Discover and read the best of Twitter Threads about #ausupr20
Most recents (24)
#Justice4Australia: Can I ask one request? Australia’s human rights ‘violations of abuse’ with ‘concrete recommendations’ at ‘world standards’ are all in the ‘2021 Human Rights Watch World Report: Australia.’ This is a clear, inclusive and straightforward path: 1/10 #AusUPR20
For First Nations people, refugees, women, children, elderly, disabilities, minorities, health, poverty, housing, climate change. Aka. Everything. I made #Justice4Australia to include all of Australia’s injustices because a lot of different groups are/have formed. 2/10
So this is my request: As you fight for justice please consider this document. It has every topic we have all been fighting for: some for months, years, and decades. As you fight for justice please consider adding the hashtag #Justice4Australia next to your hashtag. Why? 3/10
What’s your human rights passion? Is it preventing persons from sexual abuse like the millions of tweets the past few weeks? Is it caring for the Elderly and the recent Royal Commission? Or is it the political attacks and Government cuts to ABC and SBS? 1/10 #Auspol #AusUPR20
There are so many issues in Australia right now. They are posted on Twitter daily. We might not know all of the facts. However, we do know, from the Human Rights Watch World Report 2021, the overwhelming evidence of Australia’s violations and concrete recommendations. 2/10
The 2021 Report is an excellent resource that can be used to back any of these calls for change. A reminder it was only published in January. If you search #AusUPR20 you’ll see Score Cards for each category on Australia’s violations and recommendations. 3/10
More than 60 refugees were released over the past two days from hotels and detention centres in Brisbane, Sydney and Darwin, according to the Refugee Action Coalition and legal representatives. 1/8 #TimeForAHome #HomeToBilo #AusUPR20 #Auspol 
They were granted temporary visas after spending up to eight years in Australian detention on Pacific islands before being transferred to the country for medical treatment. 2/8
The group's release comes after more than 60 refugees were freed in similar circumstances in December/January. Home Affairs Minister Peter Dutton told local radio that it was "cheaper" for the refugees to be released into the community than to be held in detention. 3/8
“When Abdirahman Ahmed Mohammed first sought asylum in Australia, he still carried a bullet in his leg.” Mr Mohammed passed away this month a day after his 39th birthday.
Exclusive: by Erin Handley, 2021. 1/22 #TimeForAHome #HomeToBilo #AusUPR20 #Auspol
Exclusive: by Erin Handley, 2021. 1/22 #TimeForAHome #HomeToBilo #AusUPR20 #Auspol
“But the Somali refugee's health problems would only become more severe in his years in offshore detention on Manus Island in Papua New Guinea, and later on Nauru. Mr Mohammed died of a heart condition in Perth this month, on February 15, a day after his 39th birthday.” 2/22
“Mr Mohammed first received tests on his heart in late 2014, when he was in PNG. But he was not transferred to Australia for treatment until almost five years later, when he suffered a heart attack on Nauru in April 2019.” 3/22
The Nature of Aboriginal Suicide:
“It is widely accepted that the causal pathways to Indigenous and non-Indigenous suicide differ, although the precise nature of the differences is so far unclear (see, for example, Ridani et al., 2015).” 1/30 #UluruStatement #AusUPR20 #Auspol
“It is widely accepted that the causal pathways to Indigenous and non-Indigenous suicide differ, although the precise nature of the differences is so far unclear (see, for example, Ridani et al., 2015).” 1/30 #UluruStatement #AusUPR20 #Auspol
“Westerman (2003) in her Doctor of Philosophy (PhD) research explored this issue via the development of a unique screening tool, the Westerman Aboriginal Symptom Checklist (WASC-Y: Westerman, 2003, Westerman, 2007, in preparation),” 2/30
“to identify Aboriginal youth at risk of suicide, depression, alcohol, and drug use, impulsivity, and anxiety. This enabled the exploration of whether there were factors unique to Aboriginal youth (aged 13–17) that could account for suicide risk.” 3/30
“Sveticic, Milner, and De Leo (2012) analysed all suicides in Queensland between 1994 and 2007, finding the non-Indigenous cases were almost twice as likely to have ever sought help for mental health problems than the Indigenous cases.” 1/5 #AusUPR20 #Auspol
“This likely reflects a lack of cultural appropriateness of mainstream mental health services. Historically, research has not focused upon determining whether there is a different set of risk factors for suicidal behaviours that can be established at a population level.” 2/5
“This has meant that existing intervention or prevention programmes that have established themselves within a mainstream context often struggle to translate into effective community-based strategies for at-risk Aboriginal people.” 3/5
Whole of community suicide prevention forums for Aboriginal Australians: “As a country facing this growing tragedy, we still have no nationally accepted evidence-based programmes across the spectrum of early intervention and prevention activities.” 1/9 #AusUPR20 #Auspol
“In the face of all this distress, communities, and families are often left to respond to these critical events in the absence of adequate support both in terms of culturally and clinically impactful counselling and therapy” 2/9
