The Australian Law Reform Commission Report on the Family Law System: Implications for Domestic Violence

Posted by Molly on 12 April, 2019

The Australian Law Reform Commission Report on the Family Law System: Implications for Domestic Violence

The Australian Law Reform Commission (ALRC) Review of the Family Law System is the first comprehensive review of Australia’s family law system since its commencement more than 40 years ago.The ALRC Report on the Review of the Family Law System findings and recommendations have serious implications for domestic violence, and women and children will be deeply affected by how they are implemented. Please join us for an interactive discussion and networking luncheon to consider the report and recommendations for domestic violence cases as part of Domestic Violence Awareness Month.

This is a partnership event between Brisbane Domestic Violence Service and QUT Law. Read more

Professor John Byrne Joins the School of Justice as an Adjunct Professor

Posted by Kerry on 11 April, 2019

QUT School of Justice is delighted to welcome Adjunct Professor John Byrne LFPIA LFRAIA as part of our commitment to integrative approaches to crime prevention and informed legal decision-making.

With a distinguished career in public and private sectors that includes authoring the Queensland Government’s guidelines on Crime Prevention Through Environmental Design (CPTED), adopted by state and local government agencies, John utilises his extensive expertise in urban design, city development and planning matters as an advisor to governments, developers and the community.

Having directed the design and negotiation of multiple Award-winning developments, John is particularly skilled at applying best practice principles in effective design and planning to deliver on the human-centred purposes of planning legislation.

In a domain built on clear principles that still leaves much room for interpretation, John offers clarity about national and international best practice and how this can be delivered in a constructive, commercial and community-oriented way.

Most recently, John has extended his expertise and advice to include insights from neuroscience about the core needs of humans and how this will shape societal expectations and obligations of governments, developers and other decision-makers involved in the design and management of cities and public spaces.

John has long held an Adjunct Professorship in QUT’s Architecture and Urban Design programs and the role now in the two Faculties reflects his passion for combining and balancing the priorities of different city-making disciplines in integrated urban outcomes.

Report of Parliamentary Joint Committee on Law Enforcement (PJCLE) Inquiry into the Impact of New and Emerging Information and Communication Technology

Posted by Brigid on 8 April, 2019

Dr Monique Mann

Crime Justice and Social Democracy Research Centre member Dr Monique Mann, along with colleagues from Deakin University (Dr Ian Warren and Dr Adam Molnar) and the Chinese University of Hong Kong (Dr Angela Daly) have been extensively cited in the final report of the Commonwealth Parliamentary Joint Committee on Law Enforcement (PJCLE) Inquiry into the Impact of New and Emerging Information and Communication Technology.

Their joint programme of research in surveillance and cybercrime (including transnational online policing, darkweb policing, Mutual Legal Assistance Treaties, big data policing, encryption policy, biometrics, and 3D printed firearms) was cited twenty-nine times in the report.

Their research is highly critical of the human rights implications of new technologies in policing, and it clearly shaped the report, directly influencing the recommendations handed down by the PCJLE, which can be found here: https://parlinfo.aph.gov.au/parlInfo/download/publications/tabledpapers/02593c55-f6db-4432-85c7-e0ba89b0e21b/upload_pdf/PJCLE_Impact%20of%20emerging%20info%20and%20comms%20tech_April%202019.pdf;fileType=ap plication%2Fpdf#search=%22publications/tabledpapers

Drs Mann and Molnar appeared before the committee to give oral evidence in March 2018, and their opening statement to the Parliamentary Joint Committee can be found here: https://privacy.org.au/2018/03/30/statement-to-the-parliamentary-joint-committee-on-law-enforcement/

Their original full submission provided to the Inquiry, representing all digital rights civil society organisations in Australia, can be found here: https://eprints.qut.edu.au/116090/

Monika Zalnieriute – Emerging Australian Scholar – Crime, Justice and Social Democracy 5th Biennial International Conference

Posted by Brigid on 5 April, 2019

We welcome Dr Monika Zalnieriute as an invited Emerging Australian Scholar in the Technology and Justice stream at our upcoming Crime, Justice and Social Democracy International Conference to be held on the Gold Coast from 15-17 July 2019.

Monika is a Research Fellow at the Allens Hub for Technology, Law and Innovation at the UNSW Faculty of Law in Sydney, Australia. Her research most often explores the interplay between law, politics and technology; and focuses on social justice in the digital age. Monika is also interested in advancing feminist movement and theory, and believes that research only matters if it has a strong impact well beyond academia. Her work has been published in Modern Law Review (2018, 2019), Research Handbook on Human Rights and Digital Technology (2019) and Queering International Law (2017). Monika has consulted the World Health Organization, Council of Europe, and international NGOs, such as Privacy International and Article 19.

For more information about the conference including speakers, registration and abstract submission, see here.

Speakers: Crime, Justice and Social Democracy 5th Biennial International Conference

Posted by Brigid on 5 April, 2019

We have a great line-up of Keynote, International Visitors and Emerging Australian Scholars at our Crime, Justice and Social Democracy 5th Biennial International Conference from 15-17 July 2019 at the Gold Coast, Australia.

This conference creates a globally connected space to enhance rich and significant
dialogue between scholars and practitioners from both the Global North and
the Global South. Please join us for what is shaping up to be a diverse and engaging
event.

