The Morrison Government is facing heavy criticism over Australia’s refusal to sign an International Women’s Day statement at the United Nations, which called for safe access to abortion and improved sexual health education. A total of 57 states signed on to the statement which called for accountability for human rights violations perpetrated against women and … Read More >>
Leading human rights lawyers are calling on the West Australian Government to urgently ensure no child can be subjected to archaic and unjust mandatory sentencing laws that breach Australia’s international legal obligations. The renewed calls follow a decision of the Supreme Court of Western Australia on Friday which upheld an Aboriginal boy’s appeal against a … Read More >>
ALHR has published a position paper on the Federal Government’s Foreign Influence Transparency Scheme. ALHR is concerned that there are widespread misunderstandings about the nature of the legislation, in particular internal inconsistencies in the amended legislation as ultimately enacted, and in the fact sheets issued for the guidance of the public by Attorney-General’s Department. In … Read More >>
Leading Australian human rights lawyers congratulate the Queensland Government for passing the Human Rights Bill. The Act will protect a broad range of human rights, including fundamental civil and political rights, the economic, social and cultural rights to education and health services and the cultural rights of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people. It establishes … Read More >>
Australian Lawyers for Human Rights (ALHR) condemns the WA Police Force’s treatment of a woman in 2017, who displaced her hip while being arrested and held in custody and was denied access to medical treatment for hours. A report published by the WA Crime and Corruption Commission (Commission) last week found that, Ms Duncan was … Read More >>
Australian Lawyers for Human Rights (ALHR) repeats its call on the Australian Government to urgently commit to ensuring a safe and a viable future for every person transferred from Australia to Nauru and Papua New Guinea in line with Australia’s international human rights obligations. “Prime Minister Scott Morrison’s recent comments about the Migration Amendment (Urgent … Read More >>
Australian Lawyers for Human Rights (ALHR) congratulates Behrouz Boochani, whose book, No Friend But the Mountains: Writings from Manus Prison, was awarded both the Victorian Prize for Literature and the Victorian Premier’s Literary Award for non-fiction last week and renews its call on the Australian Government to urgently commit to ensuring a safe and viable … Read More >>
The United Nations’ Committee on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination (CERD) has weighed in on the ongoing controversy regarding the Indigenous Land Use Agreement (ILUA) for Adani’s Carmichael Coal and Rail Project. A Federal Court’s decision in August 2018 dismissed a challenge to the validity of the ILUA commenced by five of the 12 individuals … Read More >>
Australian Lawyers for Human Rights (ALHR) calls on all countries to ensure that lawyers are able to perform their professional obligations without fear of retribution. ALHR has always been saddened by news of lawyers facing consequences such as being silenced, harassed, kidnapped, imprisoned, injured and killed for fulfilling their roles as advocates. On 24 January … Read More >>
MEDIA RELEASE The 2018 Human Rights Report Card from Australian Lawyers for Human Rights (ALHR) has found Australia continues to significantly lag in key areas such as Indigenous rights, children’s rights, disability rights, freedoms and LGBTI rights. Further, many states and territories continued to perform poorly in their approach to human rights. ALHR President, Kerry … Read More >>
Australian Lawyers for Human Rights (ALHR) has congratulated the NSW Government on changes to implement recommendations of the Royal Commission into Institutional Child Sex Abuse and address an anomaly which previously prevented child abuse victims from suing unincorporated entities such as churches. Known as the “Ellis defence”, this defence was essentially based on the argument … Read More >>
Australian Lawyers for Human Rights (ALHR) has made a New Year call on the Australian Prime Minister to give immediate effect to his 2018 promise to remove religious exemptions to discrimination laws affecting LGBT students and teachers in Australian schools. ALHR says that the Morrison Government’s proposed amendments to the ALP’s Sex Discrimination Amendment (Removing … Read More >>
