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Protest outside Downing Street, London. 2000

Australia has been found guilty by a United Nations body of practising racial discrimination against its own citizens.

Australia has agreed to be bound by all major international human rights Conventions and has taken a high profile on promoting human rights internationally - especially in opposing apartheid in South Africa. But both national and international bodies are now saying that Australia is itself guilty of fundamental human rights breaches in its treatment of its indigenous citizens.

The UN Committee on the Elimination of all Forms of Racial Discrimination (CERD) exists to monitor and end racial discrimination. It considers reports by Governments on racial discrimination in their countries and follows up urgent cases of racial discrimination brought to its notice.

On 1-2 March 2005, the United Nations Committee on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination met with the Australian Government in Geneva to assess the Government's performance of obligations under the Convention to Eliminate All Forms of Racial Discrimination (CERD).

In its concluding comments released on 11 March 2005, the UN Committee on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination, raised serious concerns about a number of issues in Australia.

In particular, the Committee expressed concern about the abolishment of ATSIC; the practical barriers Indigenous peoples face in succeeding in claims for native title; the continuing over-representation of Indigenous peoples in prisons; and the extreme inequities between Indigenous peoples and others in the areas of employment, housing, health education and income. The UN Committee called on the Australian Government to work towards a meaningful reconciliation and to properly address the issues of the Stolen Generation.

In 1999, the CERD Committee placed Australia on its agenda of urgent business, mainly because of the Government’s 1998 amendments to the 1993 Native Title Act (see separate information sheet on Native Title).

On 18 March 1999 at its 54th session CERD brought down highly damaging findings against the Australian Government - its first report critical of a Western country. The Committee found that:

• the 1998 Native Title amendments were racially discriminatory, because they put limitations on the rights of indigenous people which did not apply to other citizens
• they did not comply with Australia’s international obligations
• they upset the delicate balance of the 1993 act and created certainty for Federal and State governments and third parties [ie pastoralists and miners] at the expense of indigenous peoples.
  

The Committee pointed out that while the purpose of the 1993 Act was to recognise and protect native title, the 1998 amendments were about extinguishing and reducing indigenous rights and interests. It also noted that Aboriginal people had not been involved in drafting the amendments.

CERD called on Australia to suspend the amendments and enter into full consultations with indigenous people about a way forward.

On 19 August 1999 at its 55th session, after considering the Australian Government’s defence of their actions, CERD reaffirmed its March decision. The Committee expressed ‘serious concern’ that Australia was going backwards as regards indigenous land rights.

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external links

• AIATSIS
  Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander resourse links
• Australia 2007 WHY?
• Copies of the NGO 2005 reports are available at Rights Australia
  
• Information about the UN CERD Committee and Australia's government reports is available on the Human Rights and Equal oppurtunity Commission (HREOC) website.
• A copy of the UN CERD Committee's concluding Observations on Australia is available on the HREOC website at:http://www.humanrights.gov.au/cerd/report.html
• John Pilger's website
  
• Australia in the dock on Aboriginal rights
  'This House ... acknowledges the oppression and injustices inflicted on Aboriginal peoples and apologises for the suffering caused by past British policies; further acknowledges current discrimination and disadvantage suffered by Aboriginal peoples'.
• Indigenous Peoples Caucus
• UN Covenant on Economic and Social Rights
• UN Committee for the Elimination of all Forms of Racial Discrimination (CERD) report on the impact of mandatory sentencing on Aboriginal people and native title legislation.
• UN High Commissioner for Human Rights
• European Union: COUNCIL RESOLUTION OF 30 NOVEMBER 1998 (PDF file, 11kb)
  Indigenous peoples within the framework of the development cooperation of the Community and the Member States.
• European Parliament Resolution Passed Unamended: 15/1/98 concerning the Jabiluka uranium mine
• The Australian Social Justice Commissioner's website has been updated to include a range of materials on recent events on Indigenous issues at the international level. The new materials can be viewed on the Commissioner's international developments page.
• Special feature on the role of Information and Communications Technologies (ICTs) for indigenous peoples development
• Development Gateway's coverage on Globalization and Indigenous peoples

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