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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… -
Sex Discrimination
3 May 2021Publication
Change the Routine: Independent Review into Gymnastics in Australia
Placing the voices of children and young people and their families at the centre, this report outlines the Commission’s key findings and presents 12 recommendations for whole of sport change. -
Legal
1 December 2022Media ReleaseArtificial intelligence and anti-discrimination: Major new publication
The Australian Human Rights Commission (AHRC) and the Actuaries Institute (Institute) today said while artificial intelligence (AI) promises faster and smarter decision making, safeguards are needed to prevent potential discrimination. -
Asylum Seekers and Refugees
2 July 2020Opinion pieceBlanket bans would be unacceptable
During lockdown, many of us – myself included – have become even more reliant on our mobile phones. They have kept us in contact with parents, children and grandchildren, our colleagues and friends during this difficult time. When my two-year old first saw his grandmother on a smartphone, he squealed with delight. It wasn’t quite the same as being together — he pawed at the screen to try to… -
Legal
22 March 2024Speech
Probate and Lunatics: A Curious Cameo of Supreme Court History
ANZOA meeting Perspectives on Fairness Meeting of the Minds Emeritus Professor Rosalind Croucher AM President, Australian Human Rights Commission Acknowledgment I would like to begin my presentation by acknowledging the traditional custodians of the land where I am delivering my presentation today, the Gadigal people of the Eora nation, and pay my respects to the elders, past, present and… -
Rights and Freedoms
9 April 2020E-bulletin (Monthly)Community update: COVID-19 (April 2020)
Here to help, human rights in COVID times -
Asylum Seekers and Refugees
5 August 2020Media Release
Statement on Christmas Island immigration detention
The Australian Human Rights Commission is deeply concerned that the Australian Border Force plans to re-open the immigration detention facility at Christmas Island. The Commission has carried out inspections of Australia's onshore and offshore immigration detention facilities for many years. The Commission's advice has been consistent: Christmas Island is not an appropriate place for an -
Commission – General
14 March 2024SpeechPerspectives on Fairness
ANZOA meeting Meeting of the Minds Acknowledgment I would like to begin my presentation by acknowledging the traditional custodians of the land where I am delivering my presentation today, the Gadigal people of the Eora nation, and pay my respects to the elders, past, present and emerging. I would like to thank Janine Young, Energy & Water Ombudsman, NSW and current Chair of ANZOA, for… -
Asylum Seekers and Refugees
26 July 2019Media Release
Transferring asylum seeker families to Nauru – human rights report
The practice of sending to Nauru families with young children who arrived in Australia seeking asylum is the subject of an inquiry report by the Australian Human Rights Commission tabled in Parliament today. [1] Mr Richard Lancaster SC, as delegate of the President, found that the regional processing centre on Nauru was not an appropriate place to send families with young children… -
Technology and Human Rights
26 June 2023Speech
Stopping Killer Robots
Learn more about how lethal autonomous weapons systems (LAWS) threaten human rights and why they must be prohibited. -
Disability Rights
6 March 2024SpeechGood Access is Good Business
City of Sydney Business Breakfast Keynote Address City of Sydney Council Keynote Address for President and Acting Disability Discrimination Commissioner Rosalind Croucher Time: Session commences at 7:45am. Session concludes at 10am. Speakers to arrive at 7:30am. Location: Town Hall, Sydney Speaking time: 8:30am – 8:50am for twenty minutes Topic: The business case for access and inclusion… -
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 -
Business and Human Rights
19 March 2021Project
Tackling modern slavery and labour exploitation with the Cleaning Accountability Framework
The Australian Human Rights Commission has partnered with the Cleaning Accountability Framework (CAF) to tackle modern slavery and labour exploitation in the cleaning industry. -
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. -
Rights and Freedoms
21 April 2020Opinion piece
Resisting 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… -
Rights and Freedoms
18 November 2022Speech
Housing and human rights - rights where it matters
Sandy Duncanson Memorial Lecture Housing and human rights – rights where it matters Hobart, 11 October 2022 Abstract Homelessness can happen to anyone. People with disability are at an increased risk and they are joined by a growing invisible cohort of older women. COVID-19 was a trigger for state governments to find shelter for people living rough, illustrating that solutions to… -
Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Social Justice
28 May 2020Opinion pieceLearning from crisis
Six weeks ago I returned to my traditional homeland near Fitzroy Crossing in Western Australia. Thanks to modern technology, I am working remotely and continuing my duties as Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Social Justice Commissioner. Like many Aboriginal people, I chose to return to Country because COVID-19 travel restrictions made homeland communities the safest place to see out the… -
LGBTIQ+
15 August 2023Media ReleaseCommission welcomes resolution in Census inclusion complaint
The Australian Human Rights Commission (AHRC) today welcomes the resolution of a discrimination complaint brought against the Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS) over the 2021 Census. The complaint, filed with the AHRC by community organisation Equality Australia and individual April Long, argued that the survey failed to ask meaningful questions to properly count members of the LGBTIQA+ -
Age Discrimination
30 June 2020Opinion piece
We can all help end elder abuse
There are no exact figures on elder abuse in Australia. There is a study underway, but we may never know the total number of older people experiencing elder abuse in this country because it often takes place in secret and behind closed doors. Current estimates from Australian Institute of Family Studies are that between 2 and 14 per cent of older Australians experience elder abuse in any… -
Technology and Human Rights
27 May 2021Media Release
Australians Deserve Technology that Protects Human Rights
Learn more about how ethical AI, facial recognition and biometrics technologies can embody human rights if designed and deployed appropriately.