Castan Centre for Human Rights Law

Category: Auslaw

  • One size does not fit all when children come to court

    By Paula Gerber and Melissa Castan Two sisters aged 9 and 11 have just won a Supreme Court case in which they were claiming that they had the right to instruct their own lawyer. In A & B v Children’s Court of Victoria, the sisters were the subject of protection applications after one of them sustained…

  • “No advantage” brings no hope

    By Tania Penovic The emergence of ‘no advantage’ as a guiding principle in Australian refugee policy is examined below with reference to recent developments in the management of asylum seekers who attempt to reach Australia by boat. On 28 June 2012, the Gillard government announced the formation of an Expert Panel on Asylum Seekers to…

  • Closing the Referendum gap

    The Federal Government today introduced the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Peoples Recognition Bill 2012 into Parliament, with Minister Macklin asserting that this will be an “important step towards recognising Indigenous people in Australia’s Constitution” and “an opportunity for Parliament to show its support and commitment to constitutional recognition of Australia’s First Peoples”. This bill is the…

  • ASEAN Human Rights Declaration: a step forward or a slide backwards?

    By Paula Gerber One of the outcomes of the 21st Summit of the Association of South East Asian Nations (ASEAN) in Phnom Penh, was the adoption of the ASEAN Human Rights Declaration by the ten member states. It has been hailed by some as a landmark development, “a legacy for our children,“ said Philippine Foreign…

  • Children’s rights versus freedom of religion: the sanctity of the confessional seal

    Children’s rights versus freedom of religion: the sanctity of the confessional seal By Sarah Joseph, Monash University In response to the ongoing cascade of accusations and evidence of systemic and decades long child abuse, the federal government finally announced a Royal Commission into institutional responses to child sexual abuse on Monday. One possible recommendation is…

  • The same-sex marriage implications for Australia from the US election and abroad

    The same-sex marriage implications for Australia from the US election and abroad By Paula Gerber The main stories coming out of the recent elections in the United States have of course been that Barack Obama won a second term, and which party controls the House and the Senate. However, the election produced a number of…