Editors for this issue: Melissa Castan and Normann Witzleb, with Noelle RattrayCONTENTS ArticlesBriefsColumnsABSTRACTS ArticlesDignity, fairness and good government: The role of a Human Rights Act
by Lord BinghamSome thoughts about the current human rights debate in Australia, prompted by Lord Bingham's experience in the United Kingdom.  | Add to cart |  |
Whose rights? Children, parents and discipline
by Bronwyn Naylor and Bernadette SaundersThis article outlines the current state of the law on the physical discipline of children, and draws attention to the politics and symbolism of the ongoing debate. The authors contend that the renewed debate in Australia about incorporating international human rights into a federal Bill of rights, and the recent enactment of rights legislation in the ACT and Victoria raise new ways of considering the physical discipline of children as bearers of rights. They argue the case for law reform in Australia as taking seriously children's rights to protection from physical violence remains an unresolved challenge. | Add to cart | |
Discrimination against women
by Simone Cusack2008 was a significant year for women’s rights. However, despite important strides, intractable forms of discrimination persist. It is the contention of this article that in 2009 — the year marking the 30th anniversary of CEDAW — the Australian Government must give greater priority to combating compounded and systemic forms of discrimination. Applying the CEDAW framework, this article shall examine Australia’s obligations to eliminate discrimination against women. It shall review the Senate Committee’s findings in relation to the effectiveness of the Sex Discrimination Act 1984 (Cth), and consider the opportunities presented by the Optional Protocol’s entry into force for Australia. | Add to cart | |
Outside classrooms and courtrooms: The good news on human rights
by Rachel BallThis article considers some of the ‘good news stories’ that have emerged from the use of the Victorian Charter of Human Rights and Responsibilities Act 2006. The stories illustrate the ways in which the Charter has been used as a practical tool to address disadvantage and promote human dignity and provide a compelling argument in favour of legislatively enshrined human rights. | Add to cart | |
How sorry are we? The limits of the Apology to the Stolen Generation
by Alex ReillyThe article examines what is required of a government apology that truly expresses sorrow for State sanctioned forcible removal of Aboriginal children from their families. The article demonstrates how the apology of the Rudd government to the Stolen Generations in February 2008 was limited in its terms, and outlines what is required of an apology to more fully address the wrongfulness of laws that empowered the State to remove Aboriginal children. A genuine apology must acknowledge the limitations of State power and risk rejection. To do so effectively, the government must acknowledge the sovereign power of those to whom the apology is directed. Until it does so, the government will face continuing criticism of the adequacy of its response to the suffering of the Stolen Generations. | Add to cart | |
Is ASIO a good judge of character?
by Susan Harris RimmerCharacter issues are of increasing importance in the role of the Australian Security and Intelligence Organisation (ASIO) in assessing the national security risk posed by aliens. For example, ASIO assessments underpinned the long-term detention of two Iraqi refugees on Nauru, and the deportation of US activist Scott Parkin. This article considers how ASIO national security assessments are made, whether they constitute a form of character testing, and what accountability mechanisms are in place to challenge such assessments. | Add to cart | |
Trying tyrants for mass atrocity
by Gideon BoasThis article considers the complexities and contradictions involved in trying leaders for their responsibility in mass atrocity. The sustainability of international criminal trials and the politics of who gets prosecuted for what are crucial aspects of a system of law that is heavily dependant upon the vagaries of the international law of nations. This article will briefly explore these issues in the context of recent developments in international criminal justice. | Add to cart | |
Going to court in China
by Francis ReganChina's courts are a mystery to most Australians. This article reports on what happened in a simple criminal case in Beijing. It concludes that in this type of case Chinese courts are in many respects similar to those in other countries. | Add to cart | |
BriefsEnemy at the gate?
by Brent SalterOn 30 June 2009 the Productivity Commission will provide the Government its final report on the current provisions in the Copyright Act 1968 (Cth) that restrict the parallel importation of books. The author argues the Commission should wait for a more comprehensive study of the industry to take place before proposing reforms that relax the restrictions. | Add to cart | |
Burning the law and celebrating violent vigilantism
by Craig WJ MinogueFollowing the bushfires in February 2009, there was a great deal of public discourse, some of which was highly aggressive with the threat of vigilante violence. | Add to cart | |
ColumnsAsia-Pacific: Indonesia's new Pornography Law?
by Helen PausackerThe reformasi era in Indonesia, which began in May 1998 following the resignation of President Soeharto, has been marked by greater community participation in the political process and greater press freedom. The new Indonesian Pornography Law, passed in 2008, after much community debate, shows that freedom of speech does not necessarily go hand-in-hand with more ‘liberal’ attitudes to censorship, particularly on issues of morality. | Add to cart | |
Sport and the Law: Gender relations in football: Female football fans discuss player misconduct
by Kim Toffoletti and Peter MewettThis column documents Australian female football fans’ perceptions of gender-based violence in sport. Despite women’s lack of institutional presence and power in football, female football supporters don’t consider themselves to be ‘on the outer’. They see football as their game as much as men’s. So how do women fans of male-dominated sports feel about derogatory acts against women? For many of these fans, reconciling players’ misconduct with continuing support of their sport is an ongoing process. Our findings expose myths about violence that feed off gender stereotypes of men and women that abound in the sporting sphere. | Add to cart | |
Sport and the Law: Gender relations in football: Breaking down the boys club
by Emma Mitting
Contemporary literature suggests that prevention rather than intervention is a preferable way of stopping men’s violence against women. To prevent violence against women by men requires an understanding of how violent supportive attitudes and behaviours against women prevail in the community. This column seeks to explore the subworld of football as one way of understanding the creation and perpetuation of violent supportive community attitudes and behaviours against women. It also seeks to inform how prevention strategies can be tailored to meet the needs of the football community/subworld and society at large. It does not focus on footballers as perpetrators of violence against women. | Add to cart | |
|
Your shopping cart 