Amnesty International Australia has handed its official submission to the federal government’s Human Rights Consultation, which closed today.

A copy of the submission can be downloaded here.

Amnesty International believes a Human Rights Act is the best way to guarantee national, uniform legal protection of the human rights of everyone living in Australia.

The submission calls for a Human Rights Act that includes all rights – economic, social, cultural, civil and political – and protects the rights of all people. This echoes the recommendation made by the United Nations in May this year that the Australian Government include economic, social and cultural rights when considering submissions to the consultation process.

It also strongly recommends the Human Rights Act should incorporate Australia’s obligations under international law. It should also promote education and training for human-rights-based approaches. This is based on the principle that all rights are universal and must be protected equally. This includes rights such as adequate housing, health and education, along with such rights as equality before the law, free speech and freedom of movement. In short, those that allow people to live in a society where their dignity and freedoms are respected.

Australia is the only liberal democracy without overarching legal protection of human rights. Amnesty International believes that Australia’s non-compliance with international obligations frequently leaves people vulnerable to rights violations. For example, Australia automatically places juvenile asylum-seekers in detention, contravening the United Nations Convention of the Rights of the Child, while elements of our anti-terrorism legislation are not in accordance with the Covenant on Civil and Political Rights.

The submission made by Amnesty International was accompanied by more than 10,000 individual submissions that were gathered from ordinary people around Australia.