Aboriginal?

[Julia]

The studies were completed by the ABS and referenced in the Bringing them Home report.

Quote SOCIO-ECONOMIC DEPRIVATION OF AUSTRALIA’S STOLEN GENERATION

This article presents a detailed examination of survey data on the circumstances of two groups of indigenous people: one consisting of indigenous people who, in their childhood, had been separated from their parents and one consisting of those who had not been separated. In almost all cases the separated group was worse off. On average they had left school earlier, were less likely to have educational qualifications and were less likely to be employed. (Majchrzak-Hamilton and Hamilton )

I do agree there has been paternalistic type racism that has led to victimhood, ironic that we still do not learn from history and insist on doing what we feel is good for them when in fact it is damaging. Perhaps if we keep having to apologise the penny may drop one day and we simply start treating them fairly and instead of only ever talking about the political side we start discussing their art, their music and their successes and celebrate them as a people rather than this never ending disucussion about how we should fix all their problems. Little wonder many have poor self esteem.

Thanks for that, Spaghetti. Do you know what sort of numbers were involved in the comparison? I sometimes think it must be almost impossible to draw valid conclusions about the outcomes of this generation, given that no one seems to actually know how many children were removed.

 

[Sean K]

Perhaps if we keep having to apologise the penny may drop one day and we simply start treating them fairly and instead of only ever talking about the political side we start discussing their art, their music and their successes

Yep, let's do that. The oldest culture on the planet, yet to invent the wheel. Art? A few hand paintings on the rocks, and dots. Music? A couple of sticks beating..Success? Cathy running around in a condom. Poly Farmer had a good handball. They were the first Aussie cricket team to tour, as a novelty act.

Having said that........

Perhaps they were at the height of what our 'civilisation' should be. Perhaps the wheel was the start of the end for us, ending in a 1mm thick plasma...

And, I would like to know who was behind the study that came to the conclusions set out above. My suspiscions and scepticism lead me to a half cast, or some hippy now smoking his own from the back yard plantation in Nimbin.

I don't think I'm stiring the pot, just being anti politically correct at the moment.

 

[Spaghetti]

Kennas

I love their art. Totally stunning and far more internationally recognised than any non-indigenous artist that we have produced. Whole gallery in Paris devoted to it. We do not even have that in Sydney as far as I know.

Quinkan Reserves in Cape York considered one of the best 10 rock art sites in the world. I believe being considered for world heritage listing. The list goes on.

The didgeridoo. Well what can I say, never though too much of it until I heard a master play it. Then wow, brilliant and no other musical instrument blends into nature as it does when played well. It becomes part of nature itself.

There is so much out there Australians just not interested sadly.

 

[Julia]

I love their art. Totally stunning and far more internationally recognised than any non-indigenous artist that we have produced.
There is so much out there Australians just not interested sadly.

This just goes to how enjoyment of any form of so called art is a very personal thing. I saw an art collector on TV recently raving about an aboriginal painting. He said "it sent chills down my spine". It was shown on the screen. It did absolutely nothing for me. As always, it's always in the cliched eye of the beholder.
You can't force people to like what they instinctively don't enjoy.

Anything further on the numbers involved in the study you referred to earlier?
Without knowing numbers or the protocol of the study, it's difficult to say how statistically valid any conclusions might be.

 

[Sean K]

Kennas

I love their art. Totally stunning and far more internationally recognised than any non-indigenous artist that we have produced. Whole gallery in Paris devoted to it. We do not even have that in Sydney as far as I know.

Quinkan Reserves in Cape York considered one of the best 10 rock art sites in the world. I believe being considered for world heritage listing. The list goes on.

The didgeridoo. Well what can I say, never though too much of it until I heard a master play it. Then wow, brilliant and no other musical instrument blends into nature as it does when played well. It becomes part of nature itself.

There is so much out there Australians just not interested sadly.

