National Human Rights Consultation:

A Great Chance to be Heard

Lee Ann Basser, La Trobe UniversityJulie Phillips, Disability Discrimination Legal ServicePaul Ramcharan, RMIT UniversityBen Schokman, Human Rights Law Resource Centre

Outline

1. Human Rights and People with Disability

2. What is the National Consultation?

3. How to write a submission

4. Encouraging and helping others to make

submissions

5. Resources and Contacts – Helping you to write

a submission

Human rights and people with disability

What human rights are most relevant to people

with disability?

In what situations or circumstances are human

rights relevant?

How do public authorities have to comply with

human rights?

An example…

An example:

Narrative – “But my son is toilet trained and he kept coming home from school with bags with soiled laundry. And I said why – he’s toilet trained, why is this – isn’t he just allowed to go to the toilet? I learned that the school locks it’s toilets at recess and lunch time so the pupils can’t access the toilets. And they said – Oh no, it’s not possible to unlock a toilet. Your son has to ask – go up and ask a staff member for the toilet. And I said well he has a social and communication disability – he can’t go up and ask for the toilet, just let him go. That’s what we do at home. And they refused to allow him to use the toilet… after I’d done that – nonetheless my son still kept coming home with soiled laundry. And I said but the toilets are unlocked aren’t they? Yes they’re unlocked, they’re unlocked, that’s OK… And they were making him carry a card around his neck to go up to the teacher, which he couldn’t do. So they – I thought how – after all that we’d been through you’re so determined that he just won’t be allowed to go to the toilet. And that really scared me… people will get even with you by doing something nasty to your child. And that made me quite scared and, um. He was – I felt that my boy was being punished for soiling his pants because he went through a stage where he started to eat his stools. And when I went up to school and said look this is what’s happening, this is – I’m horrified and we’ve been to the psychologist…it didn’t reflect well on them that my boy had been so traumatised that rather than let someone see that was something in his pants, he would try to make it go away by eating it. And that just – I – that just – I’d lie in bed at night and just cry and cry over that. That just made me ill.”

Issues? Resolution? Implications?

The National Consultation

An independent Committee has been asked to collect views

about human rights from all over Australia

Written submissions

Community meetings

Submissions to the Consultation are due by 15 June 2009

The Committee will report to Government by 31 August 2009

Three Questions:

1. Which human rights (and responsibilities) are

important?

2. Are these human rights protected enough now?

3. How could Australia better protect and talk more about

human rights?

A Great Chance to be Heard

1. Disability organisations know the problems people

with disabilities have

2. Australia does not have many

laws to protect human rights

3. Human rights improve public services and can be

used to help people with disability get what they need

4. The government does not often ask us what we think

about human rights – so we should let them know!

What can we do?

You are the experts!

Every submission counts, no matter how large or small

You and your organisation can (or should!):

1. Write a submission for your organisation

2. Help others to write a submission

Also an important opportunity for

community education

What should be in a federalHuman Rights Act?

Parliament has to think about how new laws impact on

human rights

Government departments and services must obey human

rights obligations

Courts can interpret laws to be consistent with human rights

ALL rights should be protected – civil, political, economic,

social and cultural

Individuals can go to court when their rights have been

breached

Myths about a Human Rights Act(things that are not true)

Many people will start suing organisations

Judges will make decisions on human rights

We already have enough rights

There will be too much red tape

Will be used by terrorists

We don’t need it

It won’t do anything

Positive things about a new human rights law

If people think more about human rights, we will have an

improved public service delivery and outcomes

It can help make our laws, policies and

practices fairer

The language and ideas of human rights can

be used to get positive changes and improve the

lives of people with disability

Protecting basic human rights recognises that all people

are equal and valued

Writing your submission

Some questions to think about:

What expertise and experience do we have?

What can our organisation add?

What resources do we have?

Writing your submission

Some options:

Write a letter supporting the HRLRC’s submission

Copy and change someone else’s submission to suit

your organisation

Write your own submission – can be large or small

(even 1 page will do!)

Writing your submission

What should we include?

Write about areas and rights that you know the most

about

Tell stories about the experiences of your organisation:

Good news stories – where human rights were helped

‘Unfair’ outcomes - where better

human rights protection might

have been useful

Do we have any technical expertise

that would help the Committee?

Discussion in small groups

1. What stories or experiences do you have about

human rights:

Success stories where human rights have helped?

Any examples of ‘unfair’ treatment where you think

that better human rights protection (eg laws) might

have been useful?

2. What sort of submission might your organisation

be able to make?

Writing your submission

A narrative approach:

Tell the stories from your own experiences in which

rights are an issue

Relate the key rights and issues involved

Describe why the legislation worked or did not work

Implications – provide recommendations on how

things could change for the better

Encouraging and helping others

Disability organisations are in a good position to help

people to tell their personal experiences

Think about whether your organisation could:

1. Run workshops with clients/people with disabilities

2. Go to the Consultation Committee’s meetings – or

encourage people you know to do so

3. Give out resources, such as fact sheets, draft

submissions, etc

1. Run workshops or events

Some ideas:

Small workshops or ‘focus groups’

Look at your organisation’s

calendar of events

Set up a stall at community events / festivals

Survey – give surveys to clients/people you know

Choose one person from your organisation

who can help others who need information

Think in a different way about

how to get people involved!

2. Consultation Committee’s meetings

In Victoria, the Committee will be visiting:

Dandenong Melbourne Mildura Wodonga Geelong Bendigo

Locations and dates available at

www.humanrightsconsultation.gov.au

3. Give out Resources

HRLRC’s ‘Submission Kit’

One-page summary of the Consultation

Fact sheets on people with disability

Fact sheets about different rights

Draft submissions

More detailed resources

HRLRC’s “Engaging in the Debate” publication

Australian Human Rights Commission’s toolkit

Discussion in small groups

What sort of ideas are you starting to

develop about how your organisation

could assist other organisations and

individuals to make submissions?

Further Resources

National Human Rights Consultation website:

www.humanrightsconsultation.gov.au

Human Rights Law Resource Centre: www.hrlrc.org.au

Get Up: www.getup.org.au/campaign/rights/407

Amnesty: www.amnesty.org.au/yourhumanrights/

Australian Human Rights Group:

www.humanrightsact.com.au/ahrg/

Contacts

Human Rights Law Resource Centre

Ben Schokman ph: (03) 8636 4451

ben.schokman@hrlrc.org.au

Disability Discrimination Legal Service

Julie Phillips ph: (03) 9654 8644

manager@ddls.org.au