(d) Ensuring the effective participation of people about whom decisions are being made Throughout the Free & Equal project, the Commission has reflected on the need for law, policy and practice at the federal level to be developed with the effective participation of those who are directly affected. In the Position Paper: A Human Rights Act for Australia, we note that: The Commission has identified that a common factor with laws and policies that breach human rights is that they were developed without the participation of groups most impacted by those policies.10 The right to participation is both a stand-alone right and a means to realising other human rights. The Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights has noted that the right to participate in public affairs (as set out in Article 12 of the ICCPR) means that governments must ‘ensure the equal participation of individuals and groups in the design, implementation and evaluation of any law, regulation, policy, programme or strategy affecting them’.11 The right to participation is also a fundamental principle contained in the thematic treaties in relation to children (Article 12, CRC), women (Article 7(b) CEDAW) and persons with disability (Articles 3 and 12, CRPD). The importance of effective participation in relation to Indigenous peoples is also recognised across a number of the international treaties (such as through Art 27 ICCPR, Art 30 CRC and Art 5 ICERD). A national framework on human rights would embed participation principles across the range of actions that are proposed, and set out accountability mechanisms to ensure that these principles are continually met and improved over time. (e) Adopting a cohesive framework that respects, protects and fulfils human rights There is no one measure that is capable of fully meeting Australia’s human rights obligations. What is required is a suite of measures that can act together to achieve different objectives. In this project, the Commission has used the ‘respect, protect, fulfil’ framework of human rights obligations to provide the conceptual lens to guide what actions should be taken to meet our human rights obligations.13 • The obligation to respect human rights requires that governments, through their own actions, do not breach human rights. • The obligation to protect human rights requires governments to take actions to prevent others from breaching human rights. Where a person’s rights have been breached, the obligation to protect also requires governments to ensure accessible and effective remedies are available to that person. • The obligation to fulfil human rights requires governments to take positive actions to fully realise the equal enjoyment of human rights. Participation is also crucial to realising other rights, including: • the prevention of discrimination, freedom of expression, opinion and to access information, and • in determining the adequacy and appropriateness of rights such as to health, education, housing, an adequate standard of living and other economic, social and cultural rights.12 20 One of the key findings of this Inquiry is that ensuring the participation of people in decision making that affects them, particularly for vulnerable or marginalised groups, is one of the most fundamental challenges for getting better human rights outcomes in Australia. By using this framing of rights protection, we have a reference point to ensure that we take a well-rounded approach to the task of protecting human rights. FREE & EQUAL: Revitalising Australia’s Commitment to Human Rights