Spaghetti, I agree, they've created a wonderful style of abstract and expressionist art, I suppose. Even Prince Harry got caught ripping it off. I actually enjoy the style, like I enjoy Kandinsky. Love it in fact.

And yes, the didgeridoo can make some amazing music.

However, it's important not to romanticise about a culture too much without looking at it in objective context.

In the bigger picture I have to ask myself what they have value added to the 'advancement' of the human species. I'm struggling at the moment.

Use of tools, hunting techniques, bush medicine, language, tracking, etc etc, are all pretty ho hum in the world picture really. And their understanding and care for the environment has been argued previously. I still doubt whether burning off hundreds of acres of bush was good for regeneration, or if it was just lazy hunting. I'm sure they would have dynamited rivers to catch fish, if they had have invented dynamite.

I have to wonder how 'rich' the Dreamtime understanding of the beginning of things is as well, or whether it's just another primitive way to understand why the sun 'rises' each morning, and how the rivers got there.

And for a culture that's been on this land for thousands of years (or is that millions?) which is chock full of natural resources, such as haematite, how the heck didn't they come up with iron tools at some point? Obviously not required I suppose. Or, did they?

I think Australians would be interested, if it was interesting. All most of us do is look in and think, where the hell is that wheel!!

 

[2020hindsight]

Only trouble I see with Ab art is the fact that criminal (knife wielding) whites are exploiting it.

http://www.abc.net.au/pm/content/2008/s2187863.htm

Bashing won't stop art fraud investigations: Toyne
PM - Wednesday, 12 March , 2008 18:46:00
Reporter: Anne Barker
MARK COLVIN: A former Northern Territory politician believes he was brutally bashed last month because of his new role trying to crack down on art fraud.

A Senate inquiry last year exposed fraud and unethical behaviour in the Indigenous art industry, especially in central Australia.

It said forgery, carpet-baggers, and sweatshops were rife as criminal elements try to milk the profits from impoverished Aboriginal artists.

Anne Barker reports.

ANNE BARKER: As if politics wasn't bruising enough for Peter Toyne, the former Attorney-General was last month bashed and stabbed at his own home in Alice Springs, by a complete stranger who calmly knocked at the front door.

PETER TOYNE: A person I don't know came into our house and lured me outside, and then just simply clobbered me with a weapon, and so it involved being stabbed in the knee and lacerations to the scalp with a lot of bleeding and a fairly deep wound to the knee, which was inflicted by stabbing it.

ANNE BARKER: The brutal bashing shocked Territorians because the mild-mannered Peter Toyne is so liked and respected on all sides of politics.

But since he left Parliament, he has been director of IdentiArt, a unique company which uses new technology to authenticate Aboriginal art and thereby crack down on the fraudsters and carpet-baggers plaguing the industry.

It's left Peter Toyne thinking the attack was more the work of a professional thug.

PETER TOYNE: The actual nature of the attack was premeditated, it was very clinical in the way that my assailant went about his work, there was nothing said, there was no sign of any emotion, he went about his business and left, he walked to his car and drove off.

So I mean it's just to me, it didn't feel like someone who hated me from my political life, it just felt very much like a professional attack.

ANNE BARKER: What would have had to gain though, by bashing you?

PETER TOYNE: Well, you don't know, but the most obvious thing is maybe to dissuade me and other people through me pursuing this course of action, and I think that the clear message that we want to get back to them is that if the game is to intimidate, then I am simply not prepared to play that game.

ANNE BARKER: Do you think violence like this is consistent with some of the practices that we've heard of in the art industry?

PETER TOYNE: Oh, look, there's no doubt about that, there's been numerous examples where it's come to violence and strong arm tactics where someone's interest has been compromised, probably over the years it's got more extensive.

ANNE BARKER: One art dealer in Alice Springs, John Oster, says if the claims are true, he's disturbed at what it means for the industry

JOHN OSTER: We see a lot of anecdotal evidence where people make claims about the kinds of treatment they get from a section of people who sit on the edge of the industry.

