The Rights Approach

21 December 2005

Victoria is set to become the first state to introduce a Charter of Human Rights and Responsibilities, following recommendations from an independent committee headed by UNSW Law Professor George Williams.

Launching the report of the Human Rights Consultation Committee (HRCC), Victorian Attorney-General Rob Hulls said the State Government would enact a charter next year.

"A charter of human rights and responsibilities will strengthen and support our democratic system," Mr Hulls said. "These rights are currently either unprotected or scattered across the statute books haphazardly. Australia is the only western democracy with no clear human rights protection."

In April 2005, the Victorian Government appointed Professor Williams to chair the HRCC - established to consult with the community about whether the law should be changed to better protect human rights and, if so, what form this should take.

"There was overwhelming support for reform," said Professor Williams, Director of the Gilbert + Tobin Centre of Public Law at UNSW. "After six months of widespread public consultations, more than 84 percent of the people we talked to or received submissions from said that they wanted to see the law changed to better protect their human rights."

"The Charter, which is the centrepiece of our recommendations, is not based on the United States Bill of Rights, but on the modern human rights laws that now operate successfully in the Australian Capital Territory, New Zealand and the United Kingdom," Professor Williams said.

"The charter should be the start of incremental change, not just the end of it. This ought to take place not just in Victoria but around the nation."

Other members of the committee were Olympian Andrew Gaze, Rhonda Galbally and former Victorian Attorney-General Haddon Storey. The full report Rights, Responsibilities and Respect: The Report of the Human Rights Consultation Committee can be found on the Department of Justice website.