Editors --- "Charter of Human Rights and Responsibilities Act 2006 (Vic) - Digest" [2006] AUIndigLawRpr 52; (2006) 10(3) Australian Indigenous Law Reporter 57

• CHARTER OF HUMAN RIGHTS AND RESPONSIBILITIES ACT 2006 (VIC)
• Preamble
• Part 1—Preliminary
• 1 Purpose and Citation
• 2 Commencement
• 7 Human Rights—What They Are and When They May be Limited
• 19 Cultural Rights

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CHARTER OF HUMAN RIGHTS AND RESPONSIBILITIES ACT 2006 (VIC)

Act No 43 of 2006

Assented to 25 July 2006

Preamble

On behalf of the people of Victoria the Parliament enacts this Charter, recognising that all people are born free and equal in dignity and rights.

This Charter is founded on the following principles—

• human rights are essential in a democratic and inclusive society that respects the rule of law, human dignity, equality and freedom;
• human rights belong to all people without discrimination, and the diversity of the people of Victoria enhances our community;
• human rights come with responsibilities and must be exercised in a way that respects the human rights of others;
• human rights have a special importance for the Aboriginal people of Victoria, as descendants of Australia's first people, with their diverse spiritual, social, cultural and economic relationship with their traditional lands and waters.

Part 1—Preliminary

1 Purpose and Citation

(1) This Act may be referred to as the Charter of Human Rights and Responsibilities and is so referred to in this Act.

(2) The main purpose of this Charter is to protect and promote human rights by—

(a) setting out the human rights that Parliament specifically seeks to protect and promote; and
(b) ensuring that all statutory provisions, whenever enacted, are interpreted so far as is possible in a way that is compatible with human rights; and
(c) imposing an obligation on all public authorities to act in a way that is compatible with human rights; and
(d) requiring statements of compatibility with human rights to be prepared in respect of all Bills introduced into Parliament and enabling the Scrutiny of Acts and Regulations Committee to report on such compatibility; and
(e) conferring jurisdiction on the Supreme Court to declare that a statutory provision cannot be interpreted consistently with a human right and requiring the relevant Minister to respond to that declaration.

(3) In addition, this Charter—

(a) enables Parliament, in exceptional circumstances, to override the application of the Charter to a statutory provision; and
(b) renames the Equal Opportunity Commission as the Victorian Equal Opportunity and Human Rights Commission and confers additional functions on it; and
(c) makes consequential amendments to certain Acts.

2 Commencement

(1) This Charter (except Divisions 3 and 4 of Part 3) comes into operation on 1 January 2007.

(2) Divisions 3 and 4 of Part 3 come into operation on 1 January 2008.

…

7 Human Rights—What They Are and When They May be Limited

(1) This Part sets out the human rights that Parliament

specifically seeks to protect and promote.

(2) A human right may be subject under law only to such reasonable limits as can be demonstrably justified in a free and democratic society based on human dignity, equality and freedom, and taking into account all relevant factors including—

(a) the nature of the right; and
(b) the importance of the purpose of the limitation; and
(c) the nature and extent of the limitation; and
(d) the relationship between the limitation and its purpose; and
(e) any less restrictive means reasonably available to achieve the purpose that the limitation seeks to achieve.

(3) Nothing in this Charter gives a person, entity or public authority a right to limit (to a greater extent than is provided for in this Charter) or destroy the human rights of any person.

…

19 Cultural Rights

(1) All persons with a particular cultural, religious, racial or linguistic background must not be denied the right, in community with other persons of that background, to enjoy his or her culture, to declare and practise his or her religion and to use his or her language.

(2) Aboriginal persons hold distinct cultural rights and must not be denied the right, with other members of their community—

(a )to enjoy their identity and culture; and
(b) to maintain and use their language; and
(c) to maintain their kinship ties; and
(d) to maintain their distinctive spiritual, material and economic relationship with the land and waters and other resources with which they have a connection under traditional laws and customs.

The full text of this legislation may be found on <www.austlii.edu. au>.

Please note that the Aboriginal Land Rights (Northern Territory) Amendment Bill was published in vol 10.2 of the Australian Indigenous Law Reporter. The Amendments to the Act were passed by Parliament in August 2006 and an extended commentary relating to the changes made to the Act will be published in the next edition of the Australian Indigenous Law Reporter.