Labor Ignored Repeated Pleas to Adopt 63‑Point Anti‑Racism Plan, Documents Show

**TL;DR** The federal Labor government has not adopted a 63-point anti-racism framework, new documents show, despite repeated appeals from the race discrimination commissioner over a period of nearly 18 months.

Months ago, the Australian Human Rights Commission issued a comprehensive anti-racism framework to the federal government. This framework outlined a national strategy to tackle systemic racism, proposing significant policy and legislative changes. Recent disclosures to the Senate indicate no tangible progress has occurred on implementing this plan.

The race discrimination commissioner, Giridharan Sivaraman, contacted Attorney General Michelle Rowland five times and held two in-person meetings. In these communications, he urged the government to adopt the anti-racism framework. Attorney General Rowland responded four times, stating the recommendations remained under careful consideration.

The proposed anti-racism framework features 63 recommendations designed to combat racism across various sectors. Key proposals include forming a national anti-racism taskforce, enacting a standalone Human Rights Act, and imposing a positive duty to eliminate racism in employment, business, health, and housing. This positive duty would require organizations to proactively prevent discrimination, similar to existing duties concerning sexual harassment.

Greens deputy leader Mehreen Faruqi stated the government has repeatedly ignored the race discrimination commissioner’s pleas to act on racism. The government, in turn, has highlighted work by special envoys for Islamophobia and antisemitism, along with a forthcoming royal commission, as part of its efforts against racial hatred.

The protracted delay in responding to the framework has generated internal and external pressure. Some within the Labor party have expressed frustration, calling for the government to formally address the plan. External advocacy groups, including Islamic and Jewish community organizations, have also urged action on the framework, emphasizing the need for concrete steps to combat rising instances of racial hatred.

Observers will monitor the government's next steps, including any formal response to the anti-racism framework. The upcoming royal commission into antisemitism, expected to deliver findings in December, also presents a point of focus for how the broader issue of racism will be addressed at a national level.