Australian Human Rights Commission Information for LOIPR - Australia, 27 June 2016 15. Since its establishment, the PJCHR has produced 56 reports to Parliament assessing over 850 bills and the statement of compatibility with human rights accompanying each bill.10 Through these reports (and also through the provision of two Practice Notes),11 the PJCHR provides guidance to government departments on their expectations about the level of human rights analysis that statements of compatibility should contain. 16. As a matter of practice, ministers and government departments respond to concerns raised by the PJCHR regarding proposed legislation.12 The PJCHR raises concerns when they believe that legislation places an unjustifiable limitation on human rights. However, legislators are under no obligation to amend bills to reflect these concerns. Furthermore, there have been cases where bills have passed into law before the PJCHR has reported on the bill.13 17. The Commission notes that the findings of the PJCHR are often not taken into account by legislators when they are deliberating on proposed legislation. 18. The processes of the PJCHR stand in isolation as there is no national human rights act or charter of rights to otherwise incorporate the obligations in CAT into Australian law. However, the Commission notes that the Criminal Code Act 1995 (Cth), includes a reference to the CAT and the definition of torture.14 19. Issue for consideration in the LOIPR: Incorporation of human rights into Australian law including procedures for considering the concerns raised by the PJCHR. 5. Violence against women and children Concluding Observations, para 9 Relevant provisions of the CAT: Articles 2, 12, 13, 14 and 16 20. Violence against women remains a significant issue in Australia. As stated in the 2014 CAT Submission, 41% of women aged 18 and over have experienced violence in their lifetime.15 Further, violence is a leading cause of ill-health and death among women aged between 15 and 44 years.16 21. Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander women are five times more likely than non-Indigenous women to be homicide victims17 and 45 times more likely to be victims of domestic and family violence.18 Women with disability, women who are of culturally and linguistically diverse backgrounds, and women who are of diverse sexual orientation, gender identity or intersex are also particularly susceptible to violence. 22. Sexual harassment, another form of violence against women, is prevalent in Australian university settings and in Australian workplaces. Just over one in five (21%) people aged 15 years and older has experienced sexual harassment in the workplace in the past five years.19 23. The unique needs and experiences of children in this context also needs to be considered. An estimated 935,600 adult women first experienced physical abuse, and an estimated 1,092,200 first experienced sexual abuse, as a child 5