Go for a Bill of Rights at your peril!

But, when did you last feel the need for a Bill of Rights? If your answer is, “Never”, you are like the vast majority of Australians. The chances are that you didn’t know that Australia was the only developed country without such a Bill, and couldn’t have cared less. After all, who needs a Bill of Rights in a country like Australia? The answer is, of course, nobody. Australia does not need a Bill of Rights.

So, who started all this nonsense? The usual suspects of course: that relatively small minority of people inhabiting the left who think that they know what is best for us. But, in this case, it is not “us” – your average Australian - they are trying to think for. They know that we have no need for a Bill of Rights, so whom are they presuming to act for in their slavering for a Bill of Rights?

For the answer, see Judy Cannon (OLO 5/4/06). ‘The Bill draft refers to “All people in Australia” deliberately to include citizens, asylum seekers, people on a working holiday and tourists. It requires Australia to “better conform” with its international obligations, and in particular, in areas where the new anti-terrorism legislation violates those obligations.’

Australian citizens get a mention but, as it is extremely unlikely that the ordinary, law abiding Australian citizen will ever need this “help”, it is the illegal entrants, visa over stayers and wayward tourists who the Bill is really intended for. And don’t forget those poor terror suspects who, it is proudly claimed, would not be subject to the current laws had we had a Bill of Rights.

The Chair or the U.S Civil Rights Commission, Mary Berry said, “Civil Rights Laws were not passed to protect the rights of white men and do not apply to them.” (‘The Death of the West’, Patrick J. Buchanan).

Substitute Bill of Rights and Australian majority, and there you have what maniacal minority groups want for us.

A bill of rights is purely a left wing mechanism to achieve authoritarian control in order to engineer a society which reflects their feeble minds.

A society so engineered would be defenceless against external threats. Most left-leaning voters probably do not realise this.

The leaders of the left do, however. Hence the left's continual support for communism, islamic fundamentalism and unilateral disarmament.

Hello fellow human beings.

As human beings, you are entitled to human rights. These human rights are yours whether you come from Australia, or New Zealand, Pakistan or Greenland. It doesn't matter where you come from. You have human rights.

Australia signed the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights many years ago. It is well past time for the Government to deliver. As humans, we deserve the chance to participate in a referendum to advance human rights through constitutional reform.

James Allan (with respect) and George Williams are not representing the two sides of this critical debate. Professor Allan does not want a Bill of Rights. And Williams only wants a statutory version which leaves human rights in the hands of the majoritarian branch of government - the branch that is least well-equipped to make independent and balanced decisions on human rights questions.

The only way to ensure that human rights are protected is to have a constitutionally-enforced, judicially-enforceable Bill of Rights reflecting the International Covenant to the letter.

What are you all afraid of? Human rights will not affect your capacity to meet your mortgage repayments. It will not affect the capacity of the nation to preserve public order, and, for that reason, lock up terrorists. Read the Covenant carefully before you dismiss the capacity it provides for governments to develop flexible and nuanced approaches to the major civil liberties questions that have arisen in the past five years.

A knee-jerk criticism of the notion of an Australian Bill of Rights does little credit to its promoters.

Will a Bill of Rights protect us from any more of the insanity of the left?
I would like to see that.

Hilarious. It takes an ignorant nation indeed to accept the argument that politicians will honour our rights better than judges.

Sure, it's okay at the moment, when "rights" means "rights for me and my mates, and sod-all for anyone else", but will there be as much faith in pollies next time Labor or the Greens have the run of parliament?

"Bill of Rights?" A litigation lawyers paradise,just like the GST was an accountant's paradise.

Perhaps our society needs to deconstruct so future populations will have a new challenge,but will we find our way back to this enlightened post WW2 nervana?We are all too pre-occupied with our immediate self gratification.

Oh what a perverted web we weave,when self interest becomes our master and creed!