ANNE BARKER: And anecdotally, does some of that treatment include violence?

JOHN OSTER: I've not heard of violence before, however, there have been a number of suggestions to us that go to something more sinister than just black market and cash dealing.

ANNE BARKER: Such as?

JOHN OSTER: Well, I mean we're seeing some elements of you know, some evidence of criminal activity.

ANNE BARKER: So the sorts of practices we heard about in last year's Senate inquiry, they're still going on?

JOHH OSTER: Yes, they are.

MARK COLVIN: Art director John Oster, talking to Anne Barker.

 

[2020hindsight]

be interesting to see if any truckies are taken to court over this.

Teachers out there say if you can't get a young girl interested in school by the time she should be in high school "you've lost her to the truckies"

http://www.abc.net.au/news/stories/2008/03/14/2189111.htm

Truckies 'target Aboriginal girls for paid sex'
Posted Fri Mar 14, 2008 6:23am AEDT
Updated Fri Mar 14, 2008 9:23am AEDT
Aboriginal teenage girls from north-west New South Wales claim they are being targeted by truck drivers offering cash for sex.

Aboriginal girls from the outback towns of Boggabilla and Moree have spoken on the ABC's Lateline program about the sex trade.

They say girls as young as eight years old are being targeted.

Aboriginal women and girls say the sex trade with truck drivers is driven by a need for cash and drugs - particularly amphetamines and marijuana.

"Well some truckies, they want to do it for $25, but the limit is for me, it's got to be $80 and a bit of gear [drugs]," one girl told the program.

"But we do get black truckies on the streets and they only want to do it for $25."

One girl who spoke on the program said she got into a truck with two men and could not get away.

"People would say women asked for it when they jumped in the truck, but if you don't want to do it it's got to be your decision," she said.

Other girls told the program that rapes are common and are not reported to the police.

A spokesman from the Australian Trucking Association told Lateline most trucking companies ban passengers from the cabs of their trucks and that professional truck drivers know that their truck cabin is a workplace.

 

[2020hindsight]

PS And that goes for the cottin-chippers out there too apparently.

And the other forms of exploitation - like publicans who double as agricultural labour subcontractors - organising Abs to work on farms - and insisting paying them largely with credit at the pub.

 

[Julia]

I suppose it would be politically incorrect to ask where are the parents of eight year old girls who are having sex late at night with truck drivers?

 

[Sean K]

I suppose it would be politically incorrect to ask where are the parents of eight year old girls who are having sex late at night with truck drivers?

It does make you wonder. I suppose they're in a gutter, or a park somewhere. Probably caused by the white man's lack of social support I suppose. Or, maybe it's part Aboriginal custom to give kids free reign from a young age. What is the tradional age of consent to sell your body for drugs? It's tough to make jokes of this terrible situation. I just can't believe it's happening in our little corner of the woods. Perhaps that's why it is. We (especially the aboriginal community) haven't done enough to stop it from eventuating. Quite embarrassing really.

 

[2020hindsight]

And then lets ask for compensation.

Maybe the circumstances are a tad different but it's a tad ironic too.

'Remove children' plea at Aurukun
John Van Tiggelen
March 14, 2008

ELDERS from a far north Queensland community are calling for the removal of children in the face of a comprehensive breakdown of social standards.

Several members of Aurukun's community justice group, led by Martha Koowarta, widow of a local land rights hero, are urging outsiders to take children from age nine for their safety and education.

kennas - I'm gonna move on from the accusations in your post.
But there's a point here. Which is easier?

a) Take the schools - and the teachers etc - to the kids; or
b) take the kids to the schools.

