The Leaderboard: Gillian Triggs

The Leaderboard profiles the people behind the policies of the Asia-Pacific.Who is she?

Gillian Triggs is the president of the Australian Human Rights Commission (HRC), a government funded agency. She was appointed to the position by former prime minister Julia Gillard in July 2012. Prior to that appointment she was dean of the Faculty of Law at the University of Sydney and director of the British Institute of International and Comparative Law.

Professor Gillian Triggs at the 2013 Human Rights Awards in Sydney on December 10, 2013. Source: Australian Human Rights Commission’s flickr photostream, used under a creative commons license.

Professor Gillian Triggs at the 2013 Human Rights Awards in Sydney on December 10, 2013. Source: Australian Human Rights Commission’s flickr photostream, used under a creative commons license.

Why is she in the news?

Prime Minister Tony Abbott and Attorney-General George Brandis began attacking Triggs in the Australian Parliament following the February 11 release of a highly critical Human Rights Commission report on the detention of children in Australian immigration detention centers. The report found that Australia is in breach of international laws and recommended that an official inquiry be established to look into the issue. The government has been critical of Triggs’ role in the report, which Abbott called a “blatantly partisan, politicized exercise.” The prime minister told parliament on February 24 that his government has “lost confidence” in Triggs, who nonetheless has resisted calls to resign. Opposition lawmakers meanwhile have grilled Brandis over accusations that he offered Triggs a new position in exchange for her resignation.

What can we expect from her?

The debate about whether Triggs should stay or go is ongoing. The Human Rights Commission’s report has struck a nerve among a populace strongly supportive of the Abbott government’s strict asylum seeker policies. Whether the government accedes to the commission’s call for an official inquiry into child detention, and how public opinion responds, will bear watching.

The controversy around Triggs has also fed into the debate about Tony Abbott’s own position as prime minister. Abbott is still reeling from narrowly winning a no confidence vote brought against him by members of his own party. Not everyone in his coalition supports the attacks on Triggs, feeding rumors of another leadership challenge. Minister for Communications Malcolm Turnbull, often mentioned as a possible successor for Abbott, has defended Triggs as a “distinguished” figure and dismissed the debate, saying the focus should be on the children in detention.

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