No Time like the Present to Protect our Human Rights
Speech delivered by Pauline Wright, Law Council of Australia President at the National Press Club, Canberra, 18 November 2020.
"At a time of global power shifts, increasingly fragmented and insular national politics, and events characterised as ‘profound’ blows to fundamental freedoms being played out across the globe, the Law Council believes it is time to consider a renewed commitment to the fundamental, universal norms of human rights – born out of the horrors of World War II.
As you’d expect from a mob of lawyers – the Law Council looks to the legal infrastructure we have in place to pass on to future generations, not only the economic infrastructure.
That brings us to the fact that Australia is the only Western democracy without some form of a charter of rights at the national level, whether legislated by parliament, or constitutionally enshrined.
Today, I am proud to announce the Law Council’s refreshed policy on a federal Human Rights Act."
You can read the full speech below.
Last Updated on 18/11/2020