I mean, you could have sensible class sizes for a starter. - and as if there are enough teachers to go round.

http://www.abc.net.au/pm/content/2008/s2190059.htm

Calls for Indigenous children to be sent to boarding schools
PM - Friday, 14 March , 2008 18:18:00
Reporter: Annie Guest
LISA MILLAR: There's been support today for calls for children in remote Aboriginal communities to be sent away to boarding schools.

Elders at Aurukun on Cape York Peninsula say it's the best option for their children who have little schooling and live in an atmosphere of violence.

But a senior Indigenous academic Professor Marcia Langton says there's not enough financial support from the Government to send children away for their education.

Annie Guest reports from Brisbane.

ANNIE GUEST: Jonathan Korkaktain is a man who has lost faith in his own community.

JONATHAN KORKAKTAIN: I would like to see more, more of this happening with our students to go out to these boarding schools.

ANNIE GUEST: Jonathan Korkaktain sits on the Council at Aurukun. The Cape York Peninsula community is plagued by alcohol and drug fuelled violence and child abuse. There are more children who skip school than attend it.

Jonathan Korkaktain told The World Today he'd rather part with his own 13-year-old grandson than keep him at school in Aurukun.

JONATHAN KORKAKTAIN: The school, not having much children coming in because it's a heck of responsibility that no-one cares.

ANNIE GUEST: Indigenous children already attend boarding schools but Jonathan Korkaktain wants more children sent away - on a voluntary basis - and potentially including children as young as nine.

His view is supported by Martha Koowarta from Aurukun's Community Justice Group.

Other community leaders haven't commented.

Sending Aboriginal children from remote communities to boarding schools has strong support from a senior Indigenous academic.

MARCIA LANGTON: The smart people who are absolutely determined to save their children from the poor opportunities that are presented to them are the ones who figure it out and get their kids out.

ANNIE GUEST: Marcia Langton is the Foundation Professor of Australian Indigenous Studies at the University of Melbourne, and also the chairwoman of Noel Pearson's Cape York Institute. She says schooling is failing children in remote communities.

MARCIA LANGTON: We'd be better of off spending all of our money getting kids into good boarding schools instead of persisting with the, you know, the school system in these communities, such as it is.

And, you know, I still think that it's a serious policy option to be considered because you can waste a lot of money trying to get a big, cumbersome system to work or you can send kids to boarding school.

If you think about the number of children that actually finish primary school in remote area communities, where their parents are willing to send them to a boarding school, you're talking about a very small number of children.

ANNIE GUEST: And separating children from their families for the purpose of boarding school for up to sort of five years or round about, you do not see as recreating problems of the Stolen Generation, such a widespread policy?

MARCIA LANGTON: I said we're talking about very small numbers of children. I also said that this is entirely voluntary.

ANNIE GUEST: Professor Langton says some city residents resist the idea. She says there's a misguided belief parents could be pushed into sending children away. And she says there's not enough financial support from governments for those parents who want to send their children to boarding schools.

The Federal Minister Jenny Macklin was not available for an interview.

The Queensland Government is supporting a trial starting soon at Aurukun where welfare payments will be restricted from irresponsible parents.

The State Minister responsible for Indigenous Affairs is Lindy Nelson-Carr.

LINDY NELSON-CARR: So I'm not adverse to boarding school per se, but I am probably very reluctant to think that whole-scale removal, wholesale rather, removal of Indigenous children would be a very bad thing to do. I mean it would be revisiting the Stolen Generation from the past. I think we really do need to give the welfare reform trial a chance.

ANNIE GUEST: Minister, the elders at Aurukun say, regardless of those trials it's too late for the current school children there. Is it possible that these concerns about repeating the mistakes of the Stolen Generations are actually creating more harm or failing to make improvements where there is potential for some?

LINDY NELSON-CARR: I don't think anything is ever too late. I think we need to practice some tough love in many of these communities and this is a good example of that.

LISA MILLAR: That's Queensland's Indigenous Affairs Minister Lindy Nelson-Carr ending that report from Annie Guest in Brisbane.

