The Asian Australian Lawyers Association (AALA) welcomes the National Anti-Racism Framework initiated by Australia’s Race Discrimination Commissioner, Giridharan Sivaraman. This framework, crafted by the Australian Human Rights Commission with significant input from the government, is tailored to systematically eliminate racism across Australia, with focus on reforms within the legal and justice systems.
The framework, resulting from three years of extensive consultations with diverse community organizations and experts, advocates for 63 targeted recommendations across legal, educational, health, and employment sectors. These recommendations aim to create environments free from racism and are backed by a call for the Australian Government to establish a National Anti-Racism Taskforce to lead the implementation efforts.
The framework specifically addresses the pervasive racism that exists within the legal sector. It has been consistently reported that racially marginalized legal professionals, particularly those of Asian descent, face significant barriers, from discriminatory hiring practices to limited advancement opportunities and unequal treatment within legal practices and processes. To counter these issues, the framework recommends implementing robust anti-discrimination policies, regular auditing of racial equality practices, and mandatory anti-racism training for all legal professionals.
A central measure proposed is the implementation of a positive duty under the Racial Discrimination Act 1975, compelling legal firms to prevent racism and promote equity actively. This aligns with AALA’s objectives to bolster training at all levels of legal education, focusing on systemic racism's impacts on Asian Australians to foster a knowledgeable and culturally aware legal workforce.
The AALA advocates for greater diversity in legal leadership roles and supporting community legal services to better serve Asian Australians' needs.
AALA National Vice-President Belinda Wong commented, “Diversity in leadership is essential to building a profession that reflects and respects the multicultural fabric of our society. It is time for legal organisations to act decisively to remove systemic barriers to leadership for Asian Australians and other CALD communities.
The National Anti-Racism Framework represents a transformative and long-overdue step toward systematically eliminating discrimination on the basis of race within Australia’s legal system.
We strongly support the establishment of a National Anti-Racism Taskforce to drive the implementation of these reforms and ensure meaningful, measurable change across the legal profession”
The AALA calls on the legal community to actively participate in implementing the framework's recommendations, aiming to set a precedent in combating racism and fostering a more equitable society.
MEDIA CONTACT: Matt Floro president@aala.org.au
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