Marking 50 years of the Racial Discrimination Act : The fight to embed equality in Australian law

The universal perspective provided by the human rights framework helps define, explain, and address issues encompassed in the concept of social justice, a concern addressed by public libraries especially, and libraries of all types. Librarianship in the U.S. as a field has not, however, adopted the human rights lens as widely as it did in other parts of the world. Providing library workers with the human rights language, framework, and tools to understand and act on social justice concerns will benefit the communities served by libraries in the U.S. as extensively indicated in the work of Kathleen de la Peña McCook. Library workers who are conscious of the social mission of their work can benefit from educational opportunities to retool the human rights framework to the needs of the 21st century, uncovering the intrinsic connection between their social justice work and human rights’ advocacy. This article introduces the human rights framework and its connection to librarianship, briefly reviews the literature on that relationship in the U.S. and concludes with a description of two current examples from Colombia and Argentina of courses that prepare librarians for human rights work.

Human rights and fair access to COVID-19 vaccines: the International AIDS Society–Lancet Commission on Health and Human Rights

To date, two fundamental approaches to understanding and responding to violence have been articulated: a criminal/juvenile justice approach and a public health approach. In this presentation, we will present a...

Working Together: Human Rights, the Sustainable Development Goals and Gender Equality

During the 1990s, the human rights-based approach (HRBA) emerged as the newest development framework to address increasing global poverty and inequality. Under this approach, development objectives are determined by human rights standards and goals as set out in international treaties, conven- tions, declarations, and authoritative interpretations of rights. Beneficiaries of development programmes also gain legal rights against corresponding duty bearers, which supersedes moral claims for the fulfilment of development goals. Furthermore, human rights principles such as equality and non-discrimination, accountability, participation, empowerment and the indivisibility of rights form the cornerstone of a HRBA. However, the human rights framework, as the foundation for this approach, has come under severe criticism over the past few years. Significant disparities exist between that which is promised in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and real-world respect for, and protection of human rights. This article aims to explore and analyse the most popular of these criticisms. These include critiques raised against the claimed universality of rights, inherent discriminatory practices, the inability of the framework to take account of practicalities and limitations, and the lack of effective protection and monitoring by United Nation’s bodies. It also explores emerging threats such as, for example, globalisation to the human rights framework. However, the framework has proven to be adaptable to these challenges. Practitioners and scholars are continuously working towards overcoming practicalities that impede the achievement of the protection and realisation of the human rights of all. In addition, the article examines critiques against the normative value of human rights as a product of natural law. However, the international human rights framework has gained widespread acceptance as the highest moral authority, as it is based on respect for human dignity and guaranteeing the freedom of all. The article demonstrates that the use of human rights language in lieu of other terms such as ‘goals’, ‘duties’, ‘interests’, ‘needs’, and ‘claims’ carries several advantages, the most important of which is the creation of rights holders with corresponding duty bearers. It also determines that, despite the numerous critiques examined, the human rights framework offers a solid, and the most accepted, foundation for development programming with a number of benefits.

To give an account of provisions in the framework of international human rights and intergovernmental policy agreements in relation to eating at school and discuss how these provisions could be invoked to ensure healthy eating at school. A review of provisions in the international and European human rights frameworks and policy documents was performed in order to identify evidence and examples of provisions implying responsibilities of the school as a public service provider to ensure healthy eating. The review of the human rights and policy texts showed that there are a large number of provisions that can be invoked in support of measures at school which can contribute to ensuring healthier eating as well as better education supporting such measures. The international frameworks of human rights and intergovernmental policy agreements should be invoked and translated into concrete strategies, policies, regulations and accountability mechanisms at national, regional, local and school levels. Ensuring healthy eating should be a top priority among all stakeholders in and around the school environment since it is a good investment in children's short- and long-term health and educational achievements.

