25 May 2005
POLMIN MOVES TO MELBOURNE
The catholic based political lobby group Polmin has recently shifted its base to Melbourne and appointed a new co-ordinator.
In the latest edition of its regular publication "For the Common Good" Polmin has highlighted the recent criticisms of the Australian Government by the UN Committee on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination (CERD).
The Australian Government last appeared before the UN CERD Committee in 2000, when it faced heavy criticism, particularly in relation to Indigenous Peoples. The Government responded by rejecting the criticisms and accusing the CERD Committee of uncritically accepting the non-government submissions.
Following its meeting held in Geneva this year CERD tabled 19 concerns and recommendations relating to the Australian government. These included the abolition of ATSIC, the stalled reconciliation process, the cutbacks to the Human Rights and Equal Opportunity Commission, the treatment of asylum seekers, (particularly the plight of stateless long-term detainees), the counter-terrorism legislation and the shortcomings of the Racial Discrimination Act.
"When such issues often only receive limited scrutiny in Australia, it is critical that the United Nations process exists to put a spotlight on Australia’s human rights record, to uphold universally accepted standards for human rights" said Polmin. The issue of Australia’s compliance with the broad range of obligations it has signed on to with the United Nations is of particular concern to PolMin which has pledged to continue to monitor closely the performance of the Government in this area.
In the latest edition of its regular publication "For the Common Good" Polmin has highlighted the recent criticisms of the Australian Government by the UN Committee on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination (CERD).
The Australian Government last appeared before the UN CERD Committee in 2000, when it faced heavy criticism, particularly in relation to Indigenous Peoples. The Government responded by rejecting the criticisms and accusing the CERD Committee of uncritically accepting the non-government submissions.
Following its meeting held in Geneva this year CERD tabled 19 concerns and recommendations relating to the Australian government. These included the abolition of ATSIC, the stalled reconciliation process, the cutbacks to the Human Rights and Equal Opportunity Commission, the treatment of asylum seekers, (particularly the plight of stateless long-term detainees), the counter-terrorism legislation and the shortcomings of the Racial Discrimination Act.
"When such issues often only receive limited scrutiny in Australia, it is critical that the United Nations process exists to put a spotlight on Australia’s human rights record, to uphold universally accepted standards for human rights" said Polmin. The issue of Australia’s compliance with the broad range of obligations it has signed on to with the United Nations is of particular concern to PolMin which has pledged to continue to monitor closely the performance of the Government in this area.
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