Appointment of the President of the Australian Human Rights Commission

The Hon Mark Dreyfus KC MP
Media Release

I am pleased to announce the appointment of Mr Hugh de Kretser as the next President of the Australian Human Rights Commission (AHRC).

The AHRC promotes and protects human rights in Australia and plays a critical role in upholding the rights of all Australians to be treated with dignity and live their lives free from discrimination.

The President leads the work of the AHRC and is responsible for managing the administrative affairs of the AHRC.

Mr de Kretser’s five-year appointment will commence on 30 July 2024, following the conclusion of Emeritus Professor Rosalind Croucher AM’s appointment on 29 July 2024.

Mr de Kretser is currently the Chief Executive Officer of the Yoorrook Justice Commission. Prior to this, he was Executive Director at the Human Rights Law Centre and Executive Officer at the Federation of Community Legal Centres (Victoria) Inc. He has served as a Commissioner of the Victorian Law Reform Commission and a Director of the Sentencing Advisory Council. Mr de Kretser has occupied board positions for Flourish Australia, the International Network of Civil Liberties Organizations, National Association of Community Legal Centres, and the Human Rights Law Centre.

I congratulate Mr de Kretser on his appointment and thank him for taking on this important role.

I also thank Professor Croucher for her service as President since 2017. In particular, I acknowledge her advocacy to support the Commission retaining its accreditation as Australia’s A-status National Human Rights Institution in 2023. Professor Croucher has made a valuable contribution to the human rights discourse in Australia through the Free and Equal: An Australian conversation on human rights project which will culminate at the Commission’s Free and Equal Human Rights Conference in June as part of the Vivid Sydney Festival.

For information about the Australian Human Rights Commission, including the work of the President, visit Our Work | Australian Human Rights Commission .