The COVID-19 pandemic has brought the connections between law and public health into stark relief. The pandemic has demonstrated both the essential nature of global cooperation and international regulation to promote universal rights to life and health, and the potentially harmful impacts of limitations imposed on human rights in time of emergency. It has also tested the international human rights framework, which allows for permissible limitations on human rights where required, but which remains subject to widely varying domestic implementation. In this paper, we explore the relationship between international human rights law and the COVID-19 pandemic, including a focus on the rights of vulnerable individuals and communities who have experienced disproportionate impacts from both the pandemic itself and from measures that constrain the exercise of human rights. We propose that the inquiry and monitoring mechanisms of the UN human rights bodies provide important avenues for addressing the human rights implications of COVID-19 and Government responses to the pandemic. We also review Australia’s domestic implementation of international human rights law and its relevance in the era of COVID-19, noting the piecemeal approach to human rights protection under Australian law. We conclude that this time of emergency provides an opportunity for the progressive development of international human rights law, via principles of reciprocity, social protection, human rights preparedness and comprehensive normative protection for a right to public health.

ABSTRACTThe extent to which the human rights legislative framework impacts and enables the human right to health for people with disability in Victoria, Australia is contentious. We utilised a human rights monitoring tool developed by Disability Rights Promotion International (DRPI) to explore the understanding and utilisation of this human rights framework by people with disabilities in Victoria. The qualitative element of the research involved completion of 75 in-depth interviews that were thematically analysed in order to draw findings. The interviews conducted were based upon principles and themes related to key human rights articles of the United Nations Convention of Rights of People with Disabilities (CRPD). In this paper we focus on one aspect of the qualitative data obtained from in-depth interviews related to the right to health and the related legislative human rights frameworks for people with disabilities. The findings support the view that human-rights-based interventions do not appear to be providing substantial mechanisms for positive change or protections within the health landscape for people with disabilities, with participants rarely engaging with the human rights framework in addressing human rights breaches.

This article considers the advantage of the adoption of a human rights framework in analysis of issues of pressing concern to peace studies, such as the use of force, the imposition of sanctions, and general neglect of nonviolent alternative responses to state violence. Although the invocation of a human rights framework may not provide definitive answers on the appropriate responses, the framework can provide a vocabulary and space within which possible solutions may be considered. Using a case study of Iraq, this article demonstrates how the human rights framework may be applied to identify abuses and to inform policy options. Had a human rights framework been employed prior to the U.S. bombing of Iraq in 2000, the authors urge, alternatives to violence would have been exposed and the legality and legitimacy of the attacks called into question. Furthermore, the authors conclude, a human rights framework exposes the illegality of the treatment of Iraqi prisoners by U.S. military and intelligence officers.

Jurisprudence emanating from the High Court of Australia over the past three decades manifests increased willingness on the part of litigants, advocates and judges to voice or consider arguments in terms of 'human rights'. Alongside this, the 1980s and 1990s have witnessed a proliferation in the scholarly analysis of Australian law in terms of human rights. In this context, this article raises the following question: Should moves towards assimilation of human rights into Australian law over the period 1976-2003 be regarded as a 'journey of enlightenment', as a member of the Australian High Court has suggested? Taking issue with the expectation that Australian law is likely to be made more progressive through its greater internalisation of international human rights law, this article scrutinises those cases in which international human rights law has featured in the jurisprudence of the High Court of Australia. It studies the impact of appeals to 'the international' in these settings and, in view of this study, puts forward the following thesis: Efforts to promote the adoption of human rights language and instruments in Australian law tend to do as much, or even more, to reassure Australian law and lawyers that progress is being made than they do to effect meaningful legal, social or political change. Indeed, in specific cases, human rights' invocation in the High Court of Australia may be shown to have had demobilising or otherwise disadvantageous effects for those pursuing a human rights claim before that Court. Moreover, these tendencies are engendered by the prevailing jurisprudential style of Australian case law and scholarship: specifically, its particular combination of late modernism and legal pragmatism.

