Human Rights Laws
Wednesday February 27, 2019
This week Queenslanders have every right to be proud following our Parliament’s passage of the broadest human rights laws in Australia, to the benefit of people with a disability and other disadvantaged citizens.
Queensland is the third Australian state or territory to introduce human rights laws, but the first to place the right to health care and education on the same footing as civil and political rights.
When people with a disability cannot access health care and appropriate education, it causes entrenched, life-altering disadvantage. These rights are especially poignant to Endeavour Foundation, whose founding families fought for the right to education for children with intellectual disability.
With these laws Queensland is setting a standard to protect the dignity and worth of each person, regardless of age, race, sex, disability, social status or any other characteristic.
The creation of a Human Rights Commission ensures ordinary people can raise their human rights concerns with the Commissioner, making the laws more accessible for people with a disability.
Andrew Donne
CEO, Endeavour Foundation