Liberty Victoria

Liberty Victoria on Protest Rights

The freedom to protest is fundamental to democracy. Protesters have the right to freedom of expression and peaceful assembly under the Victorian Charter of Human Rights, and are protected by the implied freedom of political communication under our Constitution.

Liberty Victoria calls on the State Government and Victoria Police to ensure that Victorians are able to protest freely.

We have seen shocking scenes of militarised police clashing with protesters in central Melbourne. Liberty Victoria denounces any and all violence used at the protest.

Liberty Victoria is concerned by the use of what appears to be heavy-handed police tactics against protestors. We have warned about increasing police militarization for several years, including the use of rubber bullets, stun grenades and “kettling” during the COVID-19 protests. We note with deep concern the reports of protestors being inappropriately subject to OC spray and the use of other weapons. It is misleading to describe such weapons as “non lethal” – deploying these weapons is a use of force and can have fatal consequences.

Past experience, including with regard to the policing of protest activity during the pandemic, has demonstrated that when all facts come to light there may well emerge a very different understanding of whether some police members acted appropriately and proportionately. We must be careful not to rush to judgment.

In such circumstances, we are deeply troubled by comments by the Chief Commissioner of Police that people arrested at the protests are “criminals”. People who have been charged by police must be afforded the right to the presumption of innocence. Whether or not they are guilty of an offence is a matter for the independent umpire. Further, this language also demonises protestors.

The description of protestors by the Police Association as “filthy, disgusting animals” is inflammatory, fundamentally dehumanising and may be used to seek to legitimate further violence.

We remain concerned by the increasing restrictions on protest rights in Victoria – both by way of laws that prohibit protest and the gazetting of public spaces enabling searches of citizens without reasonable suspicion, a regime that the Government acknowledges is inconsistent with our human rights.

The UN Human Rights Committee has said that freedom of opinion and freedom of expression are the foundation stone for every free and democratic society. We reaffirm our commitment to freedom of expression and peaceful assembly.

This year’s winner of the Sophie Trevitt Human Rights Award is Samara Fernandez-Brown, a Warlpiri woman from Yuendumu who has represented her family in their long running battle for justice and reform after her cousin, Kumanjayi Walker, was shot and killed by police in the Northern Territory in 2019. Samara became a leader of the Justice For Walker campaign throughout the criminal trial and coronial inquest. She continues to advocate for the prevention of Indigenous deaths in custody as the “Stop Black Deaths in Custody Campaigner” at the Dhadjowa Foundation, a national grassroots organisation that’s been established to provide strategic, coordinated and culturally appropriate support for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander families whose loved ones have died in custody.

The Sophie Trevitt Award (formerly the Young Voltaire) is awarded to someone no older than 30 at the date of their nomination for an outstanding contribution to or action on free speech, human rights and/or civil liberties, with particular emphasis on progressing freedom, respect, equality and dignity.

Liberty Victoria applauds the strength and resilience Samara has shown in her long and deeply personal fight for justice and the protection of other Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islanders as well as her ongoing commitment to tangible change and healing.

Please join us to celebrate at the Voltaire Awards Dinner on November 15th, 2024.
https://www.trybooking.com/events/landing/1229064

LIBERTY VICTORIA SUPPORTS MURPHY’S LAW
The late Peta Murphy was a Committee Member of Liberty Victoria for years where she advocated for human rights. She continued that work in Parliament, including her advocacy for gambling reform and highlighting the harmful effects of gambling advertising.

Gambling can be addictive. When it is, it tears up families, causes financial hardship, mental health issues and sometimes those addicted to gambling end up committing offences to feed their habit.

A full gambling ad ban is a practical and common-sense way of trying to reduce the harm it causes. The government should implement the full recommendations of the parliamentary inquiry chaired by Peta Murphy and the opposition and other parties should support a full ban.

Link to statement: https://libertyvictoria.org.au/content/liberty-victoria-supports-murphy%E2%80%99s-law

LGBTQIA+ people deserve protection from discrimination

Liberty Victoria is disappointed by reports that the Federal Government has abandoned plans to introduce religious discrimination laws into Parliament. It is reported that as part of the abandoned plans, promises to protect LGBTIQA+ teachers and students have also been shelved.

If the Albanese Government reneges on its promise, religious organisations will retain the right to discriminate against LGBTQIA+ people under federal law.

It is particularly disappointing that the Prime Minister has cited “social cohesion” as the reason for abandoning his promises.

Under the current S*x Discrimination Act, schools can fire teachers and expel students because of their gender identity or sexuality.

Social cohesion will only be achieved when LGBTQIA+ people are free to be themselves at school and at work without fear of being fired or expelled.

Liberty Victoria calls on the Federal Government to introduce laws to the Federal Parliament to ensure the protection of LGBTQIA+ people from discrimination.

