-
Community and legal groups say it’s time to strengthen Victoria’s Human Rights Charter
The following is a media release prepared jointly with a number of community and human rights groups. A group of leading community and legal organisations has today urged the Victorian Government to change Victoria’s Human Rights Charter to ensure it is more accessible, more effective and simpler to use. To coincide with the report of…
-
Constitutional recognition: two steps forward after one step back
By Melissa Castan The work towards constitutional reform and Indigenous recognition saw some optimistic developments last week. “It was the rumble we had to have,” said Noel Pearson of the meeting between Prime Minister Tony Abbott and Indigenous leaders Patrick Dodson, Megan Davis, Kirstie Parker and himself. That meeting was a follow up to Abbott’s earlier…
-
The human rights implications of smoking bans in prisons: some international cases
By Anita Mackay Australia’s two most populous States have recently implemented smoking bans in prisons (Victoria from 1 July and NSW from 10 August). In doing this they are joining the Northern Territory (where smoking was banned from 1 July 2013), Queensland (from 5 May 2014) and Risdon prison in Tasmania (from 31 January 2015).…
-
A Constitutional Referendum: a Hail Mary for those opposed to Marriage Equality
A constitutional referendum: a ‘Hail Mary’ for those opposed to same-sex marriage Sarah Joseph, Monash University On Tuesday, August 11, prospects for same-sex marriage legislation in Australia in the near future were quashed when the governing Coalition partyroom voted against a conscience vote in favour of maintaining opposition to same-sex marriage. However, senior members of…
-
With no Coalition free vote, where to now on the road to same-sex marriage?
By Paula Gerber The much-anticipated announcement of the government’s position on same-sex marriage raised more questions than it answered. By rejecting a free vote on same-sex marriage for Coalition MPs during this term of parliament, the government ensured that Australia will continue to be the only developed English-speaking country in the world where marriage is an…
-
Another chimpanzee personhood claim fails, but there’s hope yet
By Joanna Kyriakakis Late last week, Judge Barbara Jaffe of the New York State Supreme Court declined to recognise the personhood of two chimpanzees, Hercules and Leo, for the purpose of a habeas corpus claim brought on their behalf. The chimpanzees are in the custody of Stony Brook University, where they are used for scientific research.…
Castan Centre for Human Rights Law 