Closing the
Gap on
InDigenous
Birth Registration
A project of the Castan Centre for Human Rights Law
in conjunction with Monash Indigenous Centre, Monash University
& the Centre for Health & Society, University of Melbourne
The Project - the aims
The primary aims of the project are to:
1: quantify the number of unregistered Indigenous births over the period from 2000-2010 in four jurisdictions, namely Victoria, Queensland, Western Australia and the Northern Territory.
2: identify the historical and current obstacles to Indigenous people registering the births of their children;
3: measure the number of Indigenous Australians who have experienced, or are currently experiencing, problems accessing a birth certificate in the four states and territories;
4: assess the nature (qualitative) and extent (quantitative) of the barriers to Indigenous peoples’ access to birth registration and a birth certificate
5: determine the direct and indirect causes of these barriers including, cultural, social, economic, legal and bureaucratic impediments
6: analyse the precise normative content of international and domestic human rights laws regarding birth registration, and assess the extent of compliance with such laws by Australian governments;
7: work with relevant statutory bodies and key stakeholders, including Indigenous organisations, to evaluate their work and the role they can play in overcoming the birth registration/birth certificate problems;
