Building peace requires more than simply bringing an end to armed conflict; it also requires strengthening the rule of law. UNODC and the Department for Peacekeeping Operations have partnered to publish a revised edition of the United Nations Criminal Justice Standards for United Nations Police (31). The handbook summarizes the international human rights and criminal...

This paper examines the causes of wrongful imprisonment, the nature of losses and the applicability of international approaches and conventions. Definitions of wrongful conviction vary internationally, as do the circumstances and amount of compensation. Australian states and territories can make discretionary ex gratia payments, although determination of compensation amounts is unclear. Compensation levels for wrongful...

Media commentators, satirists, artists and activists should be safe from controversial sedition laws—even if their ideas are unpopular and confronting—as long as they don’t urge the use of violence, under changes to federal law proposed by the Australian Law Reform Commission (ALRC).

This paper reviews law and order legislation that was passed in the States and Territories in the period from 1 January 2003 to 31 July 2006.

Between 1984 and 2004 the proportion of remanded prisoners rose from 12 to 20 percent of the total prisoner population, and the rate of prisoners remanded into custody tripled. In an attempt to identify the factors associated with high and low remand rates the researchers undertook a detailed study of Victoria (which has comparatively low...