Amnesty International has written to Foreign Minister Marise Payne and Defence Minister Peter Dutton ahead of their planned meetings with counterparts in Indonesia, India, South Korea and the United States over the next few days.
An important middle power in the Indo-Pacific, Australia is well placed to use its positive relationships with key partners in the region to pursue a strong human rights agenda for the post-pandemic world. For these democracies to become a more positive driving force behind a growing global assault on human rights, leaders must also be prepared to address the human rights violations occurring in their own countries.
Among the key issues Amnesty International Australia is concerned about in the countries the Ministers will visit are support of the TRIPS Waiver on vaccines, prioritising the abolition of the death penalty in the region, discrimination against ethnic groups, religious minorities and LGBTQIA+ people.
