The Human Rights Law Centre welcomes the passing of new abortion laws in Western Australia. Abortion by doctors has now been decriminalised and replaced by health-focused laws in each state and territory of Australia.

Ned Kelly Emeralds, an Iranian man who has been detained for over a decade while seeking asylum, is in the Federal Court of Australia for a hearing to challenge his ongoing detention and apply for a release order.

More than 70 organisations and individuals have signed a letter to the Australian Government, published in newspapers today, calling for an end to the prosecution of whistleblowers and for urgent whistleblower protection reform.

Ned Kelly Emeralds, an Iranian man who has been detained for over a decade while seeking asylum, has won his appeal in the High Court of Australia, leaving open the possibility that courts could end indefinite detention by making ‘home detention’ orders. Despite this victory however, Ned’s detention continues – now in its eleventh year.  

The family of Veronica Marie Nelson, a strong Gunditjmara, Dja Dja Wurrung, Wiradjuri and Yorta Yorta woman who passed away in custody, have renewed their calls to the Andrews Government to deliver wholesale and urgent reform of Victoria’s bail laws.

The Australian parliament must reform public and private sector whistleblowing law and establish a whistleblower protection authority to address the urgent need for accessible, legal support and protections for whistleblowers, the Human Rights Law Centre said on release of a new report. 

The Albanese Government can create a lasting legacy by introducing a Charter of Human Rights to ensure that dignity, equality and respect guide all government laws and decision-making, the Human Rights Law Centre will today tell a Parliamentary Committee when it gives evidence on Australia’s Human Rights Framework. 

By exposing human rights violations, government wrongdoing and corporate misdeeds, whistleblowers make Australia a stronger democracy. But right now, whistleblowers in Australia face retaliation within their own workplaces. They continue to be sued by their employers for speaking out; some are being criminally prosecuted for telling the truth. 

The Human Rights Law Centre today criticised the use of restraining orders by Woodside CEO Meg O’Neill, which silence climate activists.  

From August 22 to 25, 2023, human rights organizations from different countries carried out an independent international mission in the Province of Jujuy in response to the serious news of possible human rights violations within the framework of the recent provincial constitutional reform process.

The Human Rights Law Centre have welcomed the draft Communications Legislation Amendment (Combatting Misinformation and Disinformation) Bill 2023 (Cth) as a positive step toward regulating social media platforms, which profit from the spread of dangerous disinformation. 

Despite committing to whistleblower protections for migrant worker exploitations, the Albanese Government’s proposal will fail to protect exploited workers from visa cancellation, according to migrant workers and migrant rights experts.