
Rights and Freedoms
1 December 2020Video
Balancing Human Rights During COVID19
Protecting public health and protecting human rights are not mutually exclusive choices – but how do we keep the balance between the two? What safeguards do we need to protect rights and freedoms in Australia and prevent the ‘creeping authoritarianism’ we have witnessed elsewhere in the world? These were just some of the big questions of our time discussed by the panellists during the … -
Rights and Freedoms
19 November 2020Webpage
What are human rights?
Human rights are the ground rules for how we should treat one another: with dignity, respect, equality and fairness. -
Rights and Freedoms
18 November 2020Webpage
How are our human rights protected in law in Australia during COVID-19?
Discover how existing human rights laws continue to apply in Australia during the COVID-19 pandemic to protect the rights of all citizens. -
Rights and Freedoms
18 November 2020Webpage
What human rights are at particular risk of being restricted during a pandemic?
Learn how human rights were restricted during the COVID-19 pandemic and how vulnerable people and groups were subjected to more human rights incursions. -
Rights and Freedoms
11 November 2020Publication
Mr AC v Commonwealth of Australia (Department of Home Affairs) (2020)
Explore a report into arbitrary detention in the case of Mr AC v Commonwealth of Australia (Department of Home Affairs) in 2020. -
Rights and Freedoms
6 November 2020Publication
PD v Commonwealth of Australia (Department of Home Affairs) (2020)
Understand the case of PD v. Commonwealth of Australia (Department of Home Affairs) 2020, exploring the legal issues and decisions.