SBS coverage of a report co-authored by the Justice and Equity Centre.
Australia’s record on human rights is going backwards, according to a coalition of more than 150 First Nations, legal and advocacy organisations.
And they are calling on the Albanese Government to step up and do more to protect basic human rights.
Ahead of a major United Nations human rights review next year, the group of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander, human rights, legal, disability, refugee, LGBTIQA+ and climate organisations have submitted a report to the United Nations Human Rights Council.
The report backs up the Human Rights Measurement Index’s 2025 findings that Australia is backsliding across freedom of expression, safety from arbitrary detention and other fundamental human rights.
It identifies critical human rights issues where Australia is falling short of its legal obligations, including ongoing systemic racism against Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people, saying urgent action is needed to raise the age of criminal responsibility to at least 14; fully incorporate the UN Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples into Australian laws; establish a Makarrata Commission; and implement self-determined solutions to justice problems.
