Australian Statement – Adoption of the Universal Periodic Review of Australia – 8 July 2021

Madam President, Excellencies, distinguished delegates and civil society representatives, I am honoured to appear before you today to present Australia's response to our third cycle Universal Periodic Review.

Australia views the UPR as an important opportunity to reflect on our human rights record. We do so as a nation which listens carefully to credible criticism and reflects solemnly on how we can improve our performance. As we ask this of others in this Council, we do so ourselves today.

For that reason, today and our UPR is an opportunity to celebrate Australia's longstanding commitment to protecting and promoting human rights.

It is an opportunity to reflect on our performance including our achievements and our challenges, to evaluate our existing arrangements, and to assess where further work is needed, while acknowledging the ongoing challenges we face in furthering the rights of all.

Today, I would like to take this time to:

• describe the steps taken to develop Australia's response
• provide some further detail on Australia’s response, including the approach taken to accepting and noting recommendations
• outline some recent developments and new commitments, and
• discuss Australia’s approach to implementation and monitoring going forward.

Following the interactive dialogue in January, Australia has carefully considered each of the 344 recommendations received.

This has included consultation across Government at the federal, state and territory level to develop our response.

The Australian Government has also actively engaged with civil society and the Australian Human Rights Commission, including holding a forum to discuss the recommendations on 18 February 2021.

Australia views its response to UPR recommendations as an ongoing process and will continue to actively engage across government and with civil society.

On this note, Australia thanks many Member States for their genuine engagement with Australia’s review and the recommendations made.

The 344 recommendations received touched on a wide range of human rights. Australia was pleased to receive so many informed and considered recommendations.

Australia has accepted 177 recommendations in its formal response, reflective of Australia’s longstanding commitment to human rights and the international framework.

Consistent with this commitment, Australia is currently considering a range of initiatives to further enhance our protection of human rights including in the areas of freedom of religion, defamation reform and protection of public interest journalism. Since the appearance, Australia has also announced measures promoting the rights of women, children and older persons. I will touch upon these measures later in my statement.

Australia has noted other recommendations, and where recommendations have been noted, Australia’s response seeks to provide further clarity and context.

In some instances, recommendations have been noted for further consideration. In doing so, the Australian Government acknowledges future work which will occur on this topic, with subsequent future actions to be presented in our ongoing reporting.

Organised by theme, Australia’s response to recommendations, like the recommendations themselves, overlap and intersect with one another. This is consistent with the impact of human rights on the lives of people more broadly and the Australian Government’s acknowledgement of the intersectionality of such rights.

Consistent with Australia’s longstanding commitment to the UN, human rights and our international obligations, Australia has responded to the recommendations in good faith. This does not indicate that Australia agrees with the underlying assumptions made by certain recommendations.

Australia has accepted recommendations on two bases. The first is where existing legislation, policy or practice already addresses the substance of the recommendation. For example, Australia is already strongly committed to playing its part in eliminating racism and race‑based discrimination in all its forms.

The Australian Government reaffirms without equivocation that all people are entitled to respect, dignity and the opportunity to participate in society regardless of their personal attributes. Recognising the benefits of multiculturalism, Australia’s social cohesion policies encourage and support effective participation and engagement with the broader community. On this basis we have accepted recommendations pertaining to preventing and addressing racism.

The second area where recommendations have been accepted is where Australia has committed to new action to implement the recommendation at a relevant future point in time. For example, Australia has accepted recommendations on climate change and the rights of persons with disabilities.

To elaborate further, Australia is committed to the goals of the Paris Agreement and we are taking action. Australia will meet its 2030 Paris target and reach net zero as soon as possible, preferably by 2050. Australia recognises that climate change can exacerbate difficulties already faced by vulnerable communities and is working to ensure strong participation by civil society, Indigenous people, youth, women and vulnerable communities in discussions on climate.

