HISTORIC CHANGE / Offence of public drunkenness to be abolished

The Andrews Government in Victoria has announced it will abolish the offence of public drunkenness and replace it with an Aboriginal-led, public health response. The family of Tanya Day described the news as "tinged with grief and sadness". They said, "In the end it took the death of our mother for the Government to repeal laws that should have been abolished 30 years ago when the recommendations of the Royal Commission into Aboriginal Deaths in custody were released."

JUSTICE FOR TANYA DAY / Tanya Day death in police custody inquest begins

The coronial inquest into the death in police custody of Yorta Yorta woman Tanya Day commenced this week. The inquest must answer how Tanya Day went from safely sleeping on a train to dying in police custody, and who should be held responsible for her tragic death.

SAVE MEDEVAC / Medevac laws must not be repealed

On Monday, our Executive Director Hugh de Kretser was at Parliament House, Canberra to give evidence to a Senate Committee examining the Medevac laws. He said, "The Medevac Laws are working. Removing a fair, transparent and doctor-led process for accessing essential, and in many cases, life-saving medical care is cruel and unnecessary."

DECRIMINALISE ABORTION / Delay to abortion bill an insult to NSW women

The decision by the Berejiklian Government to delay voting on the Reproductive Health Care Reform Bill in the Legislative Council displays a lack of respect for NSW women. Legal Director Edwina MacDonald said, "The values of 1900 should not dictate a person’s right to access the healthcare they need in 2019. It’s time the NSW Parliament got on with it​."

DEFEND PRESS FREEDOM / Whistleblower protections hang in the balance

Lawyer Alice Drury writes in The Age that the Australian Government must urgently reform laws and police powers that have been sold to the public as necessary for fighting terrorism and serious crimes, but are so broad they allow surveillance over whistleblowers, journalists ⁠— and, for that matter, all of us.