Last updated February 2024

People with disability have the same rights as everyone else including the right to enforce their rights through legal and other remedies. Some of these rights are protected under international human rights law while others are also protected in state and Commonwealth legislation.

Protection of human rights in Queensland

Not all the rights mentioned in international human rights law are enforceable in Queensland. However, the right to be free from discrimination, because of a person’s disability, is protected by both state and Commonwealth legislation.

The relevant legislation in Queensland are the Anti-Discrimination Act 1991 (Qld) (Anti-Discrimination Act) and the Human Rights Act 2019 (Qld) (Human Rights Act). The relevant Commonwealth legislation is the Disability Discrimination Act 1992 (Cth) (Disability Discrimination Act).

The Disability Discrimination Act prohibits discrimination because of a person’s disability in employment and in a variety of other circumstances, including education. For the purposes of the Disability Discrimination Act, s 4(1) defines ‘disability’ to include the ‘… total or partial loss of the person’s bodily or mental functions’. This may include intellectual disability. Disability discrimination occurs where a person or entity (the discriminator) treats, or proposes to treat, a person with disability less favourably than a person without disability, because of the person’s disability. Similar protections are contained within the Anti-Discrimination Act. Protections from disability discrimination are discussed further below.

The Human Rights Act protects 23 human rights, including the right to recognition and equality before the law. The Human Rights Act protects the rights of all people in Queensland, including people with disability. The Human Rights Act requires all Queensland public entities, such as Queensland government departments, as well as registered National Disability Insurance Scheme service providers, to act and make decisions in a way that is compatible with those 23 protected human rights. The Act also requires public entities to give proper consideration to relevant protected rights when making decisions.

International human rights law

Australia is a party to seven core human rights treaties. People with disabilities are entitled to all the rights set out in each of these treaties. However, the United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (CRPD) provides a statement of rights that are specific to people with disability reflecting the social model of disability.

The social model of disability recognises that ‘disability’ does not reside in the individual as the result of some impairment, but is the result of societal and environmental barriers.

Generally, before international conventions can apply in Australia, they need to be incorporated into our legislation. While Australia ratified the CRPD on 17 July 2008 (or accepted the treaty’s legal obligations under international law), it is not legally enforceable in Australia. However, it can be referred to as a way to try to ensure that people with disability have access to the same rights and opportunities as everybody else.

The CRPD contains eight guiding principles. These are:

  • respect for inherent dignity and individual autonomy including the freedom to make one’s own choices
  • non-discrimination (this principle requires that all people be treated equally and not be discriminated against based on characteristics such as disability, race, gender, religion)
  • full and effective participation and inclusion in society
  • respect for difference and acceptance of persons with disability as part of human diversity and humanity
  • equality of opportunity
  • accessibility
  • equality between men and women
  • respect for evolving capacities of children with disability, and respect for the right of children with disability to preserve their identities.

International human rights complaints mechanism and the Optional Protocol to the CRPD

Australians can make complaints to the United Nations Committee on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (the Committee) about potential violations of their rights under the CRPD. In order for a complaint to be admissible to the Committee, the complainant, or their representative, must show that they have exhausted all legal options in Australia and that they have been personally impacted by the violation.