Dr Bill Jonas
Acting Race Discrimination Commissioner, Human Rights Commission

Dr Bill Jonas - Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Social Justice Commissioner and Acting Race Discrimination Commissioner Until his appointment as Social Justice Commissioner, Dr Bill Jonas was Director of the National Museum of Australia and from 1991-96 was Principal of the Australian Institute of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Studies in Canberra. Dr Jonas comes from an academic background. Before becoming Director of Aboriginal Education at Newcastle University in 1990, he was a lecturer in geography at the University of Newcastle and before that at the University of Papua New Guinea. In the mid-1980s Dr Jonas was a Royal Commissioner on the Royal Commission into British Nuclear Tests in Australia with the late Justice Jim McClelland. He has held positions on the Immigration Review Tribunal, the Australian Heritage Commission and the Joint Ministerial Taskforce on Aboriginal Heritage and Culture in NSW. Dr Jonas holds a Bachelor of Arts degree from the University of NSW, a Master of Arts degree from the University of Newcastle and a PhD from the University of Papua New Guinea. In addition to his impressive professional qualifications, Dr Jonas has worked tirelessly in the community sector since the early 1980s. Dr Jonas commenced his appointment on 6 April 1999 for five years. His appointment as Acting Race Discrimination Commissioner ends on 25 September 2000.