“as well as intervention programmes that are able to successfully target at-risk individuals. A qualitative study was undertaken by Nasir et al. (2017) who consulted both Indigenous and non-Indigenous community members and organisations in Queensland” 3/9
“Peak medical and health bodies have pressured Prime Minister Scott Morrison to declare Indigenous child suicides a national emergency after the deaths of five Aboriginal girls aged between 12 and 15 in January, 2018.”1/7 #UluruStatement #AusUPR20 #Auspol
“In a step towards tackling the crisis, chief executive of the National Mental Health Commission Christine Morgan was named Australia's national suicide prevention adviser. In response to the latest figures she released a statement which said:” 2/7
"This number represents our loved ones, who live in our diverse communities in each state and territory, rural and remote and in our suburban towns.” 3/7
The Australian Government undertook genocide through protection policies which involved, ‘Forcibly transferring children of the group to another group’, by removing First Nations children from families and forcing them onto state-controlled reserves. 1/9 #UluruStatement #AusUPR20
These reserves were usually organised by religious missionaries and the children were eventually adopted by white families or taken to work for them. 2/9
The children who experienced this form of genocide are known as the “Stolen Generations” which is recorded in the 1997 Bringing Them Report by Human Rights and Equal Opportunity Commission. 3/9
Research has identified at least 270 massacres over 140 years, as part of Australia’s systematic state-sanctioned attempts to eradicate First Nations people. This figure only includes documented cases. 1/5 #UluruStatement #AusUPR20 #Auspol
There were many massacres that were not documented and covered up. This form of genocide resulted in the population of First Nations people reducing from an estimated 1-1.5 million at the time of invasion to less than 100,000 by the 1900s and now approximately 799,000 today. 2/5
Australia’s state-sanctioned physical violence did not end in history. According to the 2021 Human Rights Watch World Report, Australia’s global reputation suffers. The Australian Government has failed to address longstanding abuses against First Nations people. 3/5
A consequence of Australia’s history of state sanctioned massacres of First Nations people, the forcible removal of their children, and cultural genocide, is that many of today’s First Nations families and descendants now experience trauma. 1/4 #UluruStatement #AusUPR20 #Auspol
Trauma has been shown to increase the risk of substance misuse, mental and physical ill-health, and can limit employment opportunities. This is compounded by Australia’s ongoing abuse of First Nations people identified by the Human Rights Watch World Report 2021: 2/4
over-representation in prisons, high death rates in custody, over-representation of Aboriginal children in out-of-home care, and Australia’s failure to support self-determination and recognise the rights of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Peoples in its constitution. 3/4
“Below, we've included the email addresses for the Labor and Liberal party leaders. Please take a quick moment to send an email about indefinite detention to make clear that resolving this crisis must be a top priority.” 1/8 #GameOver #HomeToBilo #AusUPR20 #Auspol
“We recommend emails brief &polite. In parliamentary offices, staffers track the subject/opinions in each email & report back to senior staff. We want to make sure opposition to indefinite detention remains on that agenda, & our power is in making our voice heard together.” 2/8
Prime Minister Scott Morrison: Scott.Morrison.MP@aph.gov.au
Opposition Leader Anthony Albanese: A.Albanese.MP@aph.gov.au
Some key messages you may wish to use: 3/8
Opposition Leader Anthony Albanese: A.Albanese.MP@aph.gov.au
Some key messages you may wish to use: 3/8
One consequence of ongoing inter-generational trauma is suicide. Suicide was unknown to Aboriginal people prior to invasion. Suicide now affects 95% of Aboriginal people in Australia, and is the fifth leading cause of death for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people. 1/3
If you click on #AusUPR20 I’ve put all of the Score Cards there for Australia from the Human Rights Watch World Report 2021. There are threads with violations and recommendations on: Australia’s Constitution, Health, Climate Change, 1/4 #Auspol
#AusUPR20: One of my favourite pieces of literature on the history and current abuse of Australia’s First Nations people is titled “Genocide in Australia” by Nathan Sentence and is stored at the Australian Museum. 1/38
According to Sentence, the word “genocide” originated from the Polish lawyer Raphäel Lemkin in 1942 in response to the Nazi policies of systematic murder of Jewish people during the Holocaust and history’s previously related atrocities. 2/38
According to the United Nations Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of the Crime of Genocide in 1951, genocide is defined as ANY of the following acts committed with intent to destroy, in whole or in part, a national, ethnical, racial or religious group, as such: 3/38
