The Push for Mandatory Consideration of Aboriginality During Sentencing
In the 2013 case of Bugmy versus the Queen, the High Court of Australia found that social disadvantage should be taken into account during the sentencing process. The court ruled that Aboriginal man William Bugmy’s deprived background should have been...
Drug Driving Laws Are Not About Road Safety
In December 2015, the NSW government announced it was tripling the number of mobile drug tests carried out annually to 97,000 tests by this year. As might be expected, the number of motorists being charged with drug driving offences has also skyrocketed....
LGBTIQ Harm Reduction Innovations: An Interview with Unharm’s Kane Race
Australian authorities continue to take a heavy-handed law enforcement approach to illicit substances. This is despite the evidence that suggests zero-tolerance policies actually increase the harms associated with the use of illegal drugs. Victoria police are currently pushing for expanded...
‘Sugar Slaves’: Australia’s History of Blackbirding
The Queensland sugar industry currently generates $2 billion annually. But, it’s a little-known fact that the industry was built upon the backs of Pacific Island people, who were coerced, deceived and even kidnapped from their islands of origin to work...
New Laws to Protect Against Illegal Exploitation of Workers
The Victorian government is set to introduce new laws to crack down on the exploitation of workers – especially those on working holiday visas – by labour hire syndicates and businesses such as farms who hire from them. As part...
Barriers to Justice: An Interview with People With Disability Australia
The UN Convention on the Rights of Persons With Disabilities was adopted on December 13 2006. It seeks to protect the rights and dignity of people with disability. Australia ratified the international human rights treaty on July 28 2008. Article...
NSW Government’s Anti-Terrorism Hotline a “Dismal Failure”
A multi-million-dollar NSW government hotline which encourages the reporting of radicalisation and violent extremism, and provides advice and counselling, has been called a “dismal failure”. Despite costing millions to set up, NSW Minister for Counter Terrorism, David Elliot, says the...
Drug Possession Charge Quashed Due to Illegal Search
A man was recently acquitted of a conviction of drug possession in the NSW District Court, when he appealed his conviction by the Local Court on the ground that a police officer’s search was unlawful. The case reiterates that police...
Child Sex Dolls – Promoting or Preventing Paedophilia?
Australians are one of the biggest purchasers of ‘child sex dolls’ in the world, according to manufacturers in China and Japan. The anatomically correct dolls are designed to resemble children as young as five-years old, and are easily purchased over...
Pill Testing Approved for Aussie Music Festival
Finally, after years of calls from health professionals and members of the public, Australia is about to see its first government-sanctioned pill testing trial at a music festival, with the aim, of course, of reducing the dangers associated with drug...
