Watch the video. For as many rights as you can:
Identify one situation in the world where Human Rights are not being protected,
Identify one situation in Australia wher Human Rights are not protected as well as they could be
Saturday, May 22, 2010
A Way of Looking at the world: If we could shrink the world's population to 100 people, there would be
60 Asians; 13 Europeans; 14 from the western hemisphere (North and South) and 12 Africans
70 would be brown; 17 white and 13 black
21 atheists; 19 Catholic christian; 15 other Christian; 18 Muslim; 13 Hindu; 5 Chinese or tribal religion and 3 all the other religions of the world. 29 would believe in witchcraft
80 would live in sub-standard housing; 25 would have unsafe drinking water; 36 would have no toilet facilities.
50 would suffer from some malnutrition
70 would be unable to read
60 would mistrust their own government; 1 would have a university or college education; 1 would own a computer;
89 would be heterosexual; 11 homosexual;
6 people would possess 50% of the world's wealth and all 6 would live in the USA
Thursday, May 13, 2010
What are Human Rights?
Human rights are those rights that all people have becausethey are human beings. The recognition that all peopleshould be treated in a decent, equal and just manner ledto the United Nations Declaration of Human Rights on10 December 1948.
The Role of the United Nations (UN)
The United Nations was established in 1945 at the end of World war II. Its main aim was to establish peace and to make sure that genocide could not happen again.
One of the first documents drawn up by the UN was the Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR). Australia was involved in the drafting of the UDHR and has been a vocal campaigner for human rights since then.
The UN is an inter-governmental organisation (agency set up by two or more countries to carry out projects and plans in common interest). Along with 151 other countries, Australia is a member. This means that we have an obligation to abide by the decisions of the UN including the UDHR which was agreed in the General Assembly.
Another important role of the UN is peacekeeping. As part of our international obligations, Australia has defence force troops in many UN missions to keep peace and protect citizens around the world.
Describe the location of Australian peace keepers acting for the United Nations in 2009.
Why do you think peace keeping is an important part of protecting human rights?
Read the aims of the UN at the top of this section. Explain why the Un is not always successful in achieving its aims.
What would be necessary to achieve peace and the protection of Human Rights?
Why won't this happen?
Why do you think peace keeping is an important part of protecting human rights?
Read the aims of the UN at the top of this section. Explain why the Un is not always successful in achieving its aims.
What would be necessary to achieve peace and the protection of Human Rights?
Why won't this happen?
Australia's Position on Human Rights
Since 1948, Australian governments have also signed a number of other treaties and agreed to other international documents on human rights. These include documents that protect civil and political rights such as the right to vote and not be jailed without trial and documents that protect social and cultural rights like the right to education, health care, and freedom of cultural and religious beliefs.
An interesting point to think about at this stage, which we will visit in more detail in subsequent lessons, relates to this notion of how well does Australia really protect these rights and liberties? Think for a moment about groups such as Indigenous Australian’s and other minority groups. Upon further investigation you will see that this notion will provide many future challenges for Australia.
To make sure that these rights are actually protected in Australia, Australia has a constitution and laws made by parliaments and courts. For example, it is against the law to discriminate against people because of their ethnicity or religion. It is also against the law the law to do things that will incite racial hatred (An organised attack on people of Lebanese backgrounds for example would be a crime).
The major NSW law is the Anti-discrimination Act 1977 (NSW) which makes it illegal to discriminate on the basis ofsex, race, age, marital status, homosexuality and disability amongst other things.
Australia has also set up commissions to monitor human rights. One of these is HREOC (Human Rights and equal opportunity commission.)
Australia does not have a Bill of Rights like many other developed countries. However, it was announced in October 2009 that a Commonwealth Government law might soon be passed that lists all our rights in one place.
An interesting point to think about at this stage, which we will visit in more detail in subsequent lessons, relates to this notion of how well does Australia really protect these rights and liberties? Think for a moment about groups such as Indigenous Australian’s and other minority groups. Upon further investigation you will see that this notion will provide many future challenges for Australia.
To make sure that these rights are actually protected in Australia, Australia has a constitution and laws made by parliaments and courts. For example, it is against the law to discriminate against people because of their ethnicity or religion. It is also against the law the law to do things that will incite racial hatred (An organised attack on people of Lebanese backgrounds for example would be a crime).
The major NSW law is the Anti-discrimination Act 1977 (NSW) which makes it illegal to discriminate on the basis ofsex, race, age, marital status, homosexuality and disability amongst other things.
Australia has also set up commissions to monitor human rights. One of these is HREOC (Human Rights and equal opportunity commission.)
Australia does not have a Bill of Rights like many other developed countries. However, it was announced in October 2009 that a Commonwealth Government law might soon be passed that lists all our rights in one place.
Human Rights Challenges Facing Refugess in Australia
Who is a Refugee?
Millions of people every year have to flee from their homes due to fear of persecution. Some of these people remain within their own country and are known as internally displaced persons. When a person flees to another country they become a refugee. In 2007 the UN estimated the number of refugees to be 8.4 million.
