An opportunity to respond to FR movements in policy

Submissions invited

Submissions are invited on issues of Freedom of Religion and Belief in the 21st Century in Australia. In particular we are interested in your responses to any or all of the questions in the Discussion Paper, as well as any other issues of concern.

How to make a submission

Electronic submissions are encouraged. If you would like to make a submission on any of the issues in this paper, please send comments 
in hard copy to:

Freedom of Religion and Belief in the 21^st Century Submission
Race Discrimination Unit: Education and Partnerships Section
Human Rights and Equal Opportunity Commission
GPO Box 5218
Sydney NSW 2001

or go online: www.humanrights.gov.au/frb

or by email at:frb@humanrights.gov.au

or by fax at: (02) 9284 9849

For any queries please telephone:
(02) 9284 9600 or 1800 620 241 (TTY)

CLOSING DATE FOR SUBMISSIONS:
31 January 2009

Confidentiality

Submissions will be treated as public documents unless confidentiality is requested. HREOC will:

• include a list of submissions in its final report;

• refer to submissions in the text of the final report and other HREOC publications; and

• publish selected submissions on its website.
  

If you want your submission, or any part of it, to be treated as confidential, please indicate this clearly.

Requests by members of the public for access to confidential submissions will be determined in accordance with the Freedom of Information Act 1982 (Cth).

© Human Rights and Equal Opportunity Commission, August 2008
ISBN 978-1-921449-05-5

Cover photo by Dani Simmonds.

This work is copyright. Apart from any use as permitted under the Copyright Act 1968, no part may be reproduced by any process without prior written permission from the Human Rights and Equal Opportunity Commission. Requests and enquires concerning reproduction, rights and content should be addressed to the:

Race Discrimination Unit: Education and Partnerships Section
Human Rights and Equal Opportunity Commission
GPO Box 5218
Sydney NSW 2001

In a country as multicultural as Australia, freedoms of cultural expression, religious expression and human rights need ongoing exploration. This section is about gaining a deeper understanding of how effective Australia’s current human rights framework is, and if tensions between human rights, religious expression and cultural expression are of concern.

Questions to consider include:

1. Is there satisfactory freedom of cultural expression and practice within the normative social and legal framework?

2. Do service providers in your state or territory support the right to cultural security, safety and competence?

3. How can the cultural aspirations and human rights of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islanders be met?

4. What are the issues impacting on Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander communities at present, and proposed solutions?

5. Are there any issues in regard to participation in the faith community for people with disabilities?

6. How is diverse sexuality perceived within faith communities?

7. How can faith communities be inclusive of people of diverse sexualities?

8. Should religious organisations (including religious schools, hospitals and other service delivery agencies) exclude people from employment because of their sexuality or their sex and gender identity?

9. Do you consider environmental concern to be an influence shaping spiritualities and value systems?

10. a) Are there religious groups, practices and beliefs that you think are of concern to Australians?
    
    b) Should these be subjected to legislative control, and should they be eligible for government grants and assistance?

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