News and Events
Human Rights Overboard: Seeking Asylum in Australia
The testimonies of The People's Inquiry into Detention
by Linda Briskman, Susie Latham and Chris Goddard
(price $35 plus shipping, member discount 5%)
For more information and to order:
www.safecom.org.au/humanrightsoverboard.htm
This is a profoundly important book. It is an unflinching look at disgraceful events. Too many Australians allowed these things to happen. Our generation will forever be marked with the shame of it. It is not only an epitaph for the Howard government: it is also a caution to future generations. (Julian Burnside QC)
Your sweetest "revenge"?
And, in placing the order for your copy of this major opus, consider taking the sweetest of all revenges: buy an extra copy and send it to your 'favourite' politician: send a copy to someone who really needs to read it!
In 2005, in the wake of the Cornelia Rau scandal, a citizen's inquiry was established to bear witness to events in Australian immigration-detention facilities. Until then, the federal government had refused to conduct a broad-ranging investigation into immigration detention in Australia, and the operations within detention centres had been largely shrouded in official secrecy.
The People's Inquiry into Detention (as it came to be called) heard heartbreaking evidence about asylum-seekers' journeys to Australia, their detention process, life in detention, and life after detention. In total, around 200 people testified to the inquiry, and a similar number of written submissions were received.
Human Rights Overboard draws together, for the first time, the oral testimony and written submissions from the inquiry in a powerful and vital book that stands as an indelible record of one of Australia's bleakest legacies.
With a foreword by prominent humanitarian lawyer Julian Burnside, Human Rights Overboard is an essential book that will resonate with the Australian public and, indeed, the world, for years to come.
For more information and to order:
www.safecom.org.au/humanrightsoverboard.htm
25 August 2008
A Rare Focus on Children’s Rights
International Conference on Child Labour and Child Exploitation
Cairns 3-5 August 2008
An international conference on Child Labour and Child Exploitation is to be conducted by Children’s Rights International (CRI) at Cairns from 3-5 August 2008.
The multi-disciplinary program has been designed to provide a wide range of appeal to those interested in domestic and international children’s law, family law, child protection, children’s health and education, the enhancement and enforcement of children’s rights, the prevention of child labour, exploitation of children in the workplace and the sexual exploitation of children, including in particular Indigenous children.
The Conference will be opened by the Federal Attorney-General the Hon Robert McClelland, together with Queensland Minister and Member for Cairns, Desley Boyle and the Mayor of Cairns, Cr.Val Schier.
The Hon Ted Mullighan, author of Children on the APY Lands Commission of Inquiry Report will be speaking on the subject of the abuse of Indigenous children and children in care. The President of the ACTU, Ms Sharan Burrow will address the role of unions in assisting the fight against child labour and exploitation.
My successor as Chief Justice, the Hon Diana Bryant will speak on a less adversarial system of hearing cases in the Family Court and Chief Federal Magistrate John Pascoe will speak on trafficking of unborn children. Other Australian speakers include the CEO of World Vision Australia, Rev Tim Costello, on children and chains, Professor Mick Dodson AO on Indigenous children, and Graeme Innes AM, Human Rights Commissioner, on monitoring the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child, Dr John Tobin from the University of Melbourne will discuss whether Judges sufficiently protect the rights of children and Professor Andrew Stewart of the University of Adelaide will discuss labour exploitation of children in Australia.
Ms Bernadette McMenamin AO, CEO of Child Wise, Australia will discuss child trafficking and Ms Julie Gale, founder of Kids Free 2B Kids, will speak on the sexualisation of children.
The issue of internet safety will be addressed by Ms Julie Inman Grant, Director for Internet Safety and Security, Microsoft Asia Pacific and Dr Judith Slocombe of the National Centre against Bullying.
There will be international speakers from the UK, the Netherlands, New Zealand, South Africa, the USA, India and the International Labour Organisation (ILO). These include M Michele Jankanish, Director of the international programme for the elimination of child labour with the ILO, Professor Eddie Mhlanga, Professor of Medicine at the University of Kwa-Zulu Natal, on the subject of children and HIV-AIDS, Mr Bill Bell, Head of Child Protection with Save the Children UK, Mr John B Trew, Child Labour Adviser to CARE USA and co President of the International Cocoa Verification Board (ICVB) and Judge Corinne, E. Dettmeijer-Vermuelen, Dutch National Rapporteur on trafficking in human beings.The Conference will also be addressed by senior officials from the US Department of Labour. Judge Rosemary Riddell from the Family Court of New Zealand will speak on protecting children of separating couples from family violence.
