On 18 February, AAWAA, the Coalition of Activist Lesbians, and the Feminist Legal Clinic met with the President and Commissioners of the Australian Human Rights Commission to discuss the operation of Australia’s sex and gender framework and its implications for women’s sex-based protections. https://open.spotify.com/episode/6ncjAGd2rvx47UJtbYFfJM We requested this meeting with the AHRC President Hugh de Kretser, … Continue reading On the record: Women’s organisations brief the Australian Human Rights Commission on Australia’s sex and gender framework
Tag: AHRC
‘World‑class’ laws, invisible lesbians: the gap in Australia’s equality story
Lesbian and bisexual women are repeatedly told that Australia has strong equality laws and robust human rights institutions. Yet when females with same-sex attraction try to organise as such, or to defend female-only spaces, they encounter closed doors, shifting definitions, and institutions that treat others as the ‘real’ stakeholders on their behalf. https://open.spotify.com/episode/2sd4vjXRpMPDu8RqLgxYMj AAWAA’s recent … Continue reading ‘World‑class’ laws, invisible lesbians: the gap in Australia’s equality story
Time to act: The AHRC’s unused powers could tackle the uncertainty over women’s rights
Forty years after the Sex Discrimination Act was passed, Australia's anti-discrimination laws are facing significant challenges. The Sex Discrimination Act 1984 (SDA) was enacted to give effect to the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination Against Women (CEDAW), prohibiting discrimination against women and authorising 'special measures' to promote substantive gender equality. Yet in recent years, confusion … Continue reading Time to act: The AHRC’s unused powers could tackle the uncertainty over women’s rights
Democracy in denial: How excluding women’s groups from consultation produces bad law
Across Australia, governments are enacting legislation that profoundly affects women's rights whilst systematically excluding us from meaningful participation in consultation. This not only violates Australia's international obligations but produces legislation that serves commercial and other interests rather than protects women and girls. Recent examples from New South Wales and Western Australia — as well as Queensland — show how exclusion from democratic processes doesn't just breach process requirements: … Continue reading Democracy in denial: How excluding women’s groups from consultation produces bad law
Accountability, not re-interpretation: Why we questioned the Sex Discrimination Commissioner
At the National Press Club on Wednesday, The Women’s Advocate put a direct question to the Sex Discrimination Commissioner about her powers and obligations under the Australian Human Rights Commission Act 1986 and why women advocating for women’s sex-based protections and rights have not been properly consulted on the development of key sex and gender … Continue reading Accountability, not re-interpretation: Why we questioned the Sex Discrimination Commissioner
The Australian Human Rights Commission’s institutional drift on women’s rights
The Australian Human Rights Commission was established to promote and protect human rights for all Australians, with the Sex Discrimination Commissioner having a specific mandate to address sex discrimination and promote gender equality under the Sex Discrimination Act 1984 (SDA). However, the Commission's current apparent approach to sex-based rights has created widespread legal uncertainty for … Continue reading The Australian Human Rights Commission’s institutional drift on women’s rights
Equality Australia and the Lesbian Action Group: contesting the meaning of ‘woman’ in women’s spaces
The Tickle v Giggle case has become a defining moment in Australian discrimination law, crystallising fundamental tensions around sex and gender. As an appeal to the Full Court of the Federal Court gets underway, two vastly different ideas have emerged about how women’s spaces should be defined and protected: Equality Australia’s, and the Lesbian Action … Continue reading Equality Australia and the Lesbian Action Group: contesting the meaning of ‘woman’ in women’s spaces
Institutional integrity, free association, and women’s rights: our groups join the national push for sex-based protections
As the 2025 federal election approaches, the Affiliation of Australian Women’s Action Alliances (AAWAA) and its member groups are taking action. Across the country, our women-led organisations — and our individual members — are writing directly to candidates, urging them to restore clarity and fairness to Australia’s anti-discrimination framework. Our member groups have joined the … Continue reading Institutional integrity, free association, and women’s rights: our groups join the national push for sex-based protections
Protecting the human rights of trans and gender diverse-identifying people: medical interventions including puberty blockers and cross-sex hormones
In early May, AAWAA made a submission to the Australian Human Rights Council's national project mapping threats to trans and gender diverse (TGD) human rights in Australia. We welcome the AHRC’s interest in the human rights of people who identify as TGD, and note the AHRC’s mandate to investigate actions or practices that could be … Continue reading Protecting the human rights of trans and gender diverse-identifying people: medical interventions including puberty blockers and cross-sex hormones
Sex self-ID and the erosion of women’s rights: an Australian coalition’s letter to CEDAW
In February 2024, a coalition of Australian women’s and LGB groups, led by AAWAA, wrote to the Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination against Women (CEDAW) to raise urgent concerns about the impact of sex self-identification, or “sex self-ID”, on women’s rights and sex-based protections in Australia. Our coalition comprises teachers, lawyers, nurses, doctors, scientists, … Continue reading Sex self-ID and the erosion of women’s rights: an Australian coalition’s letter to CEDAW
Not too late for AHRC to uphold lesbians’ civil and political rights to opinion and assembly
The Affiliation of Australian Women’s Action Alliances (AAWAA) is surprised and disappointed at the Australian Human Rights Commission’s preliminary view not to grant a temporary exemption to the Sex Discrimination Act 1984 (SDA) that would allow lesbians to meet on the basis of their sex and their sexual orientation. We are particularly puzzled as the … Continue reading Not too late for AHRC to uphold lesbians’ civil and political rights to opinion and assembly
AHRC urged to allow lesbians freedom of assembly without men
AAWAA has supported an application by the Lesbian Action Group (LAG) to the Australian Human Rights Commission (AHRC) for an exemption under the Sex Discrimination Act 1984 to conduct ‘Lesbians Born Female’-only events, including to celebrate International Lesbian Day. We believe that an exemption is necessary to ensure the safety and security of this group … Continue reading AHRC urged to allow lesbians freedom of assembly without men
State and territory women’s alliances back lesbian-only gatherings
Two powerful letters sent to the Australian Human Rights Commission in August 2023 demonstrate clear, grassroots support for the Lesbian Action Group’s right to female-only events. Both the Queensland Women’s Action Alliance (QWAA) and the Western Australian Women’s Action Alliance (WAWAA) wrote in strong, principled defence of lesbian women’s right to assemble as a group, … Continue reading State and territory women’s alliances back lesbian-only gatherings