 

[tigerboi]

be interesting to see if any truckies are taken to court over this.

Teachers out there say if you can't get a young girl interested in school by the time she should be in high school "you've lost her to the truckies"

http://www.abc.net.au/news/stories/2008/03/14/2189111.htm

Interesting story once again from the ABC,im not saying it has not happened however its veracity needs to be tested,as an interstate truck driver myself ive run sydney-goondiwindi-sydney shuttle & i used to fuel up at night on the way south at the boggablla servo,i never saw any of this activity or heard it on the 2 way,bogabilla servo & parking bay is a long way from any houses.
Now onto moree,as most of us interstate guys drive b/doubles there is nowhere to pull up in mooree,ive only stopped once & at maccas real early & i blocked 1/2 a driveway just to get some sustenance.It is forbidden to pick up any hitch hikers & it is an instant sackable offence as they are not covered by insurance,funny thing is i did give 2 black fellas a lift south of gunnedah one early saturday morning & they only wanted to go about 20 kms down the road after a heavy night on the turps,no dramas as the cars wouldnt stop.The transport industry has changed alot over the say last 10 years & there are many more responsible operators,myself despite being a young 42,fit & healthy,i go through that many medicals its not funny,for my b/double licence i have a full monty medical every 3 years & all b/double drivers over 50 must have one each year,for me personally say if ive come from melbourne-bogabilla en route to brisbane the only thing i do after i get my duds off is climb into the bunk,but then again im not on the go fast gear looking to put your stiffy where it should not be,Its a disappointing report to see,but like i said this would be a few rogues that need to be sorted out,the mooree elders should go up there to see things right,one thing to remember going into & out of boggabilla the black fellas of a night time always end up knuckling each other in the middle of the road,careful...tb

 

[2020hindsight]

I suppose it would be politically incorrect to ask where are the parents of eight year old girls who are having sex late at night with truck drivers?

Julia
what makes you think it's just at night?

Fed coalition asking to extend "the Intervention" and State Coalition asking for "an independent judicial review" ... might catch some truck drivers and /or some cottin-chippin pedaphiles for starters.

http://www.abc.net.au/news/stories/2008/03/14/2190126.htm

New allegations emerge in Boggabilla sex scandal
Posted Fri Mar 14, 2008 7:06pm AEDT
Updated 11 hours 39 minutes ago

There are fresh allegations of child abuse in north-west New South Wales, with Aboriginal elders claiming itinerant workers also come into the town of Boggabilla to solicit sex from Aboriginal girls.

Several girls from the communities of Boggabilla and Moree told ABC 1's Lateline program about child prostitution with truck drivers, but there are claims that casual farm workers are deliberately targeting children.

Boggabilla resident Judy Knox says that during the year, seasonal workers are employed at the farms to chip weeds away from cotton plants.

"You get a whole array of people who turn up for the cotton chipping season and it's been found that people actually target the communities around here where there's a cotton chipping set up," she said.

"They make friends with the local mother or father, go to parties until they gain a bit of trust, then they take their kids to a party or swimming and then the abuse happens."

Boggabilla Aboriginal elder Madeline McGrady said that last year she had to chase a white man out of town because she found out he had been buying food for Aboriginal mothers and abusing their children.

She says white paedophiles have been targeting her community for years because they can easily access the children.

"Some people say there are good old white fella if they clean your house and buy the kids some food," she said.

"But as soon as that mother's drunk or goes for a walk, then they're straight into the kids."

The cotton industry has declined to comment on allegations of seasonal workers also abusing young Aboriginal children.

Intervention extension?

The Federal Opposition is now calling for urgent Government intervention in New South Wales Indigenous communities.....

"The Intervention" (imo) is/was just an admission that policing etc facilities have been under-resourced for "a long time". And the NT intervention just took police away from NSW etc.

NSW Opposition Leader Barry O'Farrell is calling for the allegations to be independently examined.

