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2014 Castan Human Rights Report: Indigenous rights – hastening too slowly
By Melissa Castan and Stephen Gray In 2013 the then opposition leader, Tony Abbott, announced that if elected he would be the ‘Prime Minister for Indigenous Affairs’, raising hopes that law reform and better human rights protection for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples would be central to the government’s agenda. To some extent, they…
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Queensland’s voter ID laws likely to disenfranchise Indigenous Australians
By Marius Smith Proposed new “voter ID” laws in Queensland are likely to prevent some Indigenous Australians from exercising their right to vote, according to a new submission to Queensland’s Parliament by our Deputy Director Paula Gerber. The new law – which will require all voters to produce proof of identity at polling booths –…
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Prisons – Help or Hindrance?
By Adam Fletcher Prisons are rarely out of the news – just this month there has been talk of establishing a separate one for bikie gang members in Queensland where inmates would be confined for 23 hours a day. Clearly, such an initiative is based on the popular theory that more and tougher prisons will…
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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…
Castan Centre for Human Rights Law 