#AusUPR20 Score Card: Australia’s Constitution does not support the self-determination, or recognise the rights of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Peoples, and enables Parliament to enact discriminatory, race-based legislation. 1/14 #Auspol
Australia must hold a referendum to revise the Constitution to recognise Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Peoples' rights, remove racist elements and include an anti-discrimination clause. 2/14
Australia must establish an Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander elected representative Voice to Parliament and establish a Makarrata and Truth and Justice Commission to develop a treaty with the First Peoples of Australia. 3/13
#AusUPR20 Score Card: Australia’s response to sexually transmissible infections has involved effective strategies, supporting community organising and peer education. This supports safer sex practices, resulting in the virtual elimination of HIV among sex workers. 1/3 #Auspol
However, sex workers still experience high levels of discrimination and stigma and are negatively impacted by the criminalisation of sex work, licensing, registration and mandatory testing in some jurisdictions. 2/3
Criminal laws remain in relation to sex work and HIV in VIC/QLD, and there is a lack of consistent anti-discrimination protections. Australia must encourage consistent approaches to decriminalisation of sex work and have measures to tackle discrimination against sex workers. 3/3
#AusUPR20 Score Card: Since the last UPR, Australia has strengthened anti-trafficking strategies, including modern slavery legislation, joining UNODC’s Blue Heart Campaign, 1/5 #Auspol
launching ASEAN-Australian Counter Trafficking Initiative, and delinking support for survivors of forced marriage from the criminal justice system for 200 days. 2/5
Access to government funded support for other survivors, however, remains contingent on participation in criminal justice processes, creating barriers to support. The National Action Plan to Combat Human Trafficking and Slavery is incomplete. 3/5
#AusUPR20 Score Card: Australia has cut the Official Development Assistance (ODA) budget, diminishing Australia’s capacity to support human rights internationally. 1/7 #Auspol
Low investment has contributed to the failure of the aid program to meet the 80% target of projects effectively addressing gender equality. 2/7
Australia must increase its ODA budget to 0.7% of GNI to boost capacity to promote human rights. Australia must also invest in technical expertise and women’s rights organisations to meet the aid program’s gender target. 3/7
#AusUPR20 Score Card: Australian companies continue to have significant adverse human rights impacts within Australia and abroad. Of particular concern are corporate contributions to the climate crisis, attacks on civic space, 1/6 #Auspol
human rights violations in corporate supply chains, impacts on public health and abuses associated with the extractives, financial and immigration detention sectors. 2/6
Despite its 2016 voluntary commitment, Australia has failed to develop a National Action Plan on Business and Human Rights.
Australia must renew its efforts to develop a National Action Plan on Business and Human Rights 3/6
Australia must renew its efforts to develop a National Action Plan on Business and Human Rights 3/6
#AusUPR20 Score Card: Australia is failing to prevent human rights harms caused by climate change. Australia’s emissions are increasing, its 2030 emissions reduction target is inadequate, and it spends more money supporting fossil fuels than climate action. 1/8 #Auspol
Australia must immediately increase its 2030 emissions reduction target to at least 45%, and set a target of net zero emissions before 2050. 2/8
By 2021, Australia must put a price on carbon and use the revenue to support vulnerable groups; put in place a plan to phase out coal exports; shift to 100% renewable energy before 2035; and end fossil fuel subsidies by 2025. 3/8
#AusUPR20 Score Card: Australians live approx 13.2% of their lives in ill health. Poor health outcomes link to low incomes, gaps in Australia’s healthcare system, and low levels of investment in illness prevention. Australia must have ongoing mechanism for prevention. 1/7 #Auspol
Climate change and public health are interlinked. Recently, smoke from bushfires has harmed the health of millions of Australians. Australia must implement accurate, evidence-based and timely public health interventions to mitigate the health impact of climate change. 2/7
Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Peoples carry a disproportionate health burden related to poverty and poor living conditions, including high rates of gastroenteritis, encephalitis, hepatitis, heart disease, diabetes, kidney failure and trachoma. 3/7
#AusUPR20 Score Card: Since the last UPR, homelessness has further increased (particularly among Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Peoples and older women), housing affordability has not improved, and social housing stock has continued to decline. 1/6 #Auspol
The previous national homelessness strategy has not been replaced, and there is no national plan to reduce homelessness or housing stress. Funding for the National Rental Affordability Scheme will be discontinued. 2/6
Government payments assisting renters on low incomes are inadequate, leaving nearly half of renters on low incomes in urban areas in rental stress. 3/6