Also participating will be children, including refugee children and Indigenous children in a session led by Margaret Douglas, CEO of Save the Children, Australia.
There will be separate workshops involving Child Wise and the Australian Federal Police, considering trafficking and sexual exploitation of children.
Supporters of the Conference include Care USA, Child Wise, Defence of Children International, Save the Children, World Vision, the ACTU, Amnesty International and the Lasallian Foundation.
Detailed information about the programme and electronic registration can be obtained from the following web sites:
http://www.childjustice.org/html/index.htm
http://www.childjustice.org/wsecl/
or contact CRI’s CEO Bill Jackson directly
ceo@childjustice.org
This is a unique opportunity to gather with colleagues across the disciplines to focus on the hugely important issue of children’s rights.
The Hon Alastair Nicholson AO RFD QC
Patron Children Right’s International (CRI)
See:
Conference Program (PDF)
Registration Form (PDF)
Conference Brochure (PDF)
3 July 2008
A National Framework for Child Protection
The Minister for Families, Housing, Community Services and Indigenous Affairs has released a discussion paper Helping protect Australia's children from abuse and neglect with responses due by 30 June 2008.
The media release is below: and the paper is attached at the link shown
Media release
Boosting and retaining high-quality foster carers is one of a range of measures canvassed in a discussion paper released today by the Australian Government aimed at helping protect children from abuse and neglect.
The 'Australia's children: safe and well' discussion paper outlines options to address the substantial increase in the number of child protection substantiations.
The number of occasions where authorities found that a child either was or was likely to be harmed, abused or neglected increased by 45 per cent from 40,416 in 2002-03 to 58,563 in 2006-07.
State and Territory child protection systems are dealing with an unprecedented number of reports of child neglect or abuse.
These trends are deeply alarming. We must harness every resource we can to better protect vulnerable children from abuse and neglect.
The Government is committed to providing national leadership to protect Australia's children. A National Child Protection Framework is key to the Government's child-centred approach to family policy. Central to the Framework's approach will be a stronger focus on prevention.
The Australian Government wants to work closely with the States and Territories to improve the way agencies, payments, and programs interact with each other to help prevent abuse and better protect children identified at risk.
The paper discusses a range of child protection issues including:
- A stronger prevention focus
- Better collaboration between services
- Improving responses for children in care and young people leaving care
- Improving responses to Indigenous children
- Attracting and retaining the right workforce
- Improving child protection systems
Under the Framework, the Australia Government will give State and Territory child welfare authorities the power to advise Centrelink to quarantine government payments to ensure children are provided for.
Practical measures such as income management ensure that welfare payments are spent in the best interests of children.
The paper considers how to better use existing resources, such as child care, to provide more support for children at-risk and respite for parents under stress.
Another option canvassed in the paper is rigorous performance monitoring and accountability of the current systems.
Definitions, standards and practices seem to differ across the country. We must do better to make sure the best practices are being used in all jurisdictions.
Supporting and training skilled and dedicated workers in child protection is another measure outlined in the discussion paper.
The best child protection system in the world won't be effective without highly skilled and dedicated workers, and this may be an area where a national strategy could help significantly.
The Government has committed $2.64 million towards the development of the Framework.
Australia's children: safe and well is available at http://www.fahcsia.gov.au/internet/facsinternet.nsf/family/parenting-child_protection_discussion_page.htm or click here for the disccusion paper.
or by calling 1800 050 009. Feedback is sought by 30 June 2008.
2 June 2008
Utopia?
By Simon Quilty
Simon Quilty is a medico and member of DCI-Australia and these are his reflections on his experience working in an Aboriginal community in the Northern Territory, and of the Howard Government’s belated intervention.
Click here of a PDF copy of Simon's paper (PDF)
2 July 2007
Australian Common Core Document for Human Rights Reporting
The Australian Government has now published its Common Core Document, incorporating its reports under the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR) and the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights (ICESCR) and forming part of its reports under the Convention on the Rights of the Child, the International Convention on the Elimination of all Forms of Racial Discrimination, the Convention on the Elimination of all Forms of Discrimination Against Women, and the Convention against Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment.
Click here for PDF copy of the Core Document
23 January 2007 |
