News Release Issued by the International Secretariat of Amnesty
International *
28 July 2000
AI Index ASA 12/007/2000
News Service Nr. 146 Public Statement Australia
UN Human Rights Committee findings Today's findings of the UN Human Rights Committee on Australia's record
of civil and political rights confirm Amnesty International's major
concerns on the country, and should strengthen the case of Australians
campaigning for improvements in domestic human rights protection. The International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights provides for
the Human Rights Committee to routinely examine reports by state parties
on their records of implementing covenant rights. In particular, the Committee's comments support Amnesty International's
long-standing position that: -- the effects of the "stolen children" policies are a human rights
issue generating human rights obligations today - a fact the
government's formal response to the "stolen children" inquiry did not
accept;
-- the twice-proposed Administrative Decisions (Effects of International
Instruments) Bill - to prevent Australians from taking violations of
their rights to court - would be "incompatible" with Australia's
obligations to provide effective remedies for any violations of their
treaty rights (paragraph 15 of Concluding Observations);
-- Australia's mandatory immigration detention law "raises questions of
compliance" with its international obligations, with remedies
recommended including information "for all detainees of their legal
rights", and the creation of a legal duty to comply with the Covenant in
deportation cases (paragraphs 18 and 19);
-- Australia has failed to address previous Human Rights Committee
concerns about the arbitrary detention over four years of a Cambodian
asylum-seeker (paragraph 16);
-- "mandatory imprisonment" legislation in the Northern Territory and
Western Australia should be reviewed "to ensure that all Covenant rights
are respected" (paragraph 17);
-- the Commonwealth Government has an obligation to ensure equal
implementation of rights at all levels of state and territory
government, and that state-federal arrangements "may not condone
restrictions on Covenant rights" (paragraph 14).
Amnesty International urges all interest groups in Australia to
seriously examine and discuss the Committee's findings and
recommendations. Amnesty International is appealing to the government to assess its
expected decision on a review of Australia's cooperation with United
Nations treaty bodies in the light of the long-term and international
effects which any watering down of such cooperation might have.
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