E/CN.4/2002/24/Add.1 page 10 two Additional Protocols, the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights, the Convention against Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment, and the Convention on the Rights of the Child. However, because of the criticism levelled by the Committee on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination against Australian legislation on land ownership by Aboriginals, the Australian Government expressed its intention to suspend cooperation with the treaty monitoring bodies and to press for reform of those bodies whose objectivity in the consideration of its periodic reports it questions. Australia is not a party to the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women. 9. The Special Rapporteur’s visit took place in a special political context. The Liberal Party of Prime Minister John Howard came to power in 1996 on the basis of a programme under which the Aboriginal question would be given secondary importance and drastic measures in relation to immigration and asylum-seekers would be proposed. Support for the One Nation party, which is xenophobic - not to say racist, was on the wane, but several interlocutors stated that its xenophobic views on immigrants and its racist discourse with regard to Aboriginals had led to a certain hardening of the Liberal Party’s policy on immigration and the Aboriginals. This came about in particular through the review of the land ownership rights of Aboriginals, and the reduction of financial and human resources and the elimination of education, health and housing programmes addressed to them. Similarly, several programmes relating to the reception and integration of immigrants have been cut back. From the conversation the Special Rapporteur had with Ms. Mary Kalantzis, Dean of the Faculty of Education, Language and Community Services, Royal Melbourne Institute of Technology, and author of the book “A Place in the Sun. Recreating the Australian Way of Life”, it is apparent that there is a certain apprehension about the emergence of a “new white Australia policy”. But the Government says that it is determined to preserve Australia’s policy of multiculturalism, which remains one of the country’s assets. I. LEGISLATIVE AND ADMINISTRATIVE FRAMEWORK FOR ACTION TO COMBAT RACISM AND RACIAL DISCRIMINATION A. Legislative framework 10. The protection of the inhabitants of Australia against racism and racial discrimination is ensured by means of several federal laws and by laws adopted by individual states and territories. The most important laws in this respect are the Racial Discrimination Act 1975 and the Racial Hatred Act 1995, which constitutes an amendment to the former Act. 11. The Racial Discrimination Act 1975 was adopted pursuant to the International Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Racial Discrimination. Section 9 prohibits all forms of racial discrimination at the federal level and in the various states and territories: “It is unlawful for a person to do any act involving a distinction, exclusion, restriction or preference based on race, colour, descent or national or ethnic origin which has the purpose or effect of nullifying or impairing the recognition, enjoyment or exercise, on an equal footing, of any human right or fundamental freedom in the political, economic, social, cultural or any other field of public life.”