Recommendations to Australia (26.01.2026)

51st SESSION OF THE UPR WORKING GROUP 
Statement Norway

on the on the human rights situation in Australia

delivered by Mr Tormod C. ENDRESEN, Ambassador and Permanent Representative to the UN and other International Organizations.


 

                                                                                    Check against delivery

26 January 2026

 

Thank you Mr. President,

Norway appreciates Australia’s strong commitment to human rights, our cooperation and the positive steps taken in implementing previous recommendations. Like for all of us, some human rights challenges remain.


Norway recommends that Australia:

  1. Introduce a federal Human Rights Act to ensure that all Australians’ human rights are fully protected;

  2. Ensure that asylum seekers’ claims are processed in accordance with the Convention Relating to the Status of Refugees and its 1967 Protocol;

  3. Raise the minimum age of criminal responsibility to at least 14 years, and enact national minimum standards for the treatment of children and young people in detention;

  4. Review mandatory sentencing laws with a view to abolishing them while expanding the use of non-custodial measures where appropriate.

  5. Develop a national framework to implement the UN Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples and ensure their access to legal assistance.

I Thank you,
and I wish Australia a happy National Day.