"In relation to those episodes discovered in the Northern Territory, one person spoke out, it created an avalanche but more importantly it prompted a government response to establish an independent review," he said.

"What's required as a result of these allegations is an independent judicial review to be undertaken and for charges, if necessary, to be laid."

you bet, Barry.

And moving into the future, now that the Abs have been given a hint of self respect and acknowledgment with the change of Govt, maybe people / kids etc will start to come forward. - Whistle Blowers etc - hopefully they'll get better treatment that Gillian Sneddon, the Orkopoulos whistleblower who has been sacked.

State Aboriginal Affairs Minister Paul Lynch refused to answer questions today, but issued a statement urging anyone with evidence of child sexual abuse to contact police.

Speaking out

The police in charge of north-west NSW say they have been aware of child sexual assault claims in the area for the past two years.

Western region police commander, Assistant Commissioner Stephen Bradshaw, says they are trying to address the problem, but victims are very reluctant to speak out.

He has urged members of the Aboriginal community to come forward with any information about child abuse.

 

[noirua]

Perhaps we can see an underlying problem concerning Aboriginals and the tourist trade at Uluru. Ayers Rock was given over to them in 1903.

Day after day the coaches arrive with tourists, well dressed with expensive cameras, clickity click etc., all enjoying themselves. Not far away on the otherside of Uluru the aboriginals live in poverty and none of the tourist cash reaches their rundown properties.

The phrase "dropped the bundle" is used in terms of the state everything is in and their lack of will to do anything about it.

 

[2020hindsight]

And moving into the future, now that the Abs have been given a hint of self respect and acknowledgment with the change of Govt, maybe people / kids etc will start to come forward. - Whistle Blowers etc - hopefully they'll get better treatment that Gillian Sneddon, the Orkopoulos whistleblower who has been sacked.

btw, maybe we need a change of State Govt to sort this out.
I'd be totally in favour of that I can tell you.
The only way to "Keep the bastards honest" is to give em a turn on the opposition stalls it seems (ask anyone from Wollongong)

1. It is forbidden to pick up any hitch hikers & it is an instant sackable offence as they are not covered by insurance,

2. The transport industry has changed alot over the say last 10 years & there are many more responsible operators,

3. Its a disappointing report to see,but like i said this would be a few rogues that need to be sorted out,the mooree elders should go up there to see things right,

4. one thing to remember going into & out of boggabilla the black fellas of a night time always end up knuckling each other in the middle of the road,careful...tb

tiger - not just truckies, you're right. (as per the exposure about itinerant cotton workers that's now starting to flood the media - yes!!!)
3. a few rogues as you say
1. not sure the rogues were driving when they invited the kids into their cabins.- raped a few and all, - according to those accusations
2. good
4. m8 you eat that much kangaroo, and drink that much whiteman's firewater, you'd probably do the same.

 

[Spaghetti]

Spaghetti, I agree, they've created a wonderful style of abstract and expressionist art, I suppose. Even Prince Harry got caught ripping it off. I actually enjoy the style, like I enjoy Kandinsky. Love it in fact.

And yes, the didgeridoo can make some amazing music.

However, it's important not to romanticise about a culture too much without looking at it in objective context.

In the bigger picture I have to ask myself what they have value added to the 'advancement' of the human species. I'm struggling at the moment.

Use of tools, hunting techniques, bush medicine, language, tracking, etc etc, are all pretty ho hum in the world picture really. And their understanding and care for the environment has been argued previously. I still doubt whether burning off hundreds of acres of bush was good for regeneration, or if it was just lazy hunting. I'm sure they would have dynamited rivers to catch fish, if they had have invented dynamite.

I have to wonder how 'rich' the Dreamtime understanding of the beginning of things is as well, or whether it's just another primitive way to understand why the sun 'rises' each morning, and how the rivers got there.

