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It is with great pleasure that I present my first Social Justice Report (the Report) as the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Social Justice Commissioner, having commenced my five-year term on 1 February 2010.

I could tell you of heartbreak, hatred blind I could tell of crimes that shame mankind Of brutal wrongs and deeds malign Of rape and murder son of mine

A century ago, the Australian people engaged in a debate about creating a nation. They held meetings...They wrote articles and letters in newspapers. Many views were canvassed and voices were heard. The separate colonies, having divided up the land between them, discussed ways of sharing powers in order to achieve a vision of a united Australia. The result was the Australian Constitution,…

It is a story of colonisation; the threat of losing our cultural authority to manage our societies; and the despair that has come from that disempowerment. It is a story of grief and trauma and the continued pain of living with grog, drug and violence.

The Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Social Justice Commissioner thanks the following people and organisations for their assistance in preparing the Social Justice Report 2010.

In accordance with the functions set out in section 46C(1)(a) of the Australian Human Rights Commission Act 1986 (Cth), this report includes 4 recommendations on justice reinvestment to reduce Indigenous over-representation in the criminal justice system, 7 recommendations for the protection of Indigenous languages and 1 recommendation for sustaining Aboriginal homeland communities.

[1] Extract from United Nations Permanent Forum on Indigenous Issues, Report of the International Workshop on Methodologies regarding Free, Prior and Informed Consent and Indigenous Peoples (New York, 17–19 January 2005), UN Doc E/C.19/2005/3 (2005), paras 46–49. At http://www.un.org/esa/socdev/unpfii/en/workshopFPIC.html (viewed 19 November 2010).

This work is protected by copyright. Apart from any use permitted under the Copyright Act 1968 (Cth), no part may be used or reproduced by any process without prior written permission from the Australian Human Rights Commission. Enquiries should be addressed to Public Affairs at paffairs@humanrights.gov.au.

In accordance with the functions set out in section 46C(1) (a) of the Australian Human Rights Commission Act 1986 (Cth), this report includes 4 recommendations on justice reinvestment to reduce Indigenous over-representation in the criminal justice system, 7 recommendations for the protection of Indigenous languages and 1 recommendation for sustaining Aboriginal homeland communities.

This is my sixth, and final, Social Justice Report as the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Social Justice Commissioner. It covers the period from 1 July 2008 to 30 June 2009.

Indigenous imprisonment rates in Australia are unacceptably high. Nationally, Indigenous adults are 13 times more likely to be imprisoned than non-Indigenous people[1] and Indigenous juveniles are 28 times more likely to be placed in juvenile detention than their non-Indigenous counterparts.[2]

When I commenced writing this chapter in 2008, Australia did not have a national Indigenous languages policy. However in August 2009, for the first time in Australia’s history, the Commonwealth Government launched a strategy for preserving Indigenous languages: Indigenous Languages - A National Approach 2009 (National Approach). The National Approach sets out the Commonwealth Government&…

Homelands still belong to the people, we want to build homes on our land and live there. When we come to the homeland we come back to the peace and quiet. ... It is a much better environment on the homelands, better things for the children.[1]

This report to the Attorney-General concerns inquiries made by the Human Rights and Equal Opportunity Commission ('the Commission') into complaints by Quan Ri Qing and Su Yu Fei against the Commonwealth of Australia, Department of Immigration and Multicultural Affairs ('the Department') concerning violations of human rights under the Human Rights and Equal Opportunity Commission Act 1986 (Cth) (…

This is a report to the Attorney-General on inquiries made by the Human Rights and Equal Opportunity Commission into a complaint made under the Human Rights and Equal Opportunity Commission Act 1986 (Cth) (the Act) of discrimination in employment on the ground of age. The complaint was made by Ms Akiko Ishikuni against the Japan Travel Bureau (Australia) (JTB).

Human Rights Commissioner's Report No.10 (29 June 2000) is titled Report of an Inquiry into Complaints of Acts or Practices Inconsistent With or Contrary to Human Rights in an Immigration Detention Centre. It deals with a complaint by a Nigerian national detained at the Perth Immigration Detention Centre. The complaint included allegations that the detainee was handcuffed, shackled, placed in a…

Human Rights Commissioner's Report No. 9 is Discrimination on the Ground of Trade Union Activity (29 June 2000). The report deals with complaints by three employees of O'Brien Metal Products that they were harassed and forced to leave their employment because they had participated in trade union activity concerning perceived unsafe working conditions. The Commissioner found that the company had…

Copyright © Human Rights and Equal Opportunity Commission. Copying is permissible provided acknowledgment is made to the Human Rights and Equal Opportunity Commission, Sydney, April 1999.

Human Rights Commissioner's Report No.6 (April 1998) deals with a complaint concerning the refusal of an application by the complainant for classification as a teacher in Catholic schools. The principal reason for the refusal advanced by the respondent was the complainant’s high profile in an organisation of gay and lesbian teachers and students and her public statements on these issues.