Indigenous Treaty Now, Not Just Constitutional Recognition
The Referendum Council is currently travelling around Australia carrying out the Dialogues: a series of meetings with First Nations peoples to discuss the issue of recognising the nation’s Indigenous people within the Australian constitution. The meetings seek to establish an agreement on...
Islamophobia: An Interview with AFIC President Keysar Trad
Practising Muslims pray five times a day. It’s one of the five pillars of Islam, referred to as Salat. When they do so they kneel down and prostrate themselves, resting on a small mat and facing in the direction of Mecca:...
Police Powers to Stop, Require Identification and Search in NSW
Being confronted on the street or pulled over by a police officer can be a nerve-wracking experience. Even if you haven’t done anything wrong, you may feel concerned and anxious about how the situation will pan out, or even worried...
Decriminalising Medical Cannabis: An Interview with NSW Labor MLC Adam Searle
NSW Opposition leader Luke Foley introduced a game-changing medicinal cannabis bill before parliament on March 9, which has largely gone unnoticed. The legislation calls for the decriminalisation of possession of the medicine, as well as establishing “a lawful supply chain.” “We know that for...
The Sentencing Database: An Interview with NSW Judicial Commission CEO Ernest Schmatt
The Judicial Commission of NSW plays a key role in the running of this state’s justice system, providing ongoing educational information to judicial officers, while investigating complaints made against them. The commission is an independent statutory corporation established that was under the Judicial...
“Don’t Do the Crime if you Can’t Do the Time”: The Conservative’s Mantra
“Don’t do the crime if you can’t do the time” - it’s a catchphrase often used when someone is accused of a crime, or during discussions about bail laws or incarceration rates in Australia. But the reality is that significant...
The Slow Passage of Women’s Workplace Rights in Australia
Despite years of legislating against the gender pay gap, it remains a persistent feature of the Australian workplace. Unequal pay outcomes for women are a stark reminder that there’s an antiquated perception that a woman’s contribution in the workplace is...
It’s Time to Decriminalise, Regulate and Tax Drugs
The release of the Australia 21 report on drugs caused quite a stir last week. Entitled Can Australia Respond to Drugs More Effectively and Safely?, the report made a number of key recommendations aiming to decriminalise drugs use in this country. What...
Democratising Science: An Interview with BioFoundry’s Meow
Biohacking is a rather recent phenomena. It’s a kind of do-it-yourself biotechnology that people are conducting in small labs outside the boundaries of universities and research institutions. A social movement where people are taking responsibility for biological breakthroughs themselves. Without the...
Are You ‘Fit and Proper’ to be a Lawyer?
Last month, we reported on the case of an 86-year-old lawyer who was ‘struck off‘ after the NSW Civil and Administrative Tribunal declared he was “no longer a fit and proper person to engage in legal practice.” Between July 2009 and...