And for a culture that's been on this land for thousands of years (or is that millions?) which is chock full of natural resources, such as haematite, how the heck didn't they come up with iron tools at some point? Obviously not required I suppose. Or, did they?

I think Australians would be interested, if it was interesting. All most of us do is look in and think, where the hell is that wheel!!

I guess it depends on whether you think our system is good. I do not. I see cities full of wage slaves and unhappy, stressed out people. Captain Cook himself described the aborigines as happier than Europeans. In their eyes our way of life may not seem so attractive and who could blame them? I do not see their way of life appealing to me but then nor do I see our way any better, just what I am conditioned to accept (though not very well lol). I believe some aboriginal influence on our culture would be very good, needn't go only one way.

The burning of vegetation. This is interesting topic in itself. Useful for those studying climate change. The Australian megafauna died out about the time of the arrival of aboriginals. The demise of these animals is put down to the loss of lush vegation to fire replaced by the never ending sea of gum trees we have now. The fires essentially killed off many species of plants leaving only the fire resisant to survive and no food for megafuana. The question is was climate change responsible for the intial outbreak of fires or were aboriginal people? Add another theory into the mix that aborigines actually hunted down the last of the megafauna. Still there is debate that a relative small number of humans may have assisted in the dramatic changes seen on the planet during the end of the last ice age.

Anyways whether they played a part in the original destruction of forests or not there subsequent land management was far superior to ours. We have cattle running where no hoofed animal has ever trodden destroying the savanah and of course down south the salt problem. We managed to do a of of damage in a small space of time.

They did survive though without mining iron ore, without exploiting the land as rapidly as we have. They had a far higher skill set than normal people have today. The progress of our society is dictated by population growth. Once a number of people live together each can be assigned a task. The higher the population the stripping down of individual skills becomes apparent.The US is a great example of this. Humans living in societies rather than tribes or clans for eg need some people to simply be able to clean toilets all day, or drive a bus all day, or write cheques all day, or sell phones all day. We reduce individual capacity. So building of societies may have helped progress for the masses but I do not subscribe to the view it makes for happier individuals.

 

[Julia]

Timely article from Sunday Mail journalist, Terry Sweetman.
_________________________

Problem not just black and white


By: Terry Sweetman





THE nurses went on strike and Florence Nightingale's lamp dimmed in our more remote indigenous settlements.
It was a drastic step but the only recourse in the face of dysfunctional authority that has failed to provide them with safe working and living conditions.
The Government deserved everything it got; the communities got everything they deserved.
In fact, it might be time for the Government to put some communities on notice that it will go on strike if they don't get their act together and start to regulate their lives and townships.
It hurts me to write these words because I know they give comfort to the racist trash I hold in contempt.
We collectively have a responsibility to right the wrongs of the past, to lift Aboriginal living standards to the Australian norm, to help them lead productive and fulfilling lives and to bridge the disgraceful 17-year gap in life expectancy that is a stain on our nation.
But indigenous people, too, have responsibilities.
They have a responsibility to ensure the safety of nurses, teachers, welfare workers, council administrators and cops who are there to help them.
We can't forget the Government's historic and calamitous neglect of indigenous welfare, but why should nurses live in communities where their safety, their dignity and their lives are at risk?
Why should cops who are there to stop the violence against women and the abuse of children be subjected to racial contempt and violence?
Why should teachers have to suffer the indignity and frustration of fronting up to near-empty classrooms each day?
Why should council administrators suffer abuse and scorn because they try to put into place some of the financial responsibility the communities demand?
They're not all angels, but why should all these people have to live in compounds and behind bars, alienated from the people they serve?
Why do we have to listen to blather about self-determination, responsibility and the wisdom of elders when people can't even round up their kids and send them to school and respect for basic human rights is non-existent. We can probably never invest enough resources to make some of these communities completely functional, but our contribution is not to be sneezed at.
Take Woorabinda. It is a community of somewhere between 900 and 940 (according to various sources).
It has eight police officers, to be increased to 11 by July 1.
That, according to Police Minister Judy Spence, will give it ``the largest police-to-population ratio in Queensland or the world''.
What a terrible indictment of Woorabinda, particularly when the rest of us get by with one cop for every 439 Queenslanders.
Four of these police will live in converted shipping containers. They're pretty good shipping containers by all accounts but not exactly what most young men and women aspire to.
Woorabinda is one place where the Government did go on strike, or threatened to go on strike, when it warned there would be no more houses until people stopped trashing them.
I don't know the current health of Woorabinda's houses and I'm sure it's not all peace and light, but there were encouraging signs under then mayor Laurence Weazel. He was defeated in the local government elections, so will his vision survive or is it back to abnormal normality for Woorabinda?
The collective abrogation of responsibility was unintentionally summed up by former head of the Northern Land Council Galarrwuy Yunupingu last week when he called for mission-style dormitories for Aboriginal children.
``The missionary days were good,'' he said. ``The missionaries looked after the kids much better than the Government does today.'' Missionaries? Government? Are there no parents?
sweetwords@ozemail.com.au



