Government fails on child rights The Australian Human Rights Commission has found that Australia’s treatment of suspected people smugglers who said that they were children has breached international human rights law in a report released on Friday. The report An age of uncertainty reveal that between 2008 and 2011 Australian authorities gave little consideration to […]
21 July 2012 Cultural Diversity and child protection A review of Available research literature into the needs of culturally and linguistically diverse (CALD) as well as refugee families in the Australian Child Protection System (CPS) has been published. The paper looks into what areas still require research in order to meet the needs of migrants […]
14 July 2012 Vulnerable young women subject to trafficking in Queensland mining towns According to the The Age, vulnerable young women from Southeast Asia are being trafficked for sex in booming mining towns in Queensland. Mount Isa police district Inspector Paul Biggin has said that women and girls who can speak minimal or no English, […]
This article is part of our June theme, which focuses on Indigenous People and their human rights. Read our Editorial for more on this theme. Comments on the You Me Unity Expert Panel Report on recognising Indigenous Australians in the Constitution. In November 2010, the federal government established an Expert Panel to consider options for amending […]
[RN] Bolton (the coastal town depicted in Blue) seems pretty true to life. Where did you grow up, and when did you start to feel that racism was an issue in the community around you? Was it only after you’d moved away, or had you always been aware of it? [Pat Grant] Bolton is a fictional […]
“When Hitler came to power I was in the bath.” Whenever I convince someone to read this book, I can think of no easier way than to quote its opening sentence. Hitler is right there, second word, so you know it’s not going to be an overly cheerful read. But the fact that our narrator, […]
In May, Read and Rights discussed What is the What by Dave Eggers, a book which explores the human rights abuses in Sudan and the discrimination faced by the Sudanese Diaspora. Sonia Nair spoke to Sophie Tolich from SAIL (Sudanese Australia Integrated Learning) about how they are aiding Sudanese immigrants through literacy and community programs. […]
On the afternoon of Saturday 21 April, as part of the Melbourne International Comedy Festival, emerging and established comedic talent came together at the Melbourne Town Hall in Deadly Funny, Australia’s Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander comedy showcase. For just under two hours the audience was entertained by Cy Fahey, Jay Wymarra, Eshua Bolton, Tristan […]
It is a Saturday night at a comedy show. An overweight, beer drinking, crude male takes a dig at his wife. His presence on the stage is domineering and aggressive. The audience is in hysterics; compelled by the group, I manage a laboured self-conscious giggle. I am channel surfing and an ad for channel 7’s […]
One of the most problematic areas of international human rights law is the right to culture. It is ambiguous, yet the right to culture manifests itself in many aspects of each individual’s daily life. The right to culture provides equality to all members of society, allowing them to freely practice their culture. Further, it prevents […]
This article is part of our March theme, which focuses on an ongoing challenge to Australian society: Race & Discrimination. Read our Editorial for more on this theme. People assume a lot of things about those who are racially marked and considered different from their own. Ways of being part of a community, for example. […]
This article is part of our March theme, which focuses on an ongoing challenge to Australian society: Race & Discrimination. Read our Editorial for more on this theme. Australia is obliged under international human rights law to prohibit incitement to racial hatred (Article 20 of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights). The Commonwealth, […]