Human Rights Law and Policy
Human Rights Law and Policy
Latest news
In the Media
Israel revoking the residency of Palestinians living in Jerusalem
Kevin Boreham speaks to 2SER
ERITREAN ASYLUM SEEKERS IMPRISONED IN ISRAEL
Kevin Boreham speaks to 2SR
The Ellis defence: May new legislation force change in the church
Elizabeth Curran writes in The Age - Letters to the Editor
Human rights risks and regulatory trends in supply chains
Jolyon Ford interviewed by CIBER Focus
Same-sex marriage legislation could become law 'within days'
Ryan Goss speaks to News.com.au
Zimbabwe crisis an elite, not populist issue
Jolyon Ford speaks to ABC's The World Today
Victoria police should record perceived ethnicity of everyone they stop, says legal rights group
quoted in The Guardian
Terror threat in Australia has us losing liberties as we fight to defend them
Kim Rubenstein speaks to The Courier Mail
Laws would make aspiring Australians pledge to share values
Kim Rubenstein speaks to American Broadcasting Company ABC
Upcoming events
Is sovereignty necessary? The role of sovereignty in Indigenous child protection
- Professor Marcia Zug
This research seminar will examine whether a national law, similar to the Indian Child Welfare Act (ICWA), could be enacted in Australia. The ICWA was passed in response to the long history of government removals of Indian children from their families and tribes
Past events
No past events found.
Business, human rights and peace in popular culture (511.02 KB)Blockbuster movies such as Blood Diamond or Avatar explore corporate responsibility themes in various ways. How might such popular culture products affect the emerging regulatory landscape on business-related human rights impacts and conflict-sensitive business practices? What role might popular culture -- in particular ‘big screen’ movies -- have to play in fostering greater awareness of, and business respect for, these norms and standards? Most scholarship on addressing the governance gap in these areas is directed to ‘supply-side’ factors -- how to design or improve legal, regulatory and policy initiatives. Scholars in the ‘business and human rights’ and ‘business for peace’ fields have focussed relatively little on insights as to the ‘demand side’ -- whether, how and to what extent consumer behaviour may be relevant in driving shifts in business practices or in complementing or demanding governmental action. This working paper explores a possible research agenda on how the nexus of business, human rights and peace is treated in pop culture, and what (if any) significance this might have to the universe of regulatory and other activity in this field. It asks how important pop culture might be in shaping a critical mass of informed consumers, a potentially relevant regulatory resource.
The quantity and quality of political opinion polling are sources of concern for electoral democracies worldwide. A significant number of countries regulate polling by embargoing publication in the latter stages of the election period, or by mandating disclosure of key information about each poll. Such regulation, however, is rare in common law systems, where ‘free speech’ arguments tend to hold sway, sublimating concern for the deliberative health of political discourse. This article examines the issue, comparing regulation and case law internationally in light of the evolution, benefits and pathologies of opinion polling. A distinction can be made between polling on issues, which permit us all to reflect on the positions of fellow citizens on substantive issues, and the almost endless stream of polling on voting intentions, which offers little from a deliberative perspective. We recommend regulation to ensure disclosure, at the point of publication, of key information about each opinion poll (eg who conducted it, the wording of questions and margins of error), as well as a campaign-period embargo on publishing electoral opinion polling.
This paper examines the growth of transnational governance, and what it means for business lawyers advising multinational corporate clients. The term “governance” incorporates the network of actors, instruments and mechanisms that now govern transnational corporations, separate from the nation state. It is reasonable to expect that lawyers play an important role in advising business clients on how to effectively operate within this system. Indeed, many transnational legal instruments are intended to enhance clients’ business goals by enabling them to engage more efficiently in cross-border commerce. Other forms of regulation, such as human rights regulation, purports to impose requirements on companies that go beyond what is necessary to enhance cross-border commerce.
In this paper we discuss the transnational governance regime that has arisen to address the adverse human rights impacts of business activities. We focus in particular on the United Nations (UN) Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights, which were adopted by the UN Human Rights Council in 2011. We ask what if any role is there for lawyers in fostering acknowledgment and fulfilment of these responsibilities among clients? Is the duty to respect human rights a “legal” obligation in any sense? If a lawyer does provide advice, should it encompass only legal risks to the company that fall within the lawyer’s traditionally defined specialized expertise? Or should it go beyond that to include other concerns?
