The Baillieu Government’s decision to retain and possibly strengthen the Victorian Charter of Human Rights is a victory for evidence-based policy, accountable government and a fair go for all Victorians. The Government today tabled a major statement on the future of the Charter following its review by a parliamentary committee last year.
Read MoreNext week, Victorians will learn a lot about their Government’s commitment to fairness, transparency and democratic accountability. We will also learn about the strength of the Premier’s leadership as Cabinet meets to determine the future of Victoria’s Charter of Human Rights.
Read MoreIt is imperative that all police-related deaths – and there are an average of 16 per year in Victoria alone – are investigated by a body that is fully independent of police, writes the HRLC's Anna Brown.
Read MoreThis 2012 report documents 101 case studies from the first five years of the operation of Victoria’s Charter of Human Rights. They show that the Charter has delivered benefits including greater government accountability, more responsive public services, and a better deal for some of Victoria’s most vulnerable groups, such as people with disability, people with mental illness and people experiencing homelessness.
Read MoreAn unprincipled and myopic approach to human rights will fail in West Papua just as it did in East Timor, writes the HRLC's Tom Clarke, Australia needs a new approach, underpinned by a principled and persistent commitment to human rights, to addressing conflicts in our region.
Read MoreKevin Rudd needs to show the same attention to human rights issues in Australia’s region as he did in Libya, writes Human Rights Watch’s Elaine Pearson, and Sri Lanka would be the perfect place to start.
Read MoreThe HRLC’s Phil Lynch looks at how principled leadership and energetic action in key priority areas will help to realise the vision of a nation which respects and protects human rights.
Read MoreWhen it comes to rebuilding Afghanistan Save the Children’s Rebecca Barber urges the benchmark to be set higher than merely denying a safe haven for terrorists.
Read MoreIt's time for Australia to take a principled and proactive stand on human rights in Asia and the Pacific, writes the HRLC's Tom Clarke. Starting with West Papua. Today.
Read MoreSecretary 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
Read MoreGiven 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.
Read MoreGiven 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.
Read MoreDLA Piper’s Nicolas Patrick looks at the pressures on pro bono lawyering in the wake of global trends of decreased public legal funding.
Read MoreReform 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]
Read MoreWill 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
Read MoreKevin 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.
Read MoreChair of the Australian Human Rights Group, Susan Ryan, highlights the pressing need to engage in efforts to improve human rights protections.
Read MoreRetired judge of the Supreme Court of Canada, Claire L’Heureux-Dubé, discusses society’s deep-seated desire for justice and equality.
Read MoreThe 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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