Lifetime of dedication delivers Australian Human Rights Medal to Thérèse Rein
A lifetime of dedication to helping people reach their full potential has delivered the prestigious Human Rights Medal for 2010 to Thérèse Rein.
Already well known for her high profile advocacy and patronage of major social causes in Australia, Ms Rein was announced today as the winner of Australia's major human rights accolade at the Australian Human Rights Commission's annual Human Rights Medals and Awards ceremony in Sydney.
Commission President Catherine Branson QC, said the judges selected Ms Rein for her long-term dedication to human rights, especially the rights of people with disability.
"Thérèse Rein has demonstrated throughout her career, a strong and enduring commitment to ensuring that people, especially those who experience disability and disadvantage, are given the opportunity to realise their full potential," Ms Branson said.
"In her capacity as wife of the former Prime Minister, she was deeply and genuinely committed to a wide range of issues including homelessness, Indigenous literacy, child health and disability.
"In particular, her support and commitment to improving the design of housing for all Australians, including people with disability stand out. Her role in supporting and encouraging the National Dialogue on Universal Housing Design culminated in the coming together of Australia's leading residential and building industry players to pursue a universal housing design standard by 2020."
Thérèse Rein's passion and commitment to eliminating discrimination and helping people reach their potential was inspired by the experiences of her father who lost the use of his legs after a flying accident in World War Two.
Ms Rein established Work Directions Australia in 1989 to assist people with disability, illness or injury to return to meaningful employment. The organisation soon expanded into providing individually-tailored services and support to assist unemployed people to get back to work.
In 2002, it became Ingeus and partnered with governments in United Kingdom, France, Germany, Sweden, South Korea and Switzerland providing back-to-work, health and well-being services to the long-term unemployed, people with disability, people with health conditions, young people, mature age workers, migrants and refugees.
"She put a strong human rights framework around the work she undertook, embracing the privilege of the role of wife of the Prime Minister and using it to highlight a range of important social causes," Ms Branson said.
Ms Rein is currently in London on business but in a video address to the audience, she said the medal belonged to those in the community who have a disability, those people who love them, and those people they love.
"It's tough having a disability. It makes life more complicated. It makes life more challenging - not just for the person with a disability but for their families and those who care for them," she said.
"This medal belongs to those people who, because of their disability, have faced prejudice and assumptions from other people about what they can and cannot do."
http://www.hreoc.gov.au/about/media/media_releases/2010/123_10.html
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