A charter for all

05/06/2009

Critics of a proposal to enshrine human rights in a national Charter would have us believe that not only is such a law unnecessary - it is downright dangerous.

Victoria already has a human rights charter and our experience is just the opposite.

The sky has not fallen in. The democratically elected parliament has not experienced interference and ordinary people have benefited.

The Commission's report card on the Victorian charter, tabled in parliament this year, found that it does not hamper law making at all.

Parliament must look at any proposed legislation through the human rights lens - to measure planned laws against the rights contained in the Charter.

What is wrong with that?

The Victorian Charter also makes it possible for ordinary people to challenge existing public services and policies to make them more fair and humane for all.

Examples included: young people with head injuries saved from placement in aged care facilities, a woman with an acquired brain injury who gained access to surgery for a severe condition and services reinstated for a person with a disability after service providers considered his right to receive treatment.

A national human rights charter for all Australians? Bring it on.

Dr Helen Szoke
CEO, Victorian Equal Opportunity & Human Rights Commission