Link to statement: https://lnkd.in/gZtWkeDY

STATEMENT ON PROPOSED IMMUNITY FOR THOSE INVOLVED IN THE LAWYER X SCANDAL

It is a fundamental principle of the rule of law that no one is above the law. The law must apply equally to all of us, including those given power over citizens to act on behalf of the State.

Liberty Victoria is deeply concerned that the Allan Government intends to make those involved in the Lawyer X scandal immune from civil and criminal proceedings.

The legal processes that allow people to sue if they have been wrongfully convicted have two purposes: first, they compensate people for losses they have suffered. This is an important remedy to right the wrongs of the past.

Second, they act as a disincentive to poor behaviour by those entrusted with extraordinary powers, including the police. This is vitally important in a scandal that involves conduct that the High Court has described as “sanctioning atrocious breaches of the sworn duty of all police officers to discharge all duties imposed on them faithfully and according to law without favour or affection, malice or ill-will”.

We will wait to see the Bill, but this is not a matter where this terrible episode in Victoria’s history should be further hidden from public view and made immune from testing through the Courts.

Trust in police and the broader justice system require that the State and police are subject to the usual civil and criminal processes that address the injustices caused by the Lawyer X scandal.

Liberty Victoria statement on disclosure in criminal proceedings: “Disclosure of all evidence – regardless of whether it assists the prosecution or not – is a fundamental right of every member of our community”. Link to full statement in bio. With thanks to Nino Bucci and the Guardian Australia for covering this vital issue.

The recipient of this year’s Liberty Victoria Voltaire Human Rights award is Antoinette Lattouf, in recognition of her role as a broadcaster, journalist and advocate for diversity and mental health.

As a woman from a Lebanese and working-class background working in the Australian media, Antoinette has used her voice to speak in support of a range of causes. Some of these are deeply personal and painful for her and reflect her perspective which comes from a place of difference from most of the faces seen in mainstream media. Her book “How to Lose Friends and Influence White People” aims to help people effectively champion change and racial equality. She is also an ambassador for the parent’s mental health through the Gidget Foundation, following her own debilitating experience of post-natal depression. She has particularly championed diversity and inclusion in media as a co-founder of Media Diversity Australia
Antoinette has recently come to national and international attention after she was sacked by the ABC for resharing a post by Human Rights Watch which reported on starvation being used as a weapon of war against civilians in Gaza. She has responded to this by reaffirming her views that “a journalist is meant to stand up and expose abuses of power… A journalist is meant to report without fear or favour.” Antoinette has ignited a national conversation on free speech, the importance of an independent public broadcaster, and the way race and political opinion can be weaponised against some Australians. This matter is now the subject of an unfair dismissal claim and before the courts.

The Voltaire Human Rights Awards dinner will be held at the Sofitel Melbourne on 15 November 2024. Bookings (with an early bird discount!) can be made here: https://www.trybooking.com/events/landing/1229064

The recent move by a NSW Council to ban books featuring same-sex couples is deeply troubling and part of an ongoing attack on the rights of the LGBTIQ+ community.

It follows a disturbing trend both in Australia and around the globe, including the cancellation of ‘drag queen story time’ from public spaces in Victoria, in some cases following threats and intimidation.

A Council should not be permitted to ban the Bible, Koran, Torah or other religious text from a public library on the basis they might offend the religious or political beliefs of an individual Councillor or Councillors. Equally, a Council should not be permitted to ban books aimed at teaching children about same-sex families in an age-appropriate manner.

Enabling other children to see such literature helps broaden their perspectives and learn about the world they live in. Improving understanding advances the right to equality without discrimination.

We encourage Victorian Councils not to follow the human rights limiting practice of banning books featuring same-sex parents. And we call on governments to strengthen current laws, which provide insufficient protection against such human rights violations, to ensure these kind of attacks don’t continue.

Read our full statement through the link in the comments.

Our submission to the Senate inquiry into right wing extremist movements in Australia is now live.

In our submission, we outline how, in responding to the threat of violent extremism, we must be mindful that we do not employ censorship and surveillance in a disproportionate manner.

This includes being careful not to cast the net too wide, stigmatising individuals and communities, and justifying widespread surveillance and prohibiting offensive speech on the erroneous basis that there is some kind of “conveyor belt” from exposure to extreme ideas, to radicalisation, and then to engagement in violent extremism. This is not justified by the research.

Our response to extremism must focus on improving social cohesion and trust in institutions, including trust in government and the media, rather than focussing on expanding censorship and surveillance.

Read our full submission through the link in the comments.

“Instead of reacting to further litigation in the High Court with extreme measures like its latest bill, the government should pause and reflect on whether the system they are proposing – one that is inconsistent with community values, gives into fear and allows the exploitation of refugees for political purposes – is really the type of legacy they want to leave.“

Read the full piece by our Vice President Sam Norton through the link in the comments.

Locking children up before they’ve had their day in court is wrong and makes the community less safe in the long run. We oppose the Victorian Government’s backflip on the removal of the reverse onus test and the trial use of electronically monitored bracelets on children.

