First periodic report on Human Rights tabled in Parliament

THE Joint Standing Committee on Foreign Affairs, Defence and Trade presented its First periodic report on Human Rights in the Senate yesterday.

"This report outlines the range of issues the committee has considered during this term of parliament, and is intended as a precedent for future periodic reports to the parliament about human rights matters," Kevin Andrews MP, Chair of the Human Rights Sub-Committee, said.

"During this parliament, the committee has proposed Magnitsky-type legislation for Australia, made recommendations about the human rights of women and girls in the Pacific, and measures to help eliminate child and forced marriage. The Human Rights Sub-Committee has also held many private briefings and public round tables on specific issues," Mr Andrews said.

"However, it has not yet tabled a general report on human rights issues. Periodic reporting on human rights will help ensure that the voices of the most marginalised and persecuted populations can be heard, and that their concerns are placed on the public record," Mr Andrews said.

The report includes an overview of some of the issues raised with the committee in the private briefings it has received. The report also provides a summary of public hearing round tables held by the committee on foreign interference in Australia and on human rights abuses in Ethiopia.

This work was conducted as part of the Committee’s inquiry into the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade Annual Report 2019–20. Details of the inquiry and a copy of the report are available from the Committee’s website.

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