2020 Universal Periodic Review
The Human Rights Law Centre works in coalition with civil society partners to ensure Australia complies with the international human rights laws it has promised to uphold. One mechanism we use to hold Australia to account is the UN Universal Periodic Review, which occurs every four and half years.
What is the Universal Periodic Review?
The UPR is a mechanism of the UN Human Rights Council which reviews the human rights records of all 193 nations that are members of the United Nations. It is a state-driven peer review mechanism which happens every four and a half years, meaning that countries interact with other countries, non-government organisations (NGO) and national human rights institutions to have their human rights record scrutinised.
The UPR provides a significant opportunity for Australian NGOs to encourage and influence the Australian Government to improve the protection and promotion of human rights and to fulfill its international legal obligations.
This is also an opportunity for Australia to declare what actions have been taken to fulfil international human rights commitments and obligations.
What we did
Leading Australian human rights experts, non-government organisations and community groups monitored Australia’s term on the UN Human Rights Council (2017-2020) and compiled this report – Australia’s Human Rights Scorecard: Australia’s 2020 United Nations UPR NGO Coalition Report. The Report, endorsed by over 200 organisations, provides a comprehensive insight into the state of human rights in Australia in 2020.
Download Australia’s Human Rights Scorecard: Australia’s 2020 UN UPR NGO Coalition Report.
The Report was completed at a time of unprecedented challenges. Australia was still emerging from the bushfire crisis of summer 2019/20, which inflicted significant trauma, scarred First Nations peoples’ lands and resulted in the loss of life and livelihoods. The climate crisis, an area of political debate for many years in Australia, showed itself more than ever to be an issue of life or death which will increasingly, devastatingly, impact on human rights.
On the back of that deep trauma and dislocation, Australia, like the rest of the world,faced years of the COVID-19 pandemic. The widespread health, social and economic consequences of COVID-19, and Australia’s response to the pandemic, brought into sharp focus the critical vulnerability of many people whose human rights are not properly protected in Australia, as highlighted throughout the Report.
The Civil Society Report for Australia’s UPR was endorsed by 200 organisations. We briefed UN member countries on Australia’s human rights performance and engaged with UN member countries to suggest recommendations to make for Australia to improve its performance.
We also facilitated people from communities experiencing human rights abuses to address the council.
Acknowledgement of Country
The Human Rights Law Centre acknowledges the Traditional Owners of the lands across Australia, including the lands of the Wurundjeri, Boon Wurrung, Gadigal, Ngunnawal, Darug and Wadawurrung people where we work from.
We pay our respect to Elders past and present. This land always was, and always will be Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander land. Sovereignty has never been ceded.
WARNING: This site contains images or names of people who have passed away.