With regards to recommendations concerning the rights of persons with disabilities, the work of the Royal Commission into Violence, Abuse, Neglect and Exploitation of People with Disability continues and its final report, due in 2022, will inform Australian governments, institutions and the wider community on how to prevent and protect people with disability from violence, abuse, neglect and exploitation in the future.

The Australian governments are also working together to develop a new National Disability Strategy for beyond 2021, shaped by extensive national consultations, findings of major reviews and the Concluding Observations from Australia’s appearance before the Committee on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities in 2019.

As recommended, Australia will move to ratify the International Labour Organization Protocol of 2014 to the Forced Labour Convention, 1930 (No. 29). Ratification of the Protocol is an action item under the National Action Plan to Combat Modern Slavery, 2020-24. The Modern Slavery Act 2018 is an important measure for Australia’s compliance with the forced labour protocol.

Australia received many recommendations that require further consideration or additional time for consideration across appropriate levels of government, including states and territories.

Some recommendations have thus been noted for further consideration.

For example, Australia will give further consideration to ratifying the International Convention for the Protection of All Persons from Enforced Disappearance. Australia will also give further consideration to withdrawing its reservation to article 20 of the ICCPR.

Australia has also noted recommendations that will not be considered further at this time. For example, Australia’s strong institutional framework, which is underpinned by representative democracy and the rule of law, already provides strong human rights protections. For this reason, the Australian Government does not consider it necessary to also enact a general human rights charter.

Many recommendations concern the rights of Indigenous Australians. The Australian Government has recognised the need to do better in protecting and advancing the rights of Indigenous Australians.

Accordingly, Australia has accepted 53 recommendations relating to the rights of Indigenous Australians.

In light of this and as noted during our appearance, the Australian Government has commenced a formal partnership with Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people as part of the National Agreement on Closing the Gap. The Closing the Gap Agreement has 17 national targets relating to education, employment, health and wellbeing, justice, safety, housing, land and waters, and indigenous languages. Progress on these targets will improve outcomes for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Australians.

Another significant policy development is the Australian Government’s 2019 commitment to co-design models for an Indigenous voice, to improve local and regional decision-making, and develop options for constitutional recognition. An Indigenous voice, alongside constitutional recognition, are two of the five voluntary commitments Australia made at our appearance, which we will continue to progress and implement over the UPR cycle.

Co-operation between governments and communities is essential to address factors that contribute to high incarceration rates for Indigenous Australians and deaths in custody. All governments are working in partnership with the Coalition of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Peak Organisations through the Closing the Gap Agreement and have jointly agreed targets for reducing the rates of youth detention and adult incarceration.

The Australian Government continues to improve its approach by ensuring all Australian governments work together with Indigenous Australians in genuine partnership – setting priorities, making decisions, and designing policies and programs.

Australia received a number of recommendations related to the age of criminal responsibility.  Responsibility for criminal justice is shared between federal, state and territory governments who are engaged in a process to consider this question, with some having announced an intention to raise the age within their respective jurisdiction.  Ultimately, it will be a decision for each jurisdiction whether to raise the minimum age of criminal responsibility.

I note that a large number of recommendations were made regarding Australia’s policy towards refugees and asylum seekers. The Australian Government remains committed to a managed and equitable system of migration, enabled by strong border protection policies which the Government considers consistent with Australia’s non-refoulement and human rights obligations. The Australian Government would also like to reiterate the value placed by Australia in scrutiny bodies such as UN Agencies and the Commonwealth Ombudsman, providing independent oversight of Australia’s immigration detention system.

Australia’s ongoing commitment to human rights has led to a number of significant developments since our appearance in January.

Women’s safety and economic security

Since Australia’s appearance, the Government has taken significant steps to improve the lives and futures of women and girls in Australia.

The Australian Government believes that respect, dignity, choice, equality of opportunity and justice are fundamental to the safety, economic security and status of women. The Australian Government is committed to promoting these values so that women, right across the country, can be safe from violence, economically secure, realise their potential and enjoy good health. This includes:

• establishing a Cabinet Taskforce on Women’s Safety and Economic Security to bring a fresh lens to women’s issues. The Prime Minister and the Minister for Women co-chair this taskforce, and
• expanding the Australian Government’s Ministry such that in addition to having a dedicated Minister for Women, we have established a new Minister for Women’s Safety, a Minister for Women’s Economic Security, and an Assistant Minister for Women.

