Submitted by Liberty Victoria on Mon, 19/03/2018 - 09:26
One of Australia’s most popular actors and a prominent activist are among those awarded this year’s major free speech awards, announced today.
A further award went to a journalist asylum seeker who has been imprisoned without trial offshore by the Australian Government for over four years.
Actor Magda Szubanski has topped off an astonishing year by being honoured for her work for marriage equality. She is the recipient of the nation’s top free speech honour, the Voltaire Award.
Submitted by Liberty Victoria on Mon, 04/12/2017 - 09:53
Australia’s name for decency and a fair go has been permanently stained by the latest sickening violence on Manus Island, Liberty Victoria said today.
Reports of attacks on refugees with metal poles and other weapons to force them to a new unfinished prison after three weeks of resistance shames the nation, said Liberty president Jessie Taylor.
“Our leaders seem deaf to the appeals by Australians of the Year, religious leaders and people going into the street,” she said.
The Bill amends the Migration Act 1958 (Cth) to empower the Minister for Immigration and Border Protection to ban mobile phones and other items in immigration detention centres. It also expands immigration officers’ warrantless search and seizure powers, and authorises them to use dogs to search detainees and visitors.
We support the Commonwealth Government’s commitment to ratify the Optional Protocol to the Convention against Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment (OPCAT).
The Victorian Charter of Human Rights and Responsibilities Act 2006 (Vic) (the Charter) imposes human rights obligations on every public authority in Victoria. Relevantly for present purposes, s 10 of the Charter provides that:
A person must not be—
(a) subjected to torture; or
(b) treated or punished in a cruel, inhuman or degrading way; or
Submitted by Liberty Victoria on Sat, 11/02/2017 - 02:04
Citizenship plan unfair and
invasive, says rights group
Changes floated by the Immigration Minister to requirements for Australian citizenship are unnecessary and counter-productive, Liberty Victoria said today.
Peter Dutton suggested on Sky News on 7 February that the test should involve a greater inquiry into a candidate's history of work, their children's conduct and English proficiency.
Getting citizenship already involves an investigation into whether a person has a criminal history, residency requirements and a test.
Submitted by Liberty Victoria on Tue, 08/11/2016 - 13:08
Rights group flays
Refugee life ban
The human rights group Liberty Victoria has condemned the Federal Government's decision to ban any asylum seeker who has attempted to reach Australia.
Liberty president George Georgiou SC said, "This is is total overreach. It ignores the fact that the government's offshore detention policy is failing and in disarray.
Liberty Victoria previously made a submission to the Inquiry into the Conditions and Treatment of Asylum Seekers and Refugees at the Regional Processing Centres in the Republic of Nauru and Papua New Guinea (former Inquiry). This submission into the serious allegations of abuse, self-harm and neglect of asylum seekers in relation to the Nauru Regional Processing Centre and Manus Regional Processing Centre updates the Committee on Liberty Victoria’s position regarding the healthcare provided to asylum seekers in Regional Processing Centres (RPCs).
