Projects

Rights and Freedoms

Review of Universal Periodic Review commitments by Australia

What is the UPR and why does it matter | Commitments made at Australia's first UPR appearance | Review of commitments | Comments What is the UPR and why does it matter The Universal Periodic Review is a process undertaken by the United Nations Human Rights Council. It involves review of the human...

Rights and Freedoms

Counter-terrorism and human rights

Since the events in the United States on 11 September 2001, the Australian Government has introduced more than 40 new counter-terrorism laws. Amongst other things, these laws have created:

LGBTIQ+

Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Trans and Intersex Equality

Do you think you have been discriminated against in employment for reasons relating to your sexuality? See our Complaints page for information on how to make a complaint to the Australian Human Rights Commission.

Rights and Freedoms

Corporate Social Responsibility

The Australian Human Rights Commission has developed four short fact sheets to help Australian companies meet their responsibility to respect the human rights of those people impacted by their activities.

Rights and Freedoms

Prisoners Rights

Prisoners, just like all other people, are entitled to enjoy their human rights. Prisoners can make complaints to the Commission about human rights breaches and discrimination that occurs in prison.

CERD

The Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Racial Discrimination 1966 (CERD) (the Convention) was one of the first human rights treaties to be adopted by the United Nations. More than 156 countries (four-fifths of the membership of the UN) have ratified the Convention; including Australia...

Rights and Freedoms

Right to vote

The right to vote is not enjoyed equally by all Australians A healthy democracy makes sure that all members of the community have equal access to the political process. Australia is a democratic nation where governments are elected by popular vote. However, even though almost all Australians over 18...

What is the Universal Declaration on Human Rights?

back to Universal Declaration of Human Rights Anniversary pages What is the Universal Declaration on Human Rights? The Universal Declaration of Human Rights (Universal Declaration) is an international document that states the basic rights and fundamental freedoms to which all human beings are...

Rights and Freedoms

Climate Change and Human Rights

Governments have traditionally approached climate change as an ecological problem, or more recently, as an economic one. So far, the social and human rights implications of climate change have not been widely recognised. The effects of climate change may threaten a broad range of internationally...