The argument that legislative recognition of Aboriginal customary laws would be discriminatory or unequal or would contravene the principle that the there should be one law for all Australians raises fundamental issues, and needs separate consideration. The Commission ought not to make proposals for recognition that are discriminatory or unequal, as these ideas are defined in these established instruments. But non-discrimination and equality do not require that everyone be treated in exactly the same way, whatever the circumstances.
Many laws differentiate between people for reasons relevant to the particular law in question.
Principles of equality before the law do not require that each law should apply in the same way to all members of the community. Laws that make distinctions on grounds of race alone are unacceptable violations of the principle of equality, yet certain features appertaining to a particular group may themselves justify special treatment.