On June 25, 2024, the Australian Senate referred an inquiry into The wrongful detention of Australian citizens overseas to the Foreign Affairs, Defence and Trade Reference Committee for inquiry and report by November 28, 2024.

The Committee held public hearings on September 26, October 18, and October 28, 2024, in Canberra.

HRAG’s Sarah Teich was invited to provide evidence as part of the October 18 session.

The hostage-taking and wrongful detention of civilians, including by authoritarian regimes and terrorist groups, is a global problem that should involve a global solution. The importance of global response is understood by Australia already, as it joined, in February 2021, the Canada-led multilateral Declaration Against Arbitrary Detention in State-to-State Relations.

In sum, recommendations to the committee were to implement solutions to the same problems that plague Canada in this area, by broadening available tools, including the use of targeted sanctions, and ensuring consistent and reliable support for family members of Australians wrongfully detained abroad.