This paper considers the right to work for migrant workers in Ireland. The right to work, as recognised in international human rights instruments, encompasses a range of interrelated rights. However, economic and labour market developments at local and global levels play a key role in defining the right to work. Diverse views in relation to conceptions of the right to work and the obligations of states highlight the complexity and controversial nature of these issues. A human rights framework recognises the indivisibility of the right to work from other fundamental human rights where the standards set out in international human rights instruments are reflected in national policies and practices, and ensures that national remedies are in place to address violations. States have the power and responsibility to make legislative and policy choices to protect, promote and fulfil human rights. Legislative and policy choices in Ireland have resulted in a two-dimensional system based on nationality and skill/qualification level. The result is that non-European Economic Area (EEA)/Swiss migrants, especially Black and minority ethnic migrants, and migrants in low-skilled employment areas are particularly vulnerable. In terms of moving towards a human rights framework in Ireland, legislative and policy choices should ensure the development of an employment permit system that is underpinned by the principle of permanence and prevents exploitation, strengthen anti-racism and anti-discrimination strategies, and support integration. However, legislative and policy choices need to be made within a human rights framework which considers state obligations in the context of greater dialogue between those engaged with labour rights, human rights and economic theory and in the context of domestic and global concerns.

Introduction This chapter seeks to address the difficulties inherent in attempts to balance the presence of an Established Church and the modern human rights framework within a single constitution. It will argue that Establishment, which demands a place for religion in the public sphere, pulls in an opposing direction to that of the human rights framework, the general tendency of which is to remove religion into the private sphere. It will be argued that there is too often little attempt to address the potential conflict between human rights and Establishment, and an attempt will be made to examine the consequences of this omission. The focus of this chapter is upon the treatment of the Church of England within the human rights framework as implemented in the United Kingdom by the Human Rights Act 1998. In seeking to address this it will highlight the difficulties and complexities created, for those concerned with constitutional reform, by the non-documentary nature of the English constitution. It will illustrate that these difficulties and complexities are doubly present in respect of attempts to address the position of an Established Church which is itself a wide and varied body which has been subject to its own history of reform and its own internal forces. Through an analysis of the decisions of the Court of Appeal and the House of Lords in the case of Aston Cantlow v. Wallbank this chapter will examine the consequences of the interaction of a constitutional unwillingness to address the potential conflict between the ideologies of Establishment and the human rights framework; the history and characteristics of the English constitution and the Church of England and its institutions; and the language and frameworks developed under the European Convention on Human Rights (European Convention) and implemented in domestic law by the Human Rights Act 1998.

In Pakistan, human rights abuses have long been a serious problem that affects many facets of society, such as social justice, civil liberties, and political freedom. Significant gaps exist in the protection and advancement of fundamental human rights, as seen by these transgressions, which range from the persecution of religious minorities and gender-based violence to extrajudicial murders, enforced disappearances, and limitations on freedom of speech. These problems are made worse by Pakistan's political climate and security worries, which frequently make it difficult to execute international agreements and human rights legislation. Nonetheless, there have been some attempts to resolve these issues in recent years. Mechanisms to protect human rights have been established as a result of civil society activism and international pressure. Slow but steady progress in addressing these challenges has been made possible by legislative improvements, the participation of human rights organizations, and public awareness. However, there are significant obstacles to bringing about long-lasting change, including political unpredictability, institutional flaws, and the region's ongoing hostilities. The difficulties in defending human rights in Pakistan, the advancements made in resolving these problems, and the possible future course for guaranteeing a more equitable and inclusive society are all covered in this abstract. The study emphasizes how intricately cultural norms, government policies, and the international human rights framework interact to create an atmosphere in which fundamental freedoms are valued and protected.

Mitigating the impacts of racism on Indigenous wellbeing through human rights, legislative and health policy reform.

The Australian Attorney-General’s Department is currently conducting a review of Australia’s federal anti-discrimination laws, with a view to forming a single, comprehensive piece of legislation that would replace the current Racial, Disability, Sex and Age Discrimination Acts. This article illustrates some of the shortcomings under the current law for individuals and groups in Australia that face multiple, co-existing forms of subordination, and uses an intersectional approach to suggest a range of policy and legal remedies to these problems. While the Attorney-General’s current inquiry represents an opportunity to develop a legislative framework that better recognises claims of intersectional discrimination, the government should carefully consider the experience of other jurisdictions in drafting such a framework, and give attention to the resourcing of institutions that cater for those facing intersectional discrimination at the federal level.