Secretary General of Amnesty International, Salil Shetty, reflects on his recent fact finding mission and argues Australia needs to improve its own act if its voice in the region is to be heard with the clarity that it deserves
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Given Victoria Police use force, on average, every 2.5 hours, it seems they might have achieved their monthly quota in the space of a Friday morning. An alarming statistic when one considers that the spike was due, not to a surge in knife crime or even petty theft, but a gathering of people seeking to exercise political freedoms protected under the law. Whatever one’s views on the Occupy Melbourne protesters and their aims, the decisions and actions taken by Lord Mayor Robert Doyle and the Victoria Police to forcibly evict peaceful demonstrators from City Square raise a number of serious questions about infringement of fundamental civil and political rights and the excessive use of force by Victoria Police.
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Given Victoria Police use force, on average, every 2.5 hours, it seems they might have achieved their monthly quota in the space of last Friday morning. An alarming statistic when one considers that the spike was due not to a surge in knife crime or even petty theft, but a gathering of people seeking to exercise political freedoms protected under the law.
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DLA Piper’s Nicolas Patrick looks at the pressures on pro bono lawyering in the wake of global trends of decreased public legal funding.
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Reform of the regulation, training and monitoring of police use of force is necessary to enhance community safety and ensure Victoria Police comply with human rights.
Victoria Police use force, on average, every 2.5 hours. Almost three quarters of these incidents involve the use of capsicum spray. There have been at least 12 people shot dead by Victoria Police in the last decade, while numerous others have died in police custody.
Read the background research paper here [PDF]
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Will Victoria further strengthen our fundamental rights and freedoms or become the first state in the modern democratic world to wind back or weaken them? Asks the HRLC’s Ben Schokman
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Kevin Rudd, or @kruddmp to his online followers, likes to tweet. I strongly support his use of Twitter – social media is an important new tool in the world of digital diplomacy – but I was struck by one message from the Foreign Minister on 4 July. It read ‘4 corners tonight on Sri Lanka deeply disturbing. UN Human Rights Council can't simply push this to one side. Action needed. KRudd’.
Read MoreAmidst mounting international pressure over Australia’s human rights record, the HRLC’s Phil Lynch and Ben Schokman examine the recent commitments made by the Government at the UN.
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Chair of the Australian Human Rights Group, Susan Ryan, highlights the pressing need to engage in efforts to improve human rights protections.
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Retired judge of the Supreme Court of Canada, Claire L’Heureux-Dubé, discusses society’s deep-seated desire for justice and equality.
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The Director of the Castan Centre for Human Rights Law, Sarah Joseph, examines the role of Twitter and Facebook, in promoting human rights and democracy.
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It is imperative that the five year review of Victoria's Charter of Human Rights be guided by evidence and real-life experience, not political hyperbole, argues the HRLC's Phil Lynch
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In light of cables released by Wikileaks, Dr Clinton Fernandes revisits Australia's response to the murder of the 'Balibo five' and mounts the case for prosecuting war crimes.
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The 100th year of International Women’s Day is an important occasion to celebrate and acknowledge the considerable achievements of women and men in advancing gender equality in Australia, write Sex Discrimination Commissioner, Elizabeth Broderick.
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The Gillard Government is consolidating federal anti-discrimination laws into a single Equality Act. The process has been promoted as an exercise in addressing inconsistencies and reducing regulation. The Government should show that it is serious about achieving equality by ensuring that the draft Bill, due to be released later this year, also strengthens and modernises our laws, writes the HRLC's Rachel Ball.
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Proposed amendments to Victoria's equal opportunity laws will perpetuate discrimination and undermine fairness and equality, writes Rachel Ball
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The HRLC's Phil Lynch looks at what we have to gain from a human rights approach to foreign aid.
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The HRLC's Emily Howie looks at how Victoria's Charter of Human Rights has secured beneficial outcomes for people in different ways, with most of its impact not occurring in courtrooms, but in peoples’ everyday interactions with public services.
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Whilst welcoming Kevin Rudd's review of Australia's aid program, the CEO of ActionAid Australia, Archie Law, is concerned the primary focus is efficiency and delivering ‘value for money’.
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The recent death of a Sydney man after being tasered by police is tragic, made even more so because it is only the latest example of inappropriate and often outrageous use of these stun guns by some police officers. Governments and police services need to justify how it is in the interests of the community that police carry such devices. The recent death in Sydney was at least the third recorded Taser death in Australia. Two men also died last year, one after being tasered up to 28 times by police in Townsville.
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