A person holds a placard with a pencil which reads "I am Charlie" during a minute of silence in Strasbourg
A person holds a placard with a pencil which reads "I am Charlie" during a minute of silence in Strasbourg January 8, 2015 for victims of the shooting at the Paris offices of weekly satirical newspaper Charlie Hebdo on Wednesday. French police extended a manhunt on Thursday for two brothers suspected of killing 12 people at a satirical magazine in Paris in a presumed Islamist militant strike that national leaders and allied states described as an assault on democracy. France began a day of mourning for the journalists and police officers shot dead on Wednesday morning by black-hooded gunmen using Kalashnikov assault rifles. French tricolour flags flew at half mast throughout the country. REUTERS/Vincent Kessler

Major Australian media outlets have decided to publish the cover of Charlie Hebdo magazine. However, Australia's Human Rights Commission has not approved of it.

This is the first issue of the French satirical magazine since the Paris attack. The cover shows the Prophet Mohammed weeping, while the Islamic prophet holds up sign: "Je suis Charlie" (I am Charlie). The headline of the cover says "Tout est pardonne" (all is forgiven). The cover has been published by the majority of the media in Australia. The latest edition of the French magazine, to be published in 16 languages in 25 countries, is going to run three million copies.

Australia's Human Rights Commission, on the other hand, may not allow Australian media outlets to publish the cover. According to Human Rights Commissioner Tim Wilson, some contents of the magazine may not be printed in Australia under section 18C of the Racial Discrimination Act. Most Australian mainstream media outlets, on the contrary, defied the suggestion and published the cover. The main argument supporting the cover to have been published is that the cover has huge newsworthiness.

According to BBC, Australia's attack on Charlie Hebdo has reignited the debate over the race-hate law in the country, "which prohibit certain forms of speech." Several politicians in the country like Liberal backbencher Cory Bernardi feel that the law needs to be updated so that the right to freedom of expression can be preserved. However, the Australian government decided not to repeal the law in 2014 even though Prime Minister Tony Abbott had campaigned to change the legislation before getting elected.

During those days, he described the law in its current form as a "hurt feelings test." Several other politicians argue that it is necessary for the law to impose certain restrictions on causing humiliation, insult and offence. According to the Section 18C of the Racial Discrimination Act, it is illegals to "offend, insult or humiliate" a person or a group of people on the basis of race, colour or ethnic origin.

Ninemsn, the West Australian, the ABC and News Corp Australia Web sites published the cover, while Fairfax publications The Sydney Morning Herald and The Age are among the ones which did not show the cover on their Web sites.

Contact the writer: s.mukhopadhyay@IBTimes.com.au