Australian Human Rights Commission
Submission to the UN Committee On The Elimination Of Racial Discrimination, 30 October 2017
Table of Contents
Australian Human Rights Commission Submission to the UN Committee on
the Elimination of Racial Discrimination .................................................. 1
1
Introduction .............................................................................................................. 4
2
Priority areas ............................................................................................................ 5
3
Human rights framework ......................................................................................... 6
(a)
(b)
(c)
(d)
(a)
(b)
(c)
(d)
4
Racial discrimination in Australia..........................................................................12
(a)
(b)
(c)
(d)
(a)
(b)
(c)
5
Scrutiny of human rights and the Parliamentary Joint Committee on
Human Rights (CERD article 2; CO 9 & 10) .............................................. 6
Domestic incorporation (CERD article 2; CO 9, 10 & 17) ........................ 7
Incorporation of CERD.............................................................................. 7
Implementation of Committee’s Concluding Observations ....................... 9
Ratification of OPCAT............................................................................... 9
Other relevant instruments ....................................................................... 9
Education (CERD article 7; CO 11, 21 & 27) ........................................... 10
Human rights education in the national curriculum ................................. 10
Multiculturalism education in the national curriculum .............................. 10
Human rights education in the public service ......................................... 11
National Anti-Racism Strategy ................................................................ 11
Multicultural Australia .............................................................................. 12
Racial discrimination generally............................................................... 12
Strengthening multiculturalism .............................................................. 13
Multiculturalism policy (CERD article 2; CO 14) ..................................... 13
Multiculturalism legislation (CERD article 2; CO 14) ............................... 13
Policy machinery (CERD article 2; CO 14) ............................................. 14
Citizenship requirements (CERD article 2; CO 14) ................................. 14
Cultural diversity in Australian organisations and institutions (CERD
article 5; CO 14) ........................................................................................ 15
Leadership .............................................................................................. 15
Media ...................................................................................................... 16
Law enforcement .................................................................................... 16
Data collection (CERD article 2; CO 23) ................................................. 16
Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples ......................................................17
Experiences of racial discrimination ...................................................... 17
UN Declaration on Indigenous Peoples (CERD article 2; CO 15) ......... 17
Constitutional recognition (CERD article 1, 2, 5, 6; CO 15) .................. 18
Incarceration of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people (CERD
article 5; Declaration articles 7 & 22; CO 19 & 20) ................................. 19
(a)
Disproportionate rates of incarceration ................................................... 19
(b)
Northern Territory Royal Commission..................................................... 20
(c)
Deaths in police custody ......................................................................... 21
Family/domestic violence (CERD article 5 & Declaration article 22) ... 21
Support to human rights defenders and related bodies (CERD article 2;
CO 15 & 19) ............................................................................................... 22
Cultural rights (native title) (CERD articles 2, 5; Declaration articles 3,
10, 11, 20, 25, 26, 27, 28, 29, 32; CO 16 & 18) ......................................... 23
2