--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

 

[Happy]

Are there no parents?

To cynical eye it looks as if they are trying to have kids stolen again for compensation number 2, irrespectively of why kids were removed in a first place.

But this would start circle number n!

 

[2020hindsight]

http://www.abc.net.au/news/stories/2008/06/15/2274925.htm

AMA pulls out of NT intervention
Posted 3 hours 8 minutes ago
Updated 1 hour 56 minutes ago
Australia's peak doctors' group has withdrawn from any future role in the Northern Territory intervention.

The move comes as one of the authors of the report that sparked the intervention criticises the action.

The Australian Medical Association's (AMA) head, Rosanna Capolingua, says the group wants no further involvement in recruiting doctors for the Northern Territory intervention.

She says working with the Government during the first stage has been fraught with problems and too costly.

"Unfortunately the spin that this Government has put on the AMA's activity is something that has made us very wary of engaging directly with government under a contract to deliver services for them," she said.

"Perhaps the AMA is better off out there advocating and ensuring that the Government takes on appropriate responsibility."

She has accused the Government of relying on the goodwill of doctors to prop up the scheme.

She says it is time it took ownership of the problem.

"Fund it appropriately and admit that it takes committed endeavour by government, not just altruism, to make the difference," she said.
... etc

'Politically motivated'

It is a year since the Little Children are Sacred Report was released, with almost 100 recommendations for stopping child abuse in the Northern Territory.

Report co-author Rex Wild QC says there has not been enough consultation with Aboriginal people.

Mr Wild say the Commonwealth's big-stick approach to the revelations of child sex abuse has been politically motivated.

"Intervention itself was wrong and the way that it commenced was completely wrong, without any consultation or discussion," he said.

But Northern Territory Chief Minister Paul Henderson says he will not dwell on the past.

"It's about looking forward, not looking back. It's about seizing the opportunity to work with an incoming Labor government," he said.

"Let's take the politics out of this."

.......
"We need more prosecutors who are prepared to do this type of work," he said. "The Government's given us more resources to employ more prosecutors but we don't seem to get the sort of young keen people coming through."
.....
Mr Coates says unless more interpreters can be found, Aboriginal people will not be able to fully participate in the justice system.He says getting people in small interlinked communities to come forward with sex abuse allegations is difficult enough, but finding and training translators who can interpret and relay evidence in court cases is proving to be a difficult task.
...
The Government has ordered a 12-month review of the intervention.

Rather than get interpreters, maybe teach them english.
Imo, The intervention was never sustainable, but at least it got some action after a decade of being swept under the carpet.

 

[Julia]

http://www.abc.net.au/news/stories/2008/06/15/2274925.htm









Rather than get interpreters, maybe teach them english. :

Pretty hard to do this when the kids don't turn up to school.