Castan Centre for Human Rights Law

Category: Auslaw

  • Guest Post: “Nothing About Us Without Us”: National Responses to the CRPD Six Years On

    The 2014 Castan Centre/Mallesons Annual Lecture – paper delivered by Professor Emeritus Ron Mccallum AO 1. Introduction Good afternoon ladies and gentlemen. It is indeed a huge honour for me to deliver this annual human rights lecture named for Ron Castan QC. I met Ron on several occasions, but we never conversed at any length. I…

  • Looking beyond Australia’s debate about asylum to better regional answers for refugees

    Guest Blogger: Paul Power, CEO of the Refugee Council of Australia The current international refugee situation is one of the most challenging the world has ever seen. Statistics recently released by the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) show that the number of people forcibly displaced worldwide has now topped 50 million, the highest level…

  • Should Australia legally recognise same-sex marriages validly performed overseas?

    By Paula Gerber In the latest poll on whether same-sex couples should be allowed to marry, a staggering 72% of Australians think they should be allowed to wed, while 77% think Coalition MPs should be granted a conscience vote. Despite the overwhelming majority of Australians being in favour of marriage equality, the Abbott Government remains staunchly…

  • Commonwealth Games: is it time to stop playing?

    By Paula Gerber Barely six months ago, international anger and calls for a boycott of the Winter Olympics in Russia drew nearly as much news coverage as the games’ sporting achievements. And as the Commonwealth Games in Glasgow get under way, it is worth remembering that although Scotland has nothing to match Russia’s gay propaganda laws, the…

  • Ian Thorpe came out, but not in Australia – a wise decision

    By Paula Gerber Few who watched Ian Thorpe’s “coming out” interview with British interviewer Michael Parkinson on Sunday night could have  failed to be moved by his story. The anxiety and turmoil he felt in telling the world he is gay was apparent for all to see. Thorpe told Parky: I’m ashamed I didn’t come…

  • The High Court’s Sri Lanka asylum seeker case: the legal issues

    By Patrick Emerton Yesterday’s High Court case concerning the fate of Tamil asylum seekers detained at sea by Australian authorities has been adjourned until Friday. The case raises a range of legal questions. These go to the legality of the Australian Government’s policy towards, and treatment of, asylum seekers. They also go to broader questions…