Read our full statement through the link in the comments.

Make a nomination now for our 2024 Voltaire Human Rights Awards through the link in the comments.

Good to hear the Victorian Government reiterate it will of criminal responsibility to 14. As Commissioner for Children and Young People Liana Buchanan says, putting children in the criminal justice system raises the chance they’ll reoffend — locking up children risks making the community less safe

“We’re starting to see a generation of women who refuse to accept the limitations imposed on them. This development signals a promising shift towards a more inclusive and representative political landscape.”

This piece on the Conservation is worth a read this . Read through the link in the comments.

It’s concerning that people are being sent to prison for 3 weeks for participating in a peaceful protest — imprisonment should always be a measure of last resort.

People’s right to protest is critical to a healthy democracy.

Our Immediate Past President Mike Stanton spoke about the right to protest with ABC Radio Melbourne this morning. Listen through the link in the comments.

Nominations for the 2024 Voltaire Human Rights Awards have been extended until 5pm, Tuesday 19 March.

These awards recognise a person or group who have made outstanding contributions to civil liberties & human rights. Nominate someone you think deserves recognition for their work now through the link in the comments.

Liberty Victoria statement on entrapment. Link to full statement in bio: “A particularly egregious part of the conduct of the Australian Federal Police in the case of the young child was that the child’s parents had gone to police for help. However, their trust in police would have been destroyed and any positive impact that could have been had was immediately undone when the undercover officer started to communicate with the child. It is also concerning that for future cases parents may now be too scared to go to police for help”.

Liberty Victoria statement on entrapment:

https://libertyvictoria.org.au/content/statement-entrapment

Nominations are now open for our 2024 Voltaire Human Rights Awards!

For more than two decades, the Voltaire Human Rights Award has been presented to a person or organisation for outstanding contributions to civil liberties and human rights. Award recipients have included journalists, activists, whistleblowers, lawyers, writers, students, cartoonists, and comedians.

From this year the Young Voltaire Human Rights Award, which has been awarded since 2017, will be renamed in honour of the life and work of last year’s Voltaire Award winner, the late and greatly missed Sophie Trevitt AM. The Voltaire Award and Sophie Trevitt Award will be awarded alongside The Empty Chair Human Rights Award, which was introduced in 2016.

The awards seek to recognise those who have made outstanding contributions to civil liberties, human rights, and free speech, with particular emphasis on progressing freedom, respect, equality, dignity, and action.

We have chosen to emphasise action on freedom, respect, equality, and dignity as four pillars of civil liberties and human rights.

Nominate a person or organisation you know for the 2024 Voltaire Human Rights Awards before 5 March through the link in the comments.

Great session at today’s Liberty Victoria planning day - We’re gearing up for the challenges of 2024!

With new dangerous substances being found in drugs in Australia where “the risk of overdose is extreme”, the Victorian Government must drop its opposition to pill testing, which would help save lives

We’re pleased to hear that the late Sophie Trevitt has been acknowledged with an AM for her advocacy to and for First Nations justice. Sophie was awarded our 2023 Voltaire Human Rights Award in recognition of her vast contribution to human rights and civil liberties

“We all want to get on with creating a better future together, but to do so, we need people to be willing to talk with us. To listen to what we have to say.” — Rueben Berg, Co-Chair of First Peoples' Assembly of Victoria.

This 26 January, read Rueben’s full piece through the link in the comments.

“Victorians deserve a sensible, evidence-based response to drug use… If there’s even a small chance a pill testing trial could save lives, it’s worth pursuing.” — today’s The Age Editorial

Pill testing saves lives and reduces harms associated with drug use. The Victorian Government should make sure there are pill testing facilities at festivals as a crucial measure to protect the human rights of festival attendees.

While acknowledging the complex legal framework surrounding drug use, our primary concern should always be the preservation of life, protection of rights and promotion of safety. Pill testing facilities align with these fundamental principles. Read our full statement through the link in our bio.

Eight people in a critical condition following suspected drug overdose at a Melbourne rave Seven of the eight people believed to have overdosed at Hardmission Festival were placed into induced comas and required breathing tubes.

Important decision from the Victorian Supreme Court today — it has ordered a man the Federal government kept locked up beyond his original sentence, based on the government’s use of flawed tools, to be released with strict supervision restrictions.

Read the article through the link in the comments.

Sport isn’t isolated from the world around it, and there is a strong tradition of protest in sport. Sportspeople shouldn’t be expected to trade away their ability to publicly communicate on issues they care about. Speech can be limited, but there is nothing proportionate about censoring Khawaja

BREAKING: Prime Minister Anthony Albanese has called for a in Gaza, the release of all hostages and ultimately an end to the continuous suffering of all Palestinian civilians

Great news this week as the Tasmanian Government commits to of criminal responsibility to 14 with no exceptions. No child belongs behind bars — all State and Territory Governments must follow this lead.