Deadline looming to make your submission on proposed Truth and Justice Commission
The Bill is before a Senate Inquiry and you can make your voice heard until 20 September
August 28, 2024
Please note the deadline has been extended and submissions now close 20 September.
The deadline is looming for submissions to a current parliamentary inquiry into a Bill proposing a new federal truth and justice commission.
The Truth and Justice Commission Bill 2024 aims to set up a body that will make recommendations to Parliament and inquire into historic and ongoing injustices against First Peoples in Australia and their impact.
The Bill was introduced by Greens Senator Dorinda Cox in July this year, and was referred to the Joint Standing Committee on Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Affairs for inquiry.
Since the defeated referendum on a Voice to Parliament last October, Senator Cox said a truth and justice commission had now become critical for national healing.
“These important processes of the truth and justice commission will allow us to formally record, teach and reinforce that we have strong and proud Indigenous peoples who were the first chapter of our nation’s story,” she said.
The Uniting Church Assembly, with the Uniting Aboriginal and Islander Christian Congress, has made its own submission in support of a Commission. This position is consistent with its commitment to the full implementation of the Uluru Statement from the Heart. You can read the submission below.
Truth was one of the three key pillars of reform called for in the Statement, urging processes and structures to address the full extent of injustices experienced by Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples and enable a shared understanding of Australian history and its ongoing impact.
The deadline has been extended and submissions now close 20 September. If you'd like to make a submission but you're not sure where to start, ANTAR has a great guide and a template you can use.
If you would like to speak to someone at the Assembly about your submission, please contact comms@nat.uca.org.au
Subscribe to our newsletter
If you want to get the latest news from the Uniting Church in Australia then subscribe to our weekly newsletter delivered to your inbox.
Read more Assembly news
16 Days of Activism begins
“Digital violence is real violence”: 16 Days of Activism begins Alongside the President Rev Charissa Suli, voices from Australia, New Zealand and the Pacific share this message for the 16 Days of Activism against Gender-based Violence Alongside Uniting Church President Rev Charissa Suli, voices from Australia, New Zealand and the Pacific have united to…
Reminder: deadline for Redress applications
Advice on the deadline for applications to the National Redress Scheme UCA Redress and the Uniting Church Assembly wish to remind the Uniting Church and wider community of the deadline for applications to the National Redress Scheme: 30 June 2027. The National Redress Scheme commenced on 1 July 2018 in response to the Royal…
2025 Constitution and Regulations
2025 Uniting Church Constitution and Regulations out now The 2025 edition of the complete Uniting Church Constitution and Regulations is now available to download and purchase. Typically updated and re-printed each triennium, the resource includes the legal Constitution of the Uniting Church in Australia, the Regulations, Covenanting Statement, Basis of Union (1971 and 1992),…
UCA-Lutheran Dialogue meets in Melbourne
The Uniting Church-Lutheran Dialogue meets in Melbourne Image: The ordination of Maria Rudolph in April this year, one of the first ordinations of women as pastors conducted by the Lutheran Church in Australia. The recent recognition by the LCA that both women and men may be ordained has given renewed energy to the Dialogue’s…
Time to ban nuclear weapons forever
Teardrops on the marble: time to ban nuclear weapons forever On 3 and 4 November 2025, the Uniting Church joined with ICAN Australia and the Public Health Association of Australia for two days of advocacy meetings with Federal MPs against the backdrop of a rising global nuclear threat On 3 & 4 November 2025,…
This is my Uniting Church: Willoughby and Northbridge
This is my Uniting Church Willoughby and Northbridge Uniting Church ‘This is my Uniting Church’ is a series that delves into the stories and faces of our local congregations and communities of faith: the beating heart of the Uniting Church! In this edition, we shine the spotlight on Willoughby and Northbridge Uniting…
Resources for Advent 2025
Resources for Advent 2025It’s hard to believe that the beginning of Advent is just two and a half weeks away! On Sunday 30 November we will turn from Ordinary Time to this precious season of preparation and anticipation which readies us for the good news of Jesus’ arrival into our world. There are always endless…
An update from the Governance, Resourcing and Administration Commission
An update from the National Commission for Governance, Resourcing and Administration In this new video, Chair of the Commission for Governance, Resourcing and Administration Rev David Fotheringham gives an update on the work of the Commission which is now underway. Drawing on decades of ministry across rural, suburban and synod settings, David speaks about…