Human Rights Commission chief Gillian Triggs refuses to back down, criticises foreign fighter, data retention laws that 'expand ministerial powers'

Extract from ABC News

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Updated 17 minutes ago

Photo: Gillian Triggs has told a forum a "growing threat to democracy" was the diminishing of human rights and expansion of "discretionary, often non-compellable ministerial powers". (AAP: Alan Porritt)

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The head of Australia's Human Rights Commission, Professor Gillian Triggs, has shown defiance in the face of the latest attack on her by the Federal Government, standing by her criticisms of new laws that she says limit international diplomacy and harm democracy and liberties.

Yesterday, Immigration Minister Peter Dutton accused Professor Triggs of linking the execution of the Bali Nine drug smugglers with Australia's border protection policies, saying comments she made earlier this week were "foolish" and demanding an apology.
But, before an audience of human rights lawyers in Melbourne last night, Professor Triggs did not back away from her comments.
Instead she set her sights on laws which she says go too far, harming democracy and liberties.
Professor Triggs told the forum a "growing threat to democracy" was the diminishing of human rights and expansion of "discretionary, often non-compellable ministerial powers".
"Respective governments have been remarkably successful in persuading parliaments to pass laws that are contrary, even explicitly contrary, to common law rights and to the international human rights regime to which Australia is a party," she said.
She said counterterrorism laws were passed with unseemly haste and plans to strip citizenship from foreign fighters were an example of executive power which had gone too far.
"This proposal strikes at the heart of Australia as a largely migrant country," she said.
"Not only may this idea violate Australia's international obligation not to render a person stateless, but also the detention may be at the discretion of a minister without recourse to judicial processes."
Professor Triggs said "freedom of movement" was also threatened by the same act.
The human rights chief also criticised data retention laws, a recent bill giving detention centre guards powers of enforcement and the indefinite detention of some asylum seekers.
The speech was a far cry from what Mr Dutton had been demanding only hours earlier.
"Professor Triggs needs to front the cameras today to retract this outrageous slur," he told a press conference.
Earlier in the week Professor Triggs said: "Have we thought about the consequences of pushing people back to our neighbours Indonesia? Is it any wonder that Indonesia will not engage with us on other issues we care about like the death penalty?"
Professor Triggs has only addressed the dispute in writing so far, with a statement saying her remarks were misreported and stressing that she did not refer to the executed Australians Andrew Chan and Myuran Sukumaran.
She has support from the president of the Court of Appeal of Victoria, Justice Chris Maxwell, who labels the attack on Professor Triggs as "despicable".

"Tonight we have been privileged to have amongst us, one of our foremost warriors, as we have been pleased to see Gillian, you might be bloodied, but you are certainly unbowed," he said.