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The Australian Human Rights Project

Promoting human rights standards for social justice.

What is the Project?

The Australian Human Rights Project is conducting research on a national approach to supporting human rights advocacy and education.

A national approach is an necessary response to Australia’s declining commitment to human rights standards. Full recognition of human rights standards is essential to achieving social justice in Australia.

The Project is a joint initiative of Australian Lawyers for Human Rights and the Australian Human Rights Centre at the University of NSW. It is funded by the Myer Foundation and the Wynn Family Trust, and is supported by the UNSW Law Faculty.

Where are human rights in Australia?

Commitment to enforceable human rights in Australia has declined markedly. Contrary to the direction being taken by the international community, Australia is stepping away from recognition of human rights principles and practices. Examples include:

• Australia’s inadequate funding and support for the Human Rights and Equal Opportunity Commission, the only national body established to ensure Australia complies with its international human rights obligations and its own human rights laws.

• Australia’s disregard for the human rights of asylum seekers, which has been criticised widely in Australia, internationally, and by the UN.

• Australia’s continuing inability to meet the material, health, social and governance needs of indigenous Australians, which has been criticised internationally, and has been the subject of adverse comment from the UN Committee for the Elimination of all forms of Racial Discrimination.

• Australia’s announcement that it will adopt a “more economical and selective approach” to UN reporting obligations, and will agree to UN human rights visits only when “there is a compelling reason to do so”.

Despite Australia’s long democratic history, and its leadership in developing international human rights principles and institutions, there has been limited systemic commitment to developing a human rights ethos in Australia:

• Australia’s legal system has no guarantee for the protection of fundamental human rights.

• There is a dire lack of understanding in the community, and among community leaders, of human rights and their relevance to Australians.

• Government develops its social policy without regard to Australia’s human rights obligations.

• There is no legislative compulsion on Australian corporations to have regard to human rights standards in their activities.

A national voice?

The retreat from human rights in Australia calls for an urgent response: a continuing and effective means of ensuring that government complies with its international human rights responsibilities.
At the same time, social justice organisations need support in human rights advocacy. Those that use the language, law and process of human rights in special fields – such as refugees, youth, homeless, prisons – are limited in their ability to coordinate and collaborate, and to maximise their effectiveness.

The Australia Human Rights Project is researching effective and viable models for a national approach to human rights advocacy and education.

A national capability will:

• promote awareness, understanding and use of human rights standards among the community, policy-makers and corporations

• promote a culture that values human rights standards as a measure of a just society

• support and enhance the human rights work of non-government social justice organisations.

How do we get there?

Through research and consultation, the Project will detail the necessary components for a national approach to be viable and effective.

In its first stage the Project surveyed non-government social justice organisations to define the relevance of human rights to their work, and to learn about their capacity for human rights advocacy and education. This unprecedented research has enabled organisations working with human rights to say what they do, how could do it better, and how their needs could be met. The survey data is currently being analysed and, supported by material obtained from literature and interviews with experts, will be published as a report.

This report will provide the basis for further research on the appropriate and viable models a for establishing a national approach to meeting the needs of non-governmental human rights organisations, and promoting human rights in Australia.

For more information contact:

Australian Human Rights Project

c/o-Australian Human Rights Centre tel: 02 9385 2543

University of New South Wales fax: 02 9385 1777

NSW 2052 email: ahrproject@unsw.edu.au

© The Australian Human Rights Centre, Faculty of Law, UNSW SYDNEY 2052, Australia. Telephone +61 (02) 9385-1803 or +61 (02) 9385-3637 Fax +61 (02) 9385-1778 Email ahrc@unsw.edu.au