Taking action on human rights: Victoria leads the way

01/04/2009

A middle aged woman with an acquired brain injury gains access to surgery for a severe condition in her hand. Services reinstated for a person with a disability after service providers considered his right to receive treatment. Promoting the right of people with an intellectual disability to vote. Young people with a head injury saved from placement into aged care facilities. These are just a few of the situations where Victoria’s new Charter of Human Rights and Responsibilities has been used to achieve better results for vulnerable people.

Introduced in 2006, the Charter is the first attempt by an Australian state to enshrine civil and political rights into law. In January 2008, the Charter came into full effect, with all public authorities in Victoria – government departments, local councils, the police and others – now required to act in accordance with human rights principles in making decisions, designing policies and delivering services.

The Victorian Equal Opportunity and Human Rights Commission has released its report on the first full year of the operation of the Charter. The Commission has found that the Charter is working effectively, has already achieved a great deal and is making steady progress towards building a community culture where human rights are recognised, respected and protected.

Aside from individual matters, Victoria’s experiences with the Charter show very clearly the community-wide benefits from adopting human rights principles across government. Already, the Charter is having an impact on the operations of every government department in Victoria, on most local councils, on our courts and legal system, and on many public sector agencies and community organisations. These impacts range from reinvigorating existing practices through to major changes in the way organisations operate. Better travel arrangements for school students with a disability; improved services for women prisoners with children; new approaches for police in dealing with young people; more inclusive superannuation policies; greater community involvement in making laws – these are some of the broader policy areas where the Charter is making a difference.

These changes – from the small to the substantial – demonstrate the Charter’s potential to be a major catalyst for change, not only in the way government works but across the entire community. For some people, these changes may not reach far enough or be too slow in coming. However, the fact that the Charter makes consideration of human rights part of the everyday operations of our parliament, public service and legal system for the very first time is – in itself –a significant development that offers a unique opportunity for positive change over time.

We also need to appreciate that developing a truly effective human rights charter will not happen overnight, especially as Australia is well behind other countries in formally adopting human rights principles. Victoria’s Charter came into effect 60 years after the signing of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and nearly 60 years after the European Convention on Human Rights came into force. Canada enacted a Charter of Rights and Freedoms more than 25 years go; the United Kingdom adopted its Human Rights Act a decade ago and New Zealand enacted its Bill of Rights Act in 1990.

It took many years for these countries to develop human rights systems that reflect their individual histories, circumstances, institutions and cultures. Their experiences show that building a strong human rights culture – and a society where people are aware of and actively assert their rights – takes time. Historically, Australians have not been brought up to be assertive about our rights. Given this history, it is very positive to see Victoria make as much progress as we have in the two years since the Charter’s introduction.

Victoria’s recent experiences show that – at heart – the Charter can help to ensure that people are treated with dignity and respect, and are supported in standing up for their rights. But when governments adopt and apply human rights principles, it is not only disadvantaged and vulnerable people who reap the benefits: all of us who use government services on a regular basis benefit from these services becoming more responsive to our individual requirements. While many of us may never need the active protection of the Charter, there may be occasions when we find ourselves, our families or our friends caught up in stressful or traumatic circumstances – perhaps a serious injury or illness, or the loss of a job or housing, or involvement with the courts or police. At these times, we will almost certainly appreciate how fortunate we are that Victoria has an effective human rights charter in place.

Attention is now turning to how we can better protect human rights at the national level. The adoption of a national Charter of Human Rights was recommended by the Australia 2020 Summit and the Federal Government has launched a national human rights consultation. While Victoria is only at the start of our journey in developing a ‘human rights culture’, our experience shows that there are significant benefits in working towards a system of government that gives equal weight to human rights alongside economic, social and environmental considerations. We can say with confidence that adopting human rights principles will deliver improvements in public policy and services, and in the development and interpretation of our laws. Perhaps most importantly, we can demonstrate that a human rights charter is not something to be feared, but something that can make a real difference in protecting our rights and freedoms, and – ultimately –improving our quality of life.

Dr Helen Szoke, CEO, Victorian Equal Opportunity and Human Rights Commission.

Dr Helen Szoke is available for comment. Media contact: Janeen Lynch 0419 33 77 34