YEAR 8 HASS
AUSTRALIA’S DEMOCRACY:
Rights and Freedoms
Rights & Freedoms – Definitions
Freedom of Movement
Right to freedom of movement
The right to freedom of movement includes the right to move freely within a country for those who are lawfully within the country, the right to leave any country and the right to enter a country of which you are a citizen.
Freedom of movement
Everyone lawfully within the territory of a State shall, within that territory, have the right to liberty of movement and freedom to choose his residence.
(Nine, 2020)
Freedom of Assembly | Freedom of Association
Right to freedom of assembly and association
The right to peaceful assembly protects the right of individuals and groups to meet and to engage in peaceful protest. The right to freedom of association protects the right to form and join associations to pursue common goals.
Freedom of association
Everyone shall have the right to freedom of association with others, including the right to form and join trade unions for the protection of his interests.
Freedom of assembly
The right of peaceful assembly shall be recognized. No restrictions may be placed on the exercise of this right other than those imposed in comformity with the law and which are necessary in a democratic society in the interests of national security or public safety, public order, the protection of public health or morals or the protection of the rights and freedoms of others.
(AFP, 2020)
View this ebook for more information and interesting articles:
Healey, J. (Ed. ). (2020). Activism and protest. Spinney Press.
Freedom of Speech
Freedom of opinion and expression
The right to freedom of opinion is the right to hold opinions without interference, and cannot be subject to any exception or restriction.
The right to freedom of expression extends to any medium, including written and oral communications, the media, public protest, broadcasting, artistic works and commercial advertising. The right is not absolute. It carries with it special responsibilities, and may be restricted on several grounds. For example, restrictions could relate to filtering access to certain internet sites, the urging of violence or the classification of artistic material.
Implied freedom of political communication
The Australian Constitution (“the Constitution”) does not explicitly mention the phrase “freedom of speech” anywhere, however the High Court in Nationwide News Pty Ltd v Wills (1992) 177 CLR 1 and Australian Capital Television v Commonwealth (ACTV) (1992) 177 CLR 106 decided that the Constitution contained an implied right to freedom of communication on political matters.
The Rule of Law and the Implied Freedom of Communication in Australia
“[the] right of free speech is one which it is for the public interest that individuals should possess, and indeed that they should exercise it without impediment, so long as no wrongful act is done.”
Examples of Restrictions on Rights & Freedoms
This is a report that examines the Commonwealth laws that encroach upon traditional rights, freedoms and privileges recognised by the common law.
Freedom of Assembly | Freedom of Association
At least 10 people have been arrested in Melbourne after turning out to demonstrate against Victoria’s lockdown, in a potential breach of restrictions.
Freedom of Movement
This article will help you to understand the legal concerns with using a COVID certificate to regulate entry into events, restaurants and other businesses.
COVID-19 restrictions have imposed extraordinary restrictions on countervailing human rights. COVID measures interfere with economic, social and cultural rights, such as rights to work, adequate standards of living, education, and mental health. They also interfere with civil and political rights, such as freedoms of movement, association, assembly, the right to a fair trial, as well as the rights of families and children.
Freedom of Speech
Human rights organisation Amnesty International says Australians are facing increasing threats to our rights to freedom of expression.
The organisation’s annual report on human rights in the Asia-Pacific cites the raids on an Australian journalist’s home and the ABC headquarters as evidence of tighter restrictions on press freedom here.
Locating News Articles
Locating recent examples
Searching for news articles will help you to find recent examples of when certain rights were not upheld in Australia.
- The online databases will give you access to articles you may not be able to find freely.
- Locate free news articles by refining your Google search by selecting News, then use ‘Tools’ to filter by date.
Selecting news articles
Before selecting an article make sure you check the following:
Authoritative source – Is it from a reputable journalistic news source?
Relevance – Is the article relevant to the rights and freedoms of Australian citizens?
News Websites (Free)
Use your keywords to search the following news websites (Note: you may be limited to the number of articles you can view):
The Australian (unlimited access at school only)
Advance Google Search
1. Type in your keywords.
2. Go to “Advanced Search” to narrow your results by region.
3. Narrow results to “News”
4. Narrow results by time i.e. choose the “Recent” dropdown menu – You can customise your dates.
How to access Google Advanced Search
CLICK HERE for more Advanced Google Search Tips
Online Databases (available to MLC students via eResouces)
Use your keywords to search the following online databases or news websites. Visit your Teacher Librarian if you need some help.
The West Australian Digital Editions
This is a ‘true to print’ digital edition of the main daily newspaper of Perth, Western Australia.
Academic OneFile
This is a premier periodical resource that will provide you will an extensive range of articles.
Australian/ New Zealand Reference Centre (EBSCO)
Referencing Your Sources
Citefast
Use Citefast to reference your news and website sources.
Make sure you know the difference as the citation is different for each. See the sections from the MLC Referencing Guide below to see the difference.
And set up a free Citefast account so you can save you references as you generate them.
APA Format – News articles
APA Format – Websites
References
AFP. (2020, May 13). Anti-lockdown protesters in Melbourne [Image]. The Australian. https://www.theaustralian.com.au/commentary/coronavirus-our-loony-protesters-are-among-the-looniest/news-story/313cb4ac0ceabeb55d819dc25d35b895
Barbour, S. (2020, May 15). Covid Safe app [Image]. The Guardian. https://www.theguardian.com/australia-news/2020/may/15/covid-safe-app-australia-how-download-does-it-work-australian-government-covidsafe-covid19-tracking-downloads
Ekkel, R. (2020, March 23). Centrelink queue [Image]. ABC News. https://www.abc.net.au/news/2020-03-23/mygov-website-down-centrelink-massive-queues-coronavirus/12080558
Nine. (2020, March 24). Border closures infographic [Image]. 9News. https://www.9news.com.au/national/coronavirus-border-closures-what-are-the-rules-for-each-state/220bd679-9691-4edd-a252-874ee1ddce32