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WAPolitics and LawQuick questions
Unit 4: Rights, Governance and International Law
Quick questions on Rights and Their Protection in Australia: WACE Year 12 Politics and Law
3short Q&A pairs drawn directly from our worked dot-point answer. For full context and worked exam questions, read the parent dot-point page.
What are constitutional rights?Show answer
The Constitution protects only a handful of express rights. These include the right to trial by jury for some indictable Commonwealth offences (section 80), freedom of religion (section 116), the acquisition of property on just terms (section 51(xxxi)), and freedom from discrimination based on the state in which a person lives (section 117). These rights are entrenched, meaning they can only be removed by a section 128 referendum, which makes them strong but very narrow.
What is common law protection?Show answer
The common law (judge-made law) protects rights through long-standing principles and the principle of legality, under which courts presume parliament does not intend to abolish fundamental rights unless it says so in clear and unambiguous words. Common law protects rights such as the presumption of innocence, the right to silence, and procedural fairness. However, common law rights can always be overridden by clear statute, because parliament is supreme.
What are international treaties?Show answer
Australia is a party to many human rights treaties, such as the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR). However, treaties do not become part of Australian domestic law automatically; they must be incorporated by legislation. Until that happens, a treaty does not create enforceable rights in Australian courts, though it can influence statutory interpretation and government policy.
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