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The Human Rights (Parliamentary Scrutiny) legislation: an important but “second best” development
By Sarah Joseph New human rights legislation has finally been approved by the Federal Parliament. The Human Rights (Parliamentary Scrutiny) Bill 2010 will require Ministers, when introducing legislation, to table a Statement of Compatibility outlining the extent to which the legislation complies with Australia’s international human rights obligations. It will also create a Parliamentary Joint…
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Plain packaging legislation and international investor rights: a challenge to Australia’s regulatory sovereignty
by Sarah Joseph The much-discussed plain packaging legislation for cigarettes will come into force until December 2012. Tobacco companies plan to wage a sustained campaign of “lawfare” against it, including a likely constitutional challenge and arbitral proceedings under a Hong Kong/Australia bilateral agreement. There is also the possibility of proceedings against Australia in the World…
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Can the Australian Government Return Unsuccessful Asylum-seekers to Afghanistan?
By Adam Fletcher Yesterday it was reported on the ABC that unsuccessful asylum-seeker Ismail Mirza Jan is to be the first to be returned to Afghanistan involuntarily. This last word is important, because previous returnees have all accepted what’s known as an Assisted Voluntary Return package. These sorts of packages were also offered by the…
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Retrospective People Smuggling Bill: a Breach of our Constitution?
By Adam Fletcher The major parties put aside their differences on immigration policy in the House of Representatives last week to pass the Deterring People Smuggling Bill 2011 (the Bill). Despite its name, the Bill is a ‘clarification’ of the people smuggling offences in the Migration Act 1958 (Cth) designed to make successful prosecutions easier.…
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Do we need better privacy protection in Australia?
By Adam Fletcher Protection of privacy in Australia was brought into stark relief last week with the ABC’s coverage of the Federal Government’s current compulsory Australian Health Survey being conducted by the Australian Bureau of Statistics. The ABC reports that some participants have found the survey “deeply intrusive and a stressful violation of their privacy” because…
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The Occupy movement and the Importance of Civil Protest
Sarah Joseph The “Occupy” movement has swept the world in the last five weeks, as seems appropriate in this year of demonstrations by people tired of a clapped-out status quo. Of course, the Occupy movement is quite different to those that overran Tahrir Square or who now bravely withstand the bullets of the Syrian State. …
Castan Centre for Human Rights Law 