Australia’s Legal Responsibility for the Refugees and Asylum Seekers it has left Languishing in Offshore Detention
With Australia’s recent election to the UN Human Rights Council, it is important that the international community supports and advocates for those Australia has left languishing in offshore detention. Approximately...
Same-Sex Marriage in Australia: A Bittersweet Victory
In a giant step forward for LGBTIQ rights, same-sex marriage (SSM) in Australia was legalised on 7 December 2017. This result was uplifting, but also bittersweet. The Australian Government could...
Australia Denies Political Participation as an Indigenous Human Right
Political participation is a human right affirmed and contextualised for indigenous peoples under the United Nations’ Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples. Australia was one of four post-settler colonial...
Australia’s Bid for the UN Human Rights Council and the Domestic Politics of Race
Australia has identified five priorities to support its candidacy for a seat on the United Nations’ Human Rights Council. They are ‘gender equality, good governance, freedom of expression, the rights...
Freedom of Speech or Enabling a Right to Insult? The Australian Debate over Section 18C of the Racial Discrimination Act 1975
With a rise in the Neo-Right worldwide, we see the fear of the foreigner and the blaming of refugees and welfare recipients for ills that often flow from structural inequality...
Rights for Victims of Domestic Violence: Offering Security Through Workplace Protection in Australia
How can domestic violence spill over into the workplace? Most Australian women who report experiencing domestic violence are employed. It is important for those affected by domestic violence to know...
Australia’s Deportation of Asylum Seekers Pending Determination of their Claims to Refugee Status
The Australian Government has made no secret of its mission prevent the arrival of thousands of ‘unauthorised’ immigrants on its shores, ostensibly to thwart people smuggling (see the discussion here,...
Wotton v Queensland: A Milestone for Police Accountability in Australia
The Federal Court of Australia recently delivered a milestone judgment for police accountability in Wotton v Queensland (No 5). Wotton is the latest chapter in the ongoing struggle between the...
Banning Refugees From Australia: Not Targeting Those Preying On The Vulnerable – Just Preying On The Vulnerable
As previously discussed on this blog here and here, since 2001, Australia has made concerted efforts to intercept all ‘unauthorised maritime arrivals’ (this being the choice phrasing for asylum seekers...
Australia set to ban asylum seekers from entering Australia: It is time to hold Australia accountable
On the 30th of October 2016, the Australian government announced that it would be introducing a law into parliament banning asylum seekers from entering Australia. This law will make it...
The Partnership between Health and Law to Ensure Human Rights
If human rights are to meaningfully alleviate poverty, we must factor in the day to day need for legal advice services. Even where there is no court or tribunal case...
Six months later: a reflection on what has changed since the Supreme Court of Papua New Guinea ordered an end to detention on Manus Island
On 26 April 2016, the Supreme Court of Papua New Guinea (PNG) ruled that the detention of asylum seeker and refugee men at the Manus Island ‘regional processing centre’ (MIRPC)...
