ALHR – Australian Lawyers For Human Rights

AGM documents and notice 2022

posted on June 13, 2022

The ALHR Annual General Meeting will be held via Zoom on 27 June at 7.00PM AEST Please email secretary@alhr.org.au to RSVP your attendance. Zoom meeting details: Topic: ALHR AGM Time: Jun 27, 2022 07:00 PM Canberra, Melbourne, Sydney Join Zoom Meeting https://us02web.zoom.us/j/89917488141?pwd=VGNGVXFKMDFmR3FzanJXbmh6VnBOZz09 Meeting ID: 899 1748 8141 Passcode: 334848 One tap mobile +61871501149,,89917488141#,,,,*334848# Australia +61280156011,,89917488141#,,,,*334848# Australia Dial … Read More >>

It’s time for Australia to become a more modern, fair and responsive democracy

posted on June 4, 2022

Australian Lawyers for Human Rights (ALHR) calls on the Albanese government to reopen dialogue about legislating an Australian Charter of Human Rights. ALHR President Kerry Weste says, “We are the only Western democracy on the planet without some form of Federal Charter of Human Rights. We now have a new federal government promising to lead … Read More >>

EOI’s Sought: Senior Chair and Youth Chair Roles, ALHR National Women and Girls’ Rights Committee

posted on May 3, 2022

ALHR is seeking expressions of interest for opportunities to join the leadership team of our National Women and Girls’ Rights Committee. There are still many areas in Australian society in which women and girls experience unequal treatment and violations of their internationally recognised human rights. As such this area is a critical focus of ALHR’s … Read More >>

Group of 65 organisations and experts publish open letter calling for reform to laws that stop people with disability from voting

posted on April 20, 2022

On 21 May this year, most adult Australians will vote in the Federal Election. However, there is a whole section of our community who can be removed from the Electoral Roll and disallowed from having their say: people deemed to be of “unsound mind.” In an open letter to the Prime Minister and Leader of … Read More >>

A Healthy Environment For All: Australian lawyers among global alliance of over 1300 organisations calling for the UN General Assembly to affirm the Right to a Healthy Environment

posted on April 14, 2022

Ahead of the closing of the 76th UN General Assembly session, Australian Lawyers for Human Rights (ALHR), together with an alliance of over 1300 civil society and Indigenous people organisations from around the globe, are calling on UN Member States to affirm the right to a healthy environment. Following advocacy by the governments of Costa … Read More >>

Submission: ‘No Rights Without Remedy’ Inquiry ACT Parliament

posted on April 7, 2022

Thanks to over 500 signatures received on our ALHR and ACTCOSS “No Rights Without Remedy” Petition, the ACT Legislative Assembly is holding an Inquiry into whether the ACT Human Rights Act should be amended to include an accessible complaints mechanism. Unfortunately, while the ACT Human Rights Act was drafted to protect individuals against breaches of their … Read More >>

Submission: Review of QLD Anti-Discrimination Act Discussion Paper

posted on April 7, 2022

ALHR made a submission in response to the Queensland Human Rights Commission’s November 2021 Discussion Paper Review of Queensland’s Anti-Discrimination Act. Our submission expands on ALHR’s earlier submission to the recent Queensland Parliamentary Inquiry into Serious Vilification and Hate Crimes. Prepared by our LGBTI Rights Committee, the focus of this work is primarily on issues relevant … Read More >>

Submission Template: Inquiry into an Accessible Complaints Mechanism for the ACT Human Rights Act

posted on April 4, 2022

Thanks to over 500 signatures on our “No Rights Without Remedy” Petition the ACT Legislative Assembly is holding an Inquiry into whether our ACT Human Rights Act should be amended to include an accessible complaints mechanism. Submissions are due by 7th April 2022 and we have created a very easy to use FAST SUBMISSION TEMPLATE so … Read More >>

NSW Government clearly can’t be trusted to protect our fundamental rights

posted on April 1, 2022

Australian Lawyers for Human Rights condemns the rushed passage of draconian new anti-protest laws in NSW. With support from NSW Labor, the Roads and Crimes Legislation Amendment Bill 2022 was rammed through the NSW Parliament after being introduced late Wednesday. Australian Lawyers for Human Rights (ALHR) President Kerry Weste said, “ALHR is deeply troubled by … Read More >>

Human rights lawyers slam attempts to ram through anti-protest laws in NSW

posted on March 31, 2022

Australian Lawyers for Human Rights (ALHR) is deeply troubled by the Perrottet Government’s attempts to rush through new anti-protest laws, which ALHR says threaten to breach Australia’s international human rights law obligations. With support from NSW Labor, the Roads and Crimes Legislation Amendment Bill 2022 was rammed through the NSW Legislative Assembly late Wednesday night (in … Read More >>

Budget: The good and the bad for refugees

posted on March 31, 2022

Australian Lawyers for Human Rights (ALHR) has welcomed additional refugee places announced in the Federal Budget. However, we are concerned by continued costs blow-outs on Australia’s inhumane offshore detention system, as well as cuts that impact Australia’s commitment to establish proper oversight and scrutiny of detention facilities and the cruel exclusion of people on temporary … Read More >>

Budget climate action cuts threaten the human rights of all Australians

posted on March 30, 2022

At a time when the human rights of Australians are directly at risk from climate-driven floods, bushfires and heatwaves, the budget has cut spending on climate action, with a reduction from $2 billion to $1.3 billion over four years (a cut of 35 per cent per year). During its current term, this Government has seen … Read More >>