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Asylum Seekers and Refugees
19 April 2024News story
Inspection report: “serious concerns” at Yongah Hill Detention Centre
An inspection report by the Australian Human Rights Commission has found that a high-security immigration detention centre in Western Australia was, in part, “no longer fit for purpose”, and raised serious concerns over safety conditions and the level of care for detainees and staff. The Yongah Hill Immigration Detention Centre Inspection Report followed a two-day inspection of the adult… -
Technology and Human Rights
6 May 2024Opinion pieceProtecting Free Speech Doesn’t Mean Dismissing Online Safety
This opinion piece by Human Rights Commissioner, Lorraine Finlay, appeared in The Australian on Monday 29 April 2024. When President Roosevelt gave the 1941 State of the Union Address he spoke of four essential human freedoms that people ‘everywhere in the world’ ought to enjoy. The very first of these was freedom of speech and expression. Free speech was listed first because it is the… -
8 February 2024Conciliation register
2022-10-04
The complainant’s six-year-old son has Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder, Autism Spectrum Disorder and developmental delay. The complainant alleged the respondent independent school did not allow her son to attend the first week of kindergarten because he may scare other children and then would only allow him to attend school for three hours per day. The complainant also alleged that… -
International
2 November 2023News story
Engaging with the international human rights system
The Australian Human Rights Commission has recently hosted visits from two UN Special Rapporteurs: the UN Special Rapporteur on the sale and sexual exploitation of children and the UN Special Rapporteur on Human Rights and Climate Change. Special Rapporteurs are independent human rights experts appointed by the United Nations Human Rights Council to investigate, report on and make… -
6 February 2024Conciliation register
2022-10-10
The complainant works as a software support officer at the respondent company. He said that his son has a learning disability, asthma and Attention Deficit and Hyperactivity Disorder and needs a lot of one-to-one support and tuition. He alleged the company denied his request for a small reduction in working hours a few days a week to enable him to attend appointments and that a manager told… -
Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Social Justice
5 March 2024Media ReleaseCommission welcomes new Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Social Justice Commissioner
The Australian Human Rights Commission welcomes the appointment of Katie Kiss as the new Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Social Justice Commissioner. Ms Kiss is a proud Kaanju and Birri/Widi woman who grew up in Rockhampton, Central Queensland on the lands of the Darumbal People. She is currently the Executive Director of the Interim Truth and Treaty Body supporting Queensland’s Path… -
Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Social Justice
20 March 2024Media Release
Commission celebrates official launch of the Wiyi Yani U Thangani Institute
Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Social Justice Commissioner June Oscar AO has launched a dedicated Institute to elevate the voices and solutions of First Nations women and girls – the Wiyi Yani U Thangani Institute for First Nations gender justice. The Australian-first Institute, housed at the Australian National University (ANU) on Ngunnawal and Ngambri Country, ensures the… -
Rights and Freedoms
22 March 2024SpeechThe AHRC’s model for a Human Rights Act for Australia
ANU and Amnesty International Emeritus Professor Rosalind Croucher AM FAAL FRSA FACLM(Hon) [ Check against delivery] I would like to begin by acknowledging the Ngunnawal and Ngambri people, the traditional custodians of the land on which I am speaking today and pay my respects to elders past, present and emerging and to any First Peoples attending. The Australian Human Rights Commission, as… -
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
19 April 2024Publication
Yongah Hill Immigration Detention Inspection Report
In 2023, the Commission monitored the human rights of people detained at the Yongah Hill Immigration Detention Centre. The Commission’s inspection report provides 33 recommendations, noting key observations and concerns. -
Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Social Justice
3 May 2023Webpage
Wiyi Yani U Thangani National Summit Livestream
Welcome to the livestream of the Wiyi Yani U Thangani National Summit of First Nations women, held over three days from 9-11 May 2023. The Summit brings together First Nations women delegates from across Australia, for decision-making, innovation and celebration and is the first ever national gathering of its kind. Please scroll down to see the livestream schedule, or click here to learn… -
Commission – General
10 December 2020Media ReleaseRosemary Kayess gives 2020 Human Rights Oration
Leading disability rights advocate Rosemary Kayess will give the 2020 Human Rights Day Oration today. Last year’s Human Rights Medal winner, and a contributor to the drafting of the UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (CRPD), Rosemary Kayess will discuss the social transformation of CRPD and the impact it has had on the community as well as her work with the Disability… -
10 February 2021Conciliation register
2020-01-01
The complainant’s 15-year-old son has Autism Spectrum Disorder and Attention-Deficit and Hyperactivity Disorder and can become distressed when in crowded and noisy environments. The complainant claimed he was unable to take his son to a multi-day agricultural show because organisers did not schedule a day with reduced noise and crowds in order to accommodate the needs of people with… -
Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Social Justice
9 March 2023Event
Wiyi Yani U Thangani National Summit. We are the change. 9-11 May 2023
The Wiyi Yani U Thangani (Women's Voices) National Summit was held over three days from 9-11 May 2023, with an additional one-day Youth Forum on 8 May 2023. The Summit brought together over 800 First Nations women delegates from across Australia, for decision-making, innovation and celebration. -
Asylum Seekers and Refugees
20 June 2023Media Release
Inspection report: Serious human rights concerns in hotel detention
Explore an inspection report by the Commission that found serious human rights concerns persist in the use of hotels as alternative places of detention. -
Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Social Justice
24 May 2023News story
Uluru Convention ‘an historic opportunity for change’
“We gather from the furthest corners of this country to discuss a matter of great importance: how we, as the First Peoples of this country, stand in Australia’s founding legal document – the Constitution.” In her opening remarks to the Uluru National Convention, the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Social Justice Commissioner, June Oscar, described this week’s gathering of Aboriginal… -
Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Social Justice
8 March 2021Media Release
Celebrating First Nations women on IWD
On International Women’s Day (IWD) the Commission pays tribute to the tireless and important work of First Nations women across Australia. Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Social Justice Commissioner June Oscar AO has called for recognition and celebration of the power and potential of deadly First Nations women all over the country who are leading, nurturing and growing the oldest… -
Age Discrimination
14 June 2022News storyElder abuse resources available in 20 languages
The Australian Human Rights Commission has produced bookmarks and posters in 20 languages to empower communities to recognise elder abuse and know where to seek help. The release of these resources coincides with World Elder Abuse Awareness Day (tomorrow Wednesday 15 June), a day which takes place every year, throughout the world, to call out the abuse and exploitation of older people as a… -
Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Social Justice
25 September 2023Video
2022 Human Rights Oration by Larissa Behrendt
Distinguished Professor Larissa Behrendt AO, winner of the 2021 Human Rights Medal, delivered the annual Human Rights Day Oration at the 2022 Human Rights Awards. She called for structural reform and self-determination for First Nations people: “Departments of child protection need to be replaced by empowered community-controlled organisations and true self determination. Child prisons and -
Sex Discrimination
7 March 2020SpeechIs it coming up roses yet? Women in the 21st century
International Women’s Day Lunch Union, University and Schools Club Thank you to the Union, University and Schools Club for inviting me to speak and to Dr Mary Forbes for reaching out to. This is a wonderful event. Full of pride, full of celebration—and full of women and supportive men! Let me begin by acknowledging the traditional custodians of the land on which we meet, the Gadigal people…