Human Rights
VCOSS is committed to promoting the understanding, engagement and protection of human rights in Victoria. Stemming from this commitment is a responsibility to ensure that those Victorians who experience disadvantage and/or who are marginalised are able to both fulfil their human rights and engage in processes and decisions which impact on their lives.
VCOSS has incorporated a human rights framework explicitly into its policy and advocacy work since 2001. In doing so, VCOSS has sought to link domestic policy and advocacy discussions to the various international human rights conventions. VCOSS engages in a range of human rights projects and participates in a number of external human rights working groups, advisory committees and informal meetings, providing a community sector perspective to government, statutory bodies, legal and academic groups. Download the human rights chapter in the VCOSS 2009-10 State Budget Submission.
VCOSS has been actively involved in the development and implementation of the Victorian Charter of Human Rights and Responsibilities, from conducting consultations around its introduction, to advocacy, training of community sector workers and advocates, education and publications, including a preliminary audit and needs analysis of human rights education and training needs for community sector organisations (Audit and Needs Analysis: Human Rights Education and Training Report ), a report on the ways in which community sector organisations are using the Charter in policy and practice (Using the Charter in Policy and Practice Report) and a special, dedicated human rights edition of our social policy journal Just Policy in 2007 to contribute to the debate around using human rights frameworks for social policy development and implementation.
VCOSS has a long history and considerable expertise in undertaking human rights work - see the menu for our other projects. If you would like to find out more about VCOSS’ work on human rights policy please contact:
Stephanie Cauchi
stephanie.cauchi@vcoss.org.au
Using the Charter in Policy and Practice
The report examines changes that had been made by community sector organisations to incorporate the Charter - and human rights principles more broadly - into organisational polices, procedures or service delivery. It includes substantial appendices providing examples from the organisations surveyed including a Project Plan, a Human Rights Committee's Terms of Reference, a Watching Brief, and examples of revised policies. Download a full PDF copy of the report here or visit the online adaption here.
Freedom, Respect, Equality, Dignity: Action
Freedom, Respect, Equality, Dignity: Action, the major NGO Report to the UN Committee on Economic Social and Cultural Rights regarding Australia’s implementation of the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights was coordinated by the National Association of Community Legal Centres, the Human Rights Law Resource Centre and Kingsford Legal Centre. VCOSS was one of over 30 NGOs with specific human rights and subject matter expertise that contributed to the Report, and over 100 NGOs endorsed the report in whole or in part.
The Report was submitted to the Committee on 11 April 2008 and will be formally launched on or around 19 May 2008. It is intended to assist the Committee to prepare a List of Issues for Australia during the Pre-Sessional Working Group meeting from 19 to 23 May 2008. It is also intended to ensure that the Committee is equipped to engage in a rigorous and constructive dialogue with Australia when it is reviewed by the Committee in 2009.
You can download a copy of the report from the Human Right Law Resource Centre website.