The following open letter was sent to editors of a number of Australian media publications regarding recent political attacks on the President of the Australian Human Rights Commission, Professor Gillian Triggs. Its signatories included a number of Castan Centre academics. If you would like to add your name in support of this letter, please do so in the comments section below. 

Dear Editor

Independent public office holders are an important part of modern democratic societies.  Their task is to ensure accountability for abuses of power by government.  Their capacity to perform this role depends on their independence and ability to act impartially. The Australian Human Rights Commission is one such institution.

The Commonwealth law under which the Commission operates empowers it to ‘inquire into any act or practice that may be inconsistent with or contrary to any human right’.

The Commission has done exactly this in its report, titled