DownUnderAllOver is a round-up of legal news from both State and federal jurisdictions, and contains topical articles and short pieces from Alternative Law Journal committees around the country.
In a rare piece of good news on the legal protection of asylum seekers, the federal government passed the Migration Amendment (Complementary Protection) Bill 2011 on 19 September 2011.
On 22 September 2011 the Attorney General and Minister for Finance and Deregulation released a public discussion paper to seek community views on the consolidation of Federal anti-discrimination laws.
In a landmark case brought by the HRLC, the United Nations Human Rights Committee has held that Australia violated the human rights of a permanent resident, and breached its international legal obligations, by cancelling his visa and deporting him to Sweden.
On 13 October 2011, the federal government abandoned its plans to introduce the Migration Legislation Amendment (Offshore Processing and Other Measures) Bill 2011. The Bill sought to facilitate the implementation of Australia’s cooperative transfer arrangement with Malaysia concluded on 25 July 2011. Under the non-binding arrangement, 800 asylum seekers who have travelled to Australia by boat without visa documentation (or been intercepted at sea en route to Australia) would be transferred to Malaysia. Australia would in turn, over a four year period, resettle 4000 refugees currently living in Malaysia.
The Gillard government announced career diplomat Penny Williams as Australia’s first Global Ambassador for Women and Girls.
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