The Australian Human Rights Commission’s much-anticipated report on the COVID-19 disaster has finally arrived — five years after the fact — and it’s a real eye-opener. Apparently, the commission’s big takeaway is that our governments trampled on human rights during the pandemic. Big surprise.
The report, titled Collateral Damage, lays out the fallout from the government’s lockdowns, vaccine mandates, border closures and quarantine measures. It states the obvious — Disadvantaged Aussies, not the inner-city elite, bore the brunt of these policies — all left to suffer as governments made decisions with no regard for basic freedoms.
Meanwhile, the ‘laptop class’ sipped lattes in their home offices, blissfully unaware of how lockdowns were crushing the livelihoods of hardworking Aussies who couldn’t just ride out the pandemic from the comfort of their loungerooms.
But here’s the kicker: this report comes out in 2025, long after the worst of the damage has been done. Where was the Human Rights Commission when we were crying out for help in 2020?
They were nowhere to be seen when it was crystal clear what was happening. While we were forced to crowdsource legal funds to defend our rights, the so-called watchdogs were asleep at the wheel.
Now, the commission wants us to believe they’ve had a change of heart, with seven recommendations on human rights protections. Sure, it’s a little too late, but at least they’re finally saying what was obvious from the start: the way we responded to the pandemic should never happen again.
If anything, this report just highlights how out of touch these bureaucrats were when we needed them most. They picked a side only after the war was over — and even then, it’s a half-hearted attempt to save face.
Hellbound and Down 