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Children's Rights
11 December 2024Media ReleaseAustralian Government urged to stand up for the human rights of children
As the Queensland Government moves to pass its controversial Making Queensland Safer Bill this week, the National Children’s Commissioner is calling on the Australian Government to affirm its commitment to the human rights of Australia’s children, in accordance with the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child. -
Children's Rights
10 December 2024Opinion piece
After the social media ban, is the job done on child safety and wellbeing?
When the backslapping over the successful passing of the social media ban legislation has finished, there is a significant amount of work that still needs to be done to improve child safety and wellbeing in Australia. -
Asylum Seekers and Refugees
12 December 2024Opinion pieceWomen in immigration detention are trapped in a system designed for men. Many have not hugged a family member in years
In an opinion piece published in The Guardian, Human Rights Commissioner Lorraine Finlay Commissioner Finlay describes the harrowing experiences faced by many women in immigration detention and calls for urgent reform to address these human rights failures. It follows the release of the AHRC report into the issue. -
Asylum Seekers and Refugees
2 December 2024Publication
'Not Just An Afterthought’ - Women in Immigration Detention Report
The Australian Human Rights Commission has called for significant reform to the country’s immigration detention system, after a new inspection report into the treatment of women in detention found their rights, safety and wellbeing are being widely overlooked. -
Children's Rights
18 October 2024Media Release
NT youth crime laws fail children and the community
National Children’s Commissioner Anne Hollonds said the passing of legislation in the Northern Territory that will see children as young as 10 years old jailed is a failure of all the support systems that should be helping these children. -
Commission – General
6 November 2024E-bulletin (Monthly)President's message | November 2024
Dear friends, I’m pleased to share the Australian Human Rights Commission’s Annual Report 2023-24 which has been tabled in the Australian Parliament. In my first three months in this role, one of the things that has struck me is the breadth and depth of the Commission’s work. Our Annual Report highlights this. One of the Commission’s core functions is providing access to justice for people… -
Children's Rights
12 September 2024News story
Children's Commissioner welcomes Senate Inquiry into child justice
National Children’s Commissioner Anne Hollonds has welcomed the establishment of a Federal Senate Inquiry into Australia’s child justice system, saying it has come at a critical time to prevent further systemic failures harming children and young people. -
Children's Rights
11 October 2024News story
NT Government urged not to lower age of criminal responsibility
The National Children’s Commissioner and the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Social Commissioner have urged the Northern Territory Government to reverse its plan next week to introduce a new law to lower the age of criminal responsibility from 12 to ten years. -
Commission – General
9 October 2024E-bulletin (Monthly)
October 2024: Commission News | President's message
Dear friends, Australia is one of the safest, most stable and prosperous countries on the planet. For most of us, most of the time, it is a great place to live. For many Australians, human rights violations are things that happen to other people in other places, often overseas. This can lead to complacency about our own rights protection and the importance of protecting the rights of those… -
Children's Rights
2 September 2024Media Release
A tragic start to National Child Protection Week
As the launch of National Child Protection Week throws the spotlight on creating better futures where children and young people flourish, the National Children’s Commissioner Anne Hollonds is speaking up for the thousands of children whose futures are bleak because Australian governments do not prioritise their human rights to safety, care and protection. Commissioner Hollonds said: “It was… -
Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Social Justice
30 August 2024Media ReleaseCall for urgent child justice reforms following death of teenager in WA youth detention centre
Australia’s Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Social Justice Commissioner Katie Kiss, National Children's Commissioner Anne Hollonds, and Human Rights Commissioner Lorraine Finlay have expressed their sadness and disappointment following the death yesterday of a First Nations teenager who was incarcerated in Western Australia’s Banksia Hill youth detention centre. -
Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Social Justice
11 October 2024Webpage
Informing The Agenda Consultations
Informing the Agenda Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Social Justice Commissioners Term 2024-2029 Katie Kiss commenced in the role as the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Social Justice Commissioner on 3 April 2024. To ensure the voices of First Nations people across Australia help form the agenda for the term, the Commissioner is conducting a national listening tour to hear from… -
Children's Rights
20 August 2024Media Release
New report proposes transforming Australia’s approach to child justice and wellbeing
In a major new report, Australia’s National Children’s Commissioner is calling for significant changes to how our federal, state and territory governments approach child justice and the wellbeing of children who are or who are at risk of being caught up in the criminal justice system. -
Children's Rights
23 August 2024Media Release
A step backwards for child justice and community safety in Queensland
The Queensland Government’s ‘Community Safety Act’ allowing more children to be locked up in the first instance is another step backwards for child justice and community safety, National Children’s Commissioner Anne Hollonds said. “We all want to live in communities where kids can flourish and where everyone is safe, especially children. But this approach to offending by children doesn’t… -
Children's Rights
19 August 2024Publication
'Help Way Earlier!'- transforming child justice for safety & wellbeing
Learn about how Australia can transform child justice to improve safety and wellbeing. -
Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Social Justice
16 August 2024Media Release
AHRC commissioners call for action on findings of Senate report on murdered and missing First Nations women
Australia’s Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Social Justice Commissioner and Sex Discrimination Commissioner say the findings of a Senate inquiry into murdered and missing First Nations women provide more evidence of how to address violence against women and girls in First Nations communities. -
Children's Rights
19 July 2024Media Release
Australian Human Rights Commission condemns children’s isolation cells
Grave concern over recently released CCTV footage depicting a First Nations child of 13 years of age with an intellectual disability, being forcibly restrained -
Rights and Freedoms
20 May 2024Media ReleaseRights-based solutions to critical social issues set to take centre stage at landmark forum in Sydney
With a plethora of issues currently impacting significantly on the rights of people across Australia, an upcoming landmark national conference during the Vivid Sydney festival is set to explore a range of new approaches to protecting and promoting human rights in Australia. Concerns about racism and freedom of speech stemming from the impact of the war in Gaza; Australia’s domestic violence,… -
Commission – General
12 March 2024Speech
A Revitalised National Human Rights Framework for Australia
Marking the 75th anniversary of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights Fraser Oration Emeritus Professor Rosalind Croucher AM FAAL FRSA FACLM(Hon) Introduction Vice-Chancellor, Duncan Maskell, Dean Matthew Harding, Mrs Tamie Fraser and the Fraser family, Melbourne Law School staff, distinguished guests, friends I would like to begin by acknowledging the traditional custodians of the land… -
Rights and Freedoms
22 March 2024Media Release
Waleed Aly joins line-up for landmark human rights forum
Presenter, journalist and academic Waleed Aly is among a raft of talent who have just been announced as speakers and panellists for the Free + Equal Human Rights Conference during this year’s Vivid Sydney festival. Mr Aly will join the line-up for the Rights On Time show on the evening of Thursday 6 June in the Hyatt Regency Grand Ballroom where he’ll panel through time with ‘sleek geek’…