The Law Relating to Refugees
The 1951 Convention Relating to the Status of Refugees is the key legal document defining who is a refugee and what their rights are, and the legal obligations of countries towards refugees.
Article 1 of the Convention defines a refugee as:
‘A person who is outside his/her country of nationality or habitual residence; has a well founded fear of persecution because of his/her race, religion, nationality, membership in a particular social group or political opinion; and is unable or unwilling to avail himself/herself of the protection of that country, or to return there, for fear of persecution.’
The Difference between Refugees and Asylum Seekers
When people flee from their homes in fear of persecution they have the right to seek safety in another country.
Article 14 of the Declaration of Human Rights states that:
'Everyone has the right to seek and to enjoy in other countries asylum from persecution.'
An asylum seeker is a person who has arrived in another country seeking safety and is waiting for recognition as a refugee. For this reason there is no such thing as an illegal asylum-seeker. Often these people arrive without documents because they have fled from regimes (oppressive or cruel governments) that would not provide them or they have not had the time nor means to acquire them.
Australia – Refugees and Asylum Seekers
Australia currently accepts about 14,000 refugees each year. In the past, refugees have come from areas of the world where there is war. Areas have included Vietnam, Lebanon, Croatia and currently Sudan.
Where asylum seekers arrive by boat, Australia has a policy of detaining them until the Government determines whether they are actually refugees or not. In order to make it harder for people smugglers to bring people to Australia, the government sends these people to islands, most commonly Christmas Island or Naru, and detains them until it becomes clear if they are a refugee or not.
Until recently, those who did manage to make it to Australia were detained in neighbouring countries. This was known as The Pacific Solution. These off shore centres no longer operate and a new detention centre on Christmas Island has been built.
Over the past decade, there has been much criticism of Australia’s Human Rights record as it relates to asylum seekers and refugees. Even with the more recent changes, there are still reasons for the UN to be critical:
- The Human Rights Commission has reported that long detention leads to depression and mental illness
- In 2004 The United Nation Human Rights Committee considered Australia to be in breach of its special obligations to children. As a result, children are no longer kept in detention centres but are placed in foster homes until their parents’ claims are assessed.
- Until October 2009, if an asylum seeker was denied refugee status, they were billed by the government for their plane trip home. Very few (if any) would ever be able to afford to pay the debt)
It is also relevant to note that the UN has just declared that Australians have the second highest living standard in the world and yet we take very few refugees by world standards.
Millions of people every year have to flee from their homes due to fear of persecution. Some of these people remain within their own country and are known as internally displaced persons. When a person flees to another country they become a refugee. In 2007 the UN estimated the number of refugees to be 8.4 million.
The Law Relating to Refugees
The 1951 Convention Relating to the Status of Refugees is the key legal document defining who is a refugee and what their rights are, and the legal obligations of countries towards refugees.
Article 1 of the Convention defines a refugee as:
‘A person who is outside his/her country of nationality or habitual residence; has a well founded fear of persecution because of his/her race, religion, nationality, membership in a particular social group or political opinion; and is unable or unwilling to avail himself/herself of the protection of that country, or to return there, for fear of persecution.’
The Difference between Refugees and Asylum Seekers
When people flee from their homes in fear of persecution they have the right to seek safety in another country.
Article 14 of the Declaration of Human Rights states that:
'Everyone has the right to seek and to enjoy in other countries asylum from persecution.'
An asylum seeker is a person who has arrived in another country seeking safety and is waiting for recognition as a refugee. For this reason there is no such thing as an illegal asylum-seeker. Often these people arrive without documents because they have fled from regimes (oppressive or cruel governments) that would not provide them or they have not had the time nor means to acquire them.
Australia – Refugees and Asylum Seekers
Australia currently accepts about 14,000 refugees each year. In the past, refugees have come from areas of the world where there is war. Areas have included Vietnam, Lebanon, Croatia and currently Sudan.
Where asylum seekers arrive by boat, Australia has a policy of detaining them until the Government determines whether they are actually refugees or not. In order to make it harder for people smugglers to bring people to Australia, the government sends these people to islands, most commonly Christmas Island or Naru, and detains them until it becomes clear if they are a refugee or not.
Until recently, those who did manage to make it to Australia were detained in neighbouring countries. This was known as The Pacific Solution. These off shore centres no longer operate and a new detention centre on Christmas Island has been built.
Over the past decade, there has been much criticism of Australia’s Human Rights record as it relates to asylum seekers and refugees. Even with the more recent changes, there are still reasons for the UN to be critical:
- The Human Rights Commission has reported that long detention leads to depression and mental illness
- In 2004 The United Nation Human Rights Committee considered Australia to be in breach of its special obligations to children. As a result, children are no longer kept in detention centres but are placed in foster homes until their parents’ claims are assessed.
- Until October 2009, if an asylum seeker was denied refugee status, they were billed by the government for their plane trip home. Very few (if any) would ever be able to afford to pay the debt)
It is also relevant to note that the UN has just declared that Australians have the second highest living standard in the world and yet we take very few refugees by world standards.
Human Rights Challenges Facing Indigenous Australians
The disadvantage facing Australian indigenous citizens in remote communities is often in the headlines.