In May 2021, the Australian Government also announced a landmark Women’s Budget Statement to improve outcomes for women’s safety, economic security, health and wellbeing. This includes $3.4 billion AUD in funding to:

• prevent and respond to violence against women and their children
• support women's workforce participation and economic security
• improve the affordability of child care for Australian families, and
• support women’s health and wellbeing.

On 8 April 2021, the Australian Government announced its response to the Sex Discrimination Commissioner’s Respect@Work Report, titled ‘A Roadmap for Respect: Preventing and Addressing Sexual Harassment in Australian workplaces’. The Roadmap sets out the Commonwealth Government’s long-term commitment to preventing and addressing sexual harassment and building a culture of respect in Australian workplaces. The Australian Government agreed to (in full, in part or in principle) or noted all 55 recommendations in the Respect@Work Report. The Australian Government has established the Respect@Work Council which brings together leaders from key government regulators and policy makers responsible for sexual harassment policies and complaints. The Australian Government has also developed a package of legislation to strengthen the national anti-discrimination and industrial relations frameworks that apply to sexual harassment, implementing commitments it set out in the Roadmap.

On the international front, Australia has long been a champion for the Women, Peace and Security agenda. On 12 April 2021, we published our second National Action Plan on Women, Peace and Security 2021-31. Spanning 10 years, our second National Action Plan puts women’s meaningful participation at the centre of Australia’s international efforts – to protect and promote women and girls’ human rights, prevent and resolve conflict, and establish enduring peace.

These are significant developments but there is more to be done and Australia will continue to drive change and bring genuine advances for women and girls in Australia and overseas.

National Strategy to Prevent and Respond to Child Sexual Abuse

Another development is demonstrated in Australia’s commitment to safeguarding children from sexual abuse in Australia, online and abroad.

On 11 May 2021, the Australian Government announced the first phase of the new National Strategy to Prevent and Respond to Child Sexual Abuse which will be released in full in September 2021. The National Strategy is a 10 year, whole-of-nation policy framework that establishes a coordinated, nationally consistent approach to preventing and better responding to child sexual abuse in all settings.

The National Strategy will encompass a range of activities to prevent, detect and respond to child sexual abuse with a particular focus on cultural change, including through education and awareness raising, and measures that provide victims of child sexual abuse with access to the right supports at the right time.

Aged care reforms

With respect to the rights of older persons, the Australian Government released its response to the Final Report of the Royal Commission into Aged Care Quality and Safety in May 2021. The Royal Commission inquired into the full extent of issues in residential and in-home aged care and made 148 recommendations for the fundamental reform of the aged care system.

Australia is committed to delivering respect, care and dignity to senior Australians. Australia’s response notes significant developments in this area including a five year implementation plan for aged care reform underpinned by five pillars: home care, residential aged care services and sustainability, residential aged care quality and safety, workforce and governance.

Australia’s aged care reforms will be supported by new consumer-focused legislation, known as the Aged Care Act. The new Act will establish provisions for eligibility for care, funding arrangements and regulatory powers, and ensure the protection of high quality, safe, compassionate and individually tailored aged care and services.

In conclusion, Australia’s response adopted today, is of course, not the end of our engagement with the third cycle UPR process.

Australia is committed to implementing accepted recommendations and will continue to consider other recommendations. Australia is committed to implementing the voluntary commitments made at our appearance.

Australia will continue to engage with civil society through its ongoing monitoring processes.

Madam President, I welcome in advance the contributions to today’s adoption by Member States, the Australian Human Rights Commission as Australia’s National Human Rights Institution, and civil society.  Australia looks forward to continuing our collaborative and constructive engagement with the Members and observers of the Council, with the Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights, and the many other stakeholders in our Review.