Systemic changes to protect young people in the ACT Understanding how to use human rights in the family violence context The ACT Human Rights Act influenced the legislative process in the development of the Children and Young People Act 2008 (ACT). This was a comprehensive updating and codifying statute that is the primary law in the ACT providing for the protection, care and wellbeing of children and young people. A female family violence worker at Women’s Health West has stated that the Victorian Charter had a prominent impact in not only the way in which human rights issues are framed and tackled but also the practical realisation of these rights across various sectors. The government released an exposure draft of the legislation and the Human Rights Commissioner and the Children and Young People’s Commissioner made submissions. Human rights issues were raised by practices such as therapeutic protection orders, prenatal reporting of children at risk, stripsearching of detained children, and behaviour management schemes proposed for a youth detention centre. These human rights issues were considered extensively by policy officers involved in the preparation of the legislation, with assistance from the Human Rights Unit. This is reflected in the lengthy Explanatory Statement presented with the Bill, which refers not only to the provisions of the ACT Human Rights Act, but also to an array of relevant international standards, including the Convention on the Rights of the Child and United Nations principles relating to juvenile justice. It also draws on the audit reports of the ACT Human Rights Commissioner. We frequently refer to the Charter to educate clients about their rights and responsibilities, such as the right to live free from violence and the right to be safe. Often women are surprised to hear this and respond that this is the first time they’ve had their experiences framed in this way. At times, workers will refer back to legislative changes that reflect these rights, such as police power to temporarily remove suspected perpetrators of family violence from the house, issue safety notices and apply for intervention orders on behalf of the affected family member and the requirement to make relevant referrals to regional family violence services, men’s referral services and the Department of Human Services. So the rights are backed up by actions that actually make a difference. Extracted from Human Rights Law Centre, 101 Charter Cases, 2022.93 Extracted from the ANU five year review of the ACT Human Rights Act.92 (b) Prevention through cultural change A Human Rights Act would help embed a fair, respectful and inclusive culture of human rights across the whole of government. Through the dialogue Human Rights Act model, all arms of government have a role to play – the Human Rights Act would not be siloed within any one area. Human rights touches all aspects of public life so this is appropriate. 82 Over time, the obligations within the Human Rights Act and the associated training should result in a transformative cultural shift within government. Rights protection would become a core part of government business, not just an afterthought. It would be a continuous process of improvement, rather than a box ticking exercise. Embedding human rights thinking would mean that meaningful and comprehensive