Keynote:

Meda Chesney-Lind, President, American Society of Criminology, University of Hawaii

Emerging Australian Scholars:

Max Travers, UTAS, Southern Criminology stream
Jarrett Blaustein, Monash, Southern Criminology stream
Lennon Chang, Monash, Southern Criminology stream
Kate Gleeson, Macquarie Law School, Gender, Sexuality and Violence stream
Nicola Henry, RMIT, Gender, Sexuality and Violence stream
Max Halupka, University of Canberra, Governance, Activism and Social Change stream
Zahra Stardust, Scarlet Alliance, Governance, Activism and Social Change stream
Emma Russell, Latrobe, Policing stream
Monika Zalnieriute, UNSW, Technology and Justice stream

International Visitors:

Diego Zysman, Universidad de Buenos Aires, Argentina
Richard Sparks, University of Edinburgh
Ross Coomber, University of Liverpool
John Pratt, Victoria University of Wellington
Miyazawa Setsuo, President, Asian Criminological Society, Senior Visiting Professor of
Law at UC Hastings College of the Law and Professor Emeritus at Kobe University.
Tom Holt, Michigan State University

To find out more, to register or to submit an abstract see here.

Reflections on Women, Men, Sexual Violence, and #MeToo

Posted by Brigid on 2 April, 2019

Qld Police Commissioner Ian Stewart, Centre Director Prof. Melissa Bull, Prof. James Messerschmidt, Belinda Cox, Assoc. Prof. Michael Flood

The #MeToo movement has drawn national and global attention to the problems of sexual harassment and abuse. A recent, popular public event at the Queensland University of Technology explored the #MeToo campaign, how women and men have responded to it, and the roles that men can play in building a community free of sexual violence and abuse.

The public event, titled “Reflections on Women, Men, Sexual Violence, and #MeToo”, examined the promise and pitfalls of current efforts to end sexual violence, and the role of men in sexual violence prevention. The buzz of conversation during and after the event was a clear sign that it had prompted thought and reflection.

Two leading international experts presented to the 90 or so researchers, professionals, and community members in attendance. James W. Messerschmidt is a Distinguished University Professor of Sociology at the University of Southern Maine, USA, author of the recent book Hegemonic Masculinity, and an Adjunct Professor at QUT’s School of Justice, and the event was timed to take advantage of his visit to QUT. Dr Michael Flood is an Associate Professor at QUT and author of Engaging Men and Boys in Violence Prevention. The event was chaired by Belinda Cox, a longstanding domestic violence advocate.

Attendees at the event included Police Commissioner Ian Stewart, Deputy Commissioner Michael Wassing of the Queensland Fire and Emergency Services, Professor Belinda Carpenter, Assistance Dean (Research) in the QUT Faculty of Law, and a host of others.

There was lively discussion after Messerschmidt’s and Flood’s presentations. Some participants took up Messerschmidt’s assessment of the strengths and weaknesses of the #MeToo campaign. They asked: does #MeToo include the experiences of women beyond the white, wealthy Hollywood celebrities on whom the media has focused? Will the campaign lead to real social change? Other participants asked about the challenges of engaging men in positive change. What role can fathers play in encouraging non-violent futures for their sons and daughters? How do we make sure that women’s voices continue to be heard? And, above all, how can we encourage well-meaning men to take part in working for change?

Emerita Professor Raewyn Connell

Posted by Brigid on 29 March, 2019

We were so thrilled to welcome Emerita Professor Raewyn Connell to QUT CJSDRC this week to present at two events – her first was an informative and inspiring internal workshop about Writing for Research: Theory and Practice, aimed at our post-grad and ECR students.

Her second event was a public seminar titled Good Universities or Ghastly Futures: How can we find a democratic path for higher education and research?. Central to this seminar, attended by 150+ people across a number of universities in Brisbane, was access to knowledge and participation in Australian public life, and the significance of this in the university context. Raewyn spoke of pathways moving toward a more democractic system, and gave innovative examples of extending access to knowledge and higher education.

We were very fortunate to have such an esteemed guest sharing her abundant knowledge with us all.

Book: The Struggle over Human Rights: The Non-Aligned Movement, Jimmy Carter and Neoliberalism

Posted by Brigid on 29 March, 2019

Sessional academic Courtney Hercus has recently had a book published based on her PhD research. The Struggle over Human Rights: The Non-Aligned Movement, Jimmy Carter, and Neoliberalism traces the origins of the relationship between neoliberalism and the modern doctrine of human rights to the 1970s. It uses empirical evidence to prove that the Carter administration transformed the U.S., and the traditional Western liberal approach to human rights, in response, in part, to the actions of the Non-Aligned Movement. The New International Economic Order (NIEO), a high-point in Non-Aligned solidarity, placed pressures on the power relations of the international system and sought to advance the social and economic rights of the Third World. Carter’s transformation promoted civil and political rights as the only acceptable “human” rights and relegated economic rights to a “basic needs” approach, undercutting welfare state principles in the U.S. and in the newly emergent independent states in Africa, Asia, and the Pacific. This doctrine, as the book highlights through extensive archival research, sharpened the definition of international human rights to serve the maintenance of the U.S.-led world order. Carter’s diplomatic use of human rights obfuscated exploitative economic structures and paved the way for an aggressive neoliberal transformation through World Bank and IMF Structural Adjustment Programs under Reagan. Historical studies of human rights have ignored these connections, making this book a unique contribution to the scholarship of human rights.

Further information about the book can be found here: https://rowman.com/ISBN/9781498574020/The-Struggle-over-Human-Rights-The-Non-Aligned-Movement-Jimmy-Carter-and-Neoliberalism