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Good afternoon ladies and gentlemen. Welcome to the launch of the report of the national inquiry into the human rights of people with mental illness. This report is the result of extensive research; public hearings in all States and Territories; and oral evidence and written submissions from over 1300 witnesses. I have been extremely fortunate to have the assistance of two commissioners with a…

I would like to acknowledge the Ngunnawal People , the traditional owners of the land on which we stand, and pay my respects to their elders past and present.

I congratulate the Probation and Parole Officers' Association for their initiative in organizing this conference on Mental Health, Criminal Justice and Corrections.

Thank you for the opportunity to speak here today, World Mental Health Day. I am very pleased that World Mental Health Day this year is dedicated to the theme Human Rights and Mental Health. This theme recognises that mental health issues are human rights issues - a view argued strongly and consistently by our Human Rights Commission for many years.

Over the last four years the Human Rights and Equal Opportunity Commission (the Commission) has played a key role in raising community awareness about the human rights Australians with a mental illness. The Commission, through its public inquiry process, brought into national focus how, amongst other things, people affected by mental illness frequently faced discrimination and stigmatisation…

I'd like to start by acknowledging the traditional owners of the land on which we meet, the Ngunnawal people, in whose language Canberra means meeting place as you probably know.

Attorney-General Ruddock; Michael Apps and representatives of the bus and coach industry; Margo Hodge and representatives of the disability community; ladies and gentlemen.

Probably most of us here are parents, and we all have dreams for our children. One of my dreams for my 18-year-old son and his girl friend is that they will be able to participate in society in the same way as everyone else.

I want to start, though, by talking for a few minutes about the broader legislative context under the Disability Discrimination Act and about what all of this is for in terms of achieving access and inclusion.

Over the past 10 years I have been involved in developing resources and providing informal assistance to organisations developing Action Plans throughout Australia. This has included assisting in the preparation of the initial guides to developing action plans produced in 1995 and the subsequent publication Developing an Effective Action Plan produced in 1999 both of which can be found on our…

Both men acquired their disabilities 20 years ago. Neither of them work, nor do they have daily activities, or relationships with people outside their family.

Alan used to work as a civil engineer, and is a trombone player with two orchestras and two bands. He has competed in the Australian Band Championships for the last three years. He sold his soils laboratory to 'retire', and has never looked back. He still works part-time in soil testing, but as well as trombone playing he is a volunteer in a Rotary shop, walks 30-40 kilometers weekly, won a…

I'm a proud Australian. We live in a great democracy, with one of the strongest economies in the world. I'm not proud, though, of how we treat Australians with disability- some of our most disadvantaged citizens. And we are all ashamed that, in such a strong nation, that treatment continues. This shame can no longer continue. So let's fix the system. Let's have an NDIS so that not some, but every…

Australia became a party to the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities in 2008. The rest of the world refers to it by the unappealing acronym of CRPD, or the Disability Convention, but I like to refer to it as the Disco. It's catchy, and it creates a great image for me of people with disability dancing, and being to go anywhere they want - although I haven't been inside a disco for…

At this Summit in 2010, I talked about the crucial roles of a National Disability Insurance Scheme. They were in moving to a society that respects, protects, promotes and fulfils human rights for people with disability.  I used the title Money Changes Everything - But What's Insurance Got to Do with It?

Amnesty International conference: Human rights challenges and opportunities in the 21st  century Brisbane 6 October 2011 Graeme Innes, Disability Discrimination Commissioner

On behalf of the Australian Human Rights Commission I would like to welcome you to this event to mark the commencement of the Disability (Access to Premises - buildings) Standards (Premises Standards).

I also acknowledge Minister Macklin, Parliamentary Secretary Shorten, and other representatives from Australia's governments, and from disability community organisations.

Thanks for the chance to speak with you today. As you might guess, in my role as Disability Discrimination Commissioner, I receive many invitations to speak at functions on the international day. One of the reasons I chose this invitation is because of the really important role that Local Government plays in the lives of all Australians. It deals with the issues that are in your face- and I know,…