A Human Rights Act private members Bill has been introduced to the Federal House of Representatives by Andrew Wilkie MP and seconded by Dr Helen Haines MP. We welcome this Bill as a powerful tool for challenging injustice, and giving everyone who calls Australia home a better understanding of their human rights and freedoms.
Two years have passed since the Parliamentary Joint Committee on Human Rights recommended the enactment of an Australian Human Rights Act. Today, the Federation of Community Legal Centres joins more than 170 civil society organisations in urging the Australian Government to legislate an Australian Human Rights Act now.
Having human rights enshrined in our law would mean better Federal Government decisions, policies and services. This would benefit all people in our community, and would take Australia one step closer to becoming a fair, equal, and safe society for everyone.
There are many recent examples of human rights breaches that might have been prevented if an Australian Human Rights Act had been in place. Various Royal Commissions, including into Aged Care, Disability, and the Robodebt scheme, have revealed the extent to which Australians have had their rights disregarded. Enforcing human rights standards in the law is essential for ensuring that such injustices cannot happen again.
A Human Rights Act is about more than opposing injustice. Human rights affect every aspect of our lives - from schooling, to healthcare and financial matters. Without a legal requirement for human rights standards to be considered when governments are making laws and running services, people and communities must navigate a complicated patchwork of rights when they are being breached.
Australia is the only western liberal democracy without a legislated Human Rights Act or similar instrument in our laws, despite widespread support. Recent polling shows around three in four Australians support a Human Rights Act.
In Victoria, public advocacy and political will led to a Victorian Human Rights Charter since 2006. Community lawyers in Victoria use the Victorian Human Rights Charter to help people have their rights respected, and to defend the rights of minority groups, such as children and young people, and people with disability. But the Victorian Human Rights Charter alone is not enough to ensure the rights of all people that call this land home are respected. Human rights are at the heart of all community legal centres' ethos and work. We wholly support this Bill that will make Australia a better, fairer place for all.
Louisa Gibbs, CEO at the Federation of Community Legal Centres said:
"Enshrining human rights in federal law signifies important progress for Australia as a democracy and as a country. Human rights are a set of basic rights and freedoms that belong to every person in the world, but in the absence of enforcement via legislation, abuses can and do take place every day.
"Community lawyers know well the power of legislation in delivering justice. We see an Australian Human Rights Act as critical to making our society safe, equal and thriving.
"We urge the Australian Government to act now, to safeguard all our human rights in the future."
