Archive Article: The UN and Human Rights, December 98.
December 22, 2008

With all the bad news about human rights violations nowadays, a sense of perspective is important to see that some progress has been made.

December 10 was Human Rights Day: the 50th anniversary of the adoption of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. The State Attorney-General, the Hon Jeff Shaw QC MLC, spoke at a conference organized by the United Nations Association and the International Commission of Jurists.

In a wide-ranging speech, the Attorney-General noted the gradual improvement in the status of Australia’s indigenous people and the ending of racism in the country’s immigration policy. To provide a contrast, Mr Shaw quoted from a statement from the then Prime Minister Alfred Deakin – who was one of the creators of the Australian Constitution – at the beginning of this century. Mr Deakin said: “The aboriginal race has died out in the South and is dying fast in the North and the West even when most gently treated. Other races are to be excluded by legislation if they are tinted in any degree. The yellow, the brown and the copper-coloured are to be forbidden to land anywhere.”

This was the White Australia Policy: the extermination of the indigenous people at home and the exclusion of all non-white people from immigrating to Australia.

Ironically, while Australia helped write the Universal Declaration of Human Rights almost half a century later in 1948, it still had the White Australia Policy in place. In 1948. the indigenous people were denied even the most basic legal freedoms assured to other Australians. They were not considered citizens of Australia, they were not counted in the census and they were not allowed access to unemployment benefits.

The White Australia Policy was not officially abandoned until 1972. And while finally granted citizenship in 1967, indigenous people were not compelled to enrol until 1983.

Australia has still a long way to go. But it is worth recalling the progress that has been made, First, no Prime Minister would ever use today the language and sentiments used by Mr Deakin at the beginning of this century. Indeed, such obvious racism is now very rare in Australian public life. Second, some progress is being made to end the plight of Australia’s indigenous people. Indeed, they are now far from being a “dying dace” because they have one of the highest birth rates in the western world.

Third, Australia has become of the most multicultural countries in the world. The top three countries are Australia, Canada and Israel.

There is very little politically-motivated violence in Australia. Australians seem to focus their violence on sporting referees and their teams which do badly.

Indeed, Australia should examine why it has been a world leader in tolerance. What can learned for the rest of the world? Australia could perhaps create its own export industry of advising countries in how to get different ethnic and religious groups to live together in peace.

BROADCAST ON FRIDAY DECEMBER 18 1998 ON RADIO 2GB’S “BRIAN WILSHIRE PROGRAMME” AT 9 PM, AND ON DECEMBER 20 1998 ON “SUNDAY NIGHT LIVE” AT 10.30 PM