State sovereignty and human rightsState sovereignty is the power to rule and make laws for that area. Australia is a sovereign state as only Australia can make laws for Australia. When international law is made, it is up to the federal government to decide if they want the law to become part of Australian law. No other country can force Australia to accept the international law. Learn more about this process with this fact sheet. Some argue that typically state sovereignty and human rights are fundamentally opposed; the rights of states are pitted against the rights of individuals. The bulk of human rights laws arise from international law and no country can be forced to follow these laws. Even if they have ratified them, there are limited avenues of redress if a country is found in breach of these laws as the state is sovereign. Some argue that state sovereignty provides more protection for human rights. State sovereignty provides opportunities for the state to provide protection for its citizens without external interference and there are many instances where this takes place. Since the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, many countries have formed Bills of Rights and have enacted legislation for human rights within domestic law. It is state sovereignty which provides the means for a state to do this. |
For the purposes of state sovereignty, Australia is deemed to be a nation state. |