Do we need a A Bill of Rights for Australia?

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I didn't know about this until I heard about it: we're only one of three countries in the world that have no Bill of Rights! We share the situation with Burma & Borneo! Sure, we're protected by English Common Law, but...? Even though Australia has signed all five international treaties that make up the the International Bill of Human Rights, none of these treaties are legally binding in Australia. Nor is there is a Bill of Rights in the Australian Constitution. This means that the fundamental rights and freedoms of everyone living in Australia are not protected by the law! The omission of a Bill of Rights from our Constitution is one of the elements which marked it as different to the United States Constitution from which a number of principles were derived. It was not however an omission by accident. The inclusion of a Bill of Rights was proposed and debated at the Constitutional Conventions which lead up to the drafting of the Australian Constitution. Its inclusion was defeated, somewhat ironically, on the basis that a 'due process' provision would undermine some of the discriminatory provisions in place at that time, including those laws which were enacted to the detriment of Aboriginals and Asian immigrants. So what's stopping us? Is it because any changing the system now will cost an exorbitant amount of money, which we don't have because our lovely Prime Minister has already spent it all, & then some, & then some more...? Or should we look overseas & see what happened with the chaos caused in Europe by the UK becoming signatory to the various human rights legislation, then would we understand why we need to be VERY wary of introducing a Bill of Rights Down Under? For a country that promotes an image of an advanced democracy that values the human rights of its citizens, Australia remains side-by-side with Brunei and Burma that have yet to adopt such a protective mechanism. We can achieve social justice, increase the human rights of EVERY Australian citizen and EVERY person residing in Australia (refugees), improve equality, and put and end to the covered up human right breaches that is so frequently occurring in Australia and in some cases even supported by the courts & the law if we introduced such a Bill. Now, Australia can take political prisoners, silence people’s freedom of speech;including that of journalists, and in particular do little to protect innocent victims of police harassment, violence, verbal abuse, and violate of human rights. There may well be statutory instruments in place that cover the above concerns, but it is laws that have been passed by the parliament we elected to protect our human rights and civil liberties. If a persons rights have been breached, there should be a human rights commission established where a citizen can first take his or her complaint to. This should be a body independent from the government and the courts, and even be able to arbitrate cases resulting from alleged human right breaches from government departments and institutions. They should also have a formal role in reviewing certain bills before being able to be granted royal assent. If a bill in question is in breach of the Bill of Rights, it can make recommendations to the government and order for amendments to be made. One of the features of a democracy is a voting process, others include separation of powers (ie. parliament cannot bug courts & vice versa). High Court Judges are appointed, in effect, by the Attorney General (also, the PM is appointed by the party in government). One shouldn't be so hasty as to say that just because someone isn't nominated by its constituent, that it means there are undemocratic. A Bill of rights, by nature, as opposed to legislation, is entrenched. The Australian Constitution is an entrenched document such that parliament cannot amend it without popular approval (in the form of a referendum). While many rights are granted legislatively, they can easily be taken away. As such, the whole point of a Bill of Rights is to safeguard the nation from a radical government who is zealous in eroding human rights. A Bill of Rights is not necessarily broad and unspecific. That is a matter of construction and then subject to interpretation by the courts. So, what's your take on it? Do we really need one in this day & age anyway? What are some more drawbacks or positives you can see?