Here are just some of the facts that outline the plight of Indigenous Australians:
- NT and WA Aboriginal life expectancy is closer to that of people living in developing countries than to the rest of Australia. (life expectancy is around 20 years less)
- The percentage of NT Aboriginal babies born with low birth weight is higher than developing countries such as China and many African countries.
- Aboriginals are over represented in Australian gaols (about 15 times higher per head of population) – not because crime rates are higher but because there are not the support networks available to the urban population of aboriginals.
- Average weekly earnings of indigenous Australians is just over half that of non-indigenous people.
- Unemployment rate is around 20%. The national unemployment rate is around 5.6%
- Aboriginal people in remote areas are far more likely to have untreated diseases that cause blindness and deafness and have limited access to regular medical services
- Around 90% of Aboriginal children in remote areas suffer hearing loss
- Literacy levels are about half that of “white” Australians
- Only around 5% on Aboriginal children will attend university compared to 25% or higher of the rest of the population
Here are just some of the facts that outline the plight of Indigenous Australians:
- NT and WA Aboriginal life expectancy is closer to that of people living in developing countries than to the rest of Australia. (life expectancy is around 20 years less)
- The percentage of NT Aboriginal babies born with low birth weight is higher than developing countries such as China and many African countries.
- Aboriginals are over represented in Australian gaols (about 15 times higher per head of population) – not because crime rates are higher but because there are not the support networks available to the urban population of aboriginals.
- Average weekly earnings of indigenous Australians is just over half that of non-indigenous people.
- Unemployment rate is around 20%. The national unemployment rate is around 5.6%
- Aboriginal people in remote areas are far more likely to have untreated diseases that cause blindness and deafness and have limited access to regular medical services
- Around 90% of Aboriginal children in remote areas suffer hearing loss
- Literacy levels are about half that of “white” Australians
- Only around 5% on Aboriginal children will attend university compared to 25% or higher of the rest of the population
Reconciliation
Definition of Reconciliation
Reconciliation is defined as the process of understanding and restoring a relationship, particularly if the reason for the rift is as a result of one party’s actions. Reconciliation is a community-based movement involving Indigenous and non-Indigenous Australians. It is a process that aims to improve relations between Indigenous peoples and the wider community.
Reconciliation is not a new idea. The first major step to recognise the rights of Aboriginal people began in the 1960s with the Freedom Rides and resulted in changes to the constitution to include Aborigines in the census in the 1967 referendum.
In the 1990’s the High Court decisions in the Mabo and Wik cases and the recognition of Aboriginal collective rights to own traditional land
The 2007 “SORRY” speech was one of the first acts of the new Rudd Government. It was hailed as a great step forward in the Australian government recognition of past human rights abuses – particularly in relation to ”The stolen generation”. It has been criticised by some as a ceremonial gesture with not enough real improvement in Aboriginal quality of life as the statistics on the previous page indicate.
Reconciliation is defined as the process of understanding and restoring a relationship, particularly if the reason for the rift is as a result of one party’s actions. Reconciliation is a community-based movement involving Indigenous and non-Indigenous Australians. It is a process that aims to improve relations between Indigenous peoples and the wider community.
Reconciliation is not a new idea. The first major step to recognise the rights of Aboriginal people began in the 1960s with the Freedom Rides and resulted in changes to the constitution to include Aborigines in the census in the 1967 referendum.
In the 1990’s the High Court decisions in the Mabo and Wik cases and the recognition of Aboriginal collective rights to own traditional land
The 2007 “SORRY” speech was one of the first acts of the new Rudd Government. It was hailed as a great step forward in the Australian government recognition of past human rights abuses – particularly in relation to ”The stolen generation”. It has been criticised by some as a ceremonial gesture with not enough real improvement in Aboriginal quality of life as the statistics on the previous page indicate.
More recently, there has also been discussion about the role of the government in the Northern Territory Intervention that was intended to improve health and education outcomes in remote Aboriginal communities. The positive outcomes has been a reduction in alcohol related violence and improved attendance at schools. Part of the way the government has encouraged communities to ensure the children are well cared for is to link welfare payments to food vouchers. Some have argued that this is discrimination (and therefore an abuse of human rights) because the same rules do not apply to “white” families where there is violence and neglect. (As in the recent case of the 7 year old at Hawks Nest who was starved to death by her parents)
Generally, Australians are better recognising Aboriginal culture and their traditional connection with the land. Sacred sites are protected and aboriginal history is compulsory in the Australian education system.
As well as government recognition, NGO’s such as ANTaR (Australians for Native Title and Reconciliation) continue to work to raise awareness of Aboriginal issues.
It is unlikely that the problems in Aboriginal communities will be solved in the near future.
Generally, Australians are better recognising Aboriginal culture and their traditional connection with the land. Sacred sites are protected and aboriginal history is compulsory in the Australian education system.
As well as government recognition, NGO’s such as ANTaR (Australians for Native Title and Reconciliation) continue to work to raise awareness of Aboriginal issues.
It is unlikely that the problems in Aboriginal communities will be solved in the near future.
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