Submission to Criminal Code Amendment (Hate Crimes) Bill 2024
The Human Rights Law Centre supports the Criminal Code Amendment (Hate Crimes) Bill 2024 as a first step, but calls the Albanese Government to widen reforms to address the growing threat of hate speech, discrimination and vilification.
The Human Rights Law Centre have made three recommendations:
Strengthen Section 18C: to prohibit offending, insulting or humiliating on the basis of race, religious belief, sexual orientation, gender identity, and disability.
A uniform Anti-Discrimination Act: to consolidate federal antidiscrimination laws into a single, uniform and modern Anti-Discrimination Act that it is simple, consistent and deals with the intersecting nature of discrimination.
Enact an Australian Human Rights Act: to ensure that our laws, policies, and service delivery are grounded in minimum human rights standards, in a way that is transparent and truly comprehensive.