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Aboriginal Reconciliation

Australian Aboriginal anger starting to boil over

Michael Long had already walked more than half of the 660km between Melbourne and Canberra, the Australian capital, when the indigenous sportsman received word that the prime minister had agreed to meet him to discuss the plight of Aboriginal Australians.

A former champion footballer, Mr Long had set out on his walk on November 21 to put Aboriginal affairs back on the nation's political agenda. Yesterday he had an hour-long talk with John Howard, prime minister, which he described as "an open and honest meeting".

This week's riot on a north Queensland island, sparked by the death of an Aboriginal man in police custody, was the latest in a string of recent incidents to have exposed rising anger in indigenous communities and highlighted the gap that still exists between black and white Australians. Nonetheless, Aboriginal issues were absent from campaigning for the October election, in which Mr Howard's conservative government secured an even bigger majority.

In the south Queensland town of Goondiwindi, police this week were investigating claims that farm workers had stripped an Aboriginal teenager naked, tied a noose around his neck and dragged him along a river bank after catching him in an attempted robbery.

"This is [Ku Klux Klan] KKK-type stuff," said Bert Button, a local Aboriginal leader. "It's getting to the stage it is almost open go to maim and kill blackfellas."

Racial tensions were already high in Queensland. Last week's riot on Palm Island, during which the court house and police station were petrol-bombed, was sparked by the release of an autopsy report for 36-year-old Cameron Doomadgee, who died of internal bleeding in a police cell.

A police spokesman said Doomadgee had fallen during a scuffle. His family disagreed. "They just don't believe it was an accident," said Brad Foster.

Almost 30 people have been charged in relation to the rampage, the second this year. In February the central Sydney suburb of Redfern erupted after the death of an Aboriginal youth, Thomas Hickey, who was impaled on a fence while riding his bicycle. Police had denied they were chasing him.

Five years ago Palm Island earned itself the title of the world's most violent place outside a combat zone in the Guinness World Records. Like many indigenous communities, the former penal colony has a sad history of high unemployment, drug and alcohol abuse and domestic violence.

Peter Lindsay, a liberal politician whose seat of Herbert takes in Palm Island, criticised his constituents for failing to take responsibility for their lives. "The 42 tribes and their leaders have had ample time to do something about the hopelessness that pervades their community."

Some commentators insist racism and neglect, not handouts, are pushing indigenous communities to breaking point. "How much more do you think our people can cope with?" said Boni Robertson, an Aboriginal academic. "We are in a crisis, racially, in this country."

Aboriginal leaders have announced a national day of action next week in protest at indigenous deaths in custody. Black people make up only 2 per cent of the population but account for a fifth of jail inmates. They have the nation's highest rates of disease and infant mortality.

Mr Howard has said the National Indigenous Council, which meets for the first time next week, will be his principal source of advice on indigenous issues. The government-appointed body replaces the popularly elected Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Commission which, the coalition said, was costing taxpayers A$65,000 (£26,000, ?38,000, US$50,000) a week.

Mr Long, who once described Mr Howard as cold-hearted for refusing to apologise to Aboriginals for past injustices, declined a seat on the new council, saying it would not give Aboriginals a real voice.

SOURCE: http://news.ft.com/

And Mr Long would be entirely correct. A council that meets with the Prime Minister every so often to tell him this or that is not going to make much difference to Government policy on Indigenous issues. Certainly no more difference then ATSIC ever made. The reason why Government sponsored groups for Aboriginal representation are ineffective is because they have no real power. The reason why they are unecessary is because Aboriginal Australians are already represented in our political system. In the same way that all Australians are. By their local Federal Member of Parliament.

The issue of Aboriginal reconciliation needs to be tackled at from 2 angles. The first is largely symbolic. Symbolic but not unimportant. It involves Australians (read: the Australian Government) being frank in their assesment of the relationship between Aboriginal and mainstream Australian, both as it is today and as it has been in our history. The question of an apology to Indigenous Australians should hinge on one question and one question alone. Were Aboriginal Australians unjustly treated by successive Australian Governments, both federal and state since the European colonisation of Australia? That is the only question that needs to be answered. The legal ramifications of such an apology dont come into consideration. Not only is it a conservative furphy to suggest that such an apology would open up the flood gates on a torrent of litigation against the Federal Government but it is also unethical. As a nation we are behaving with the maturity of small children. We dont seem to have the capacity to recognise the injustice done in our name and then make ammends. John Howards refusal to apologise is akin to the small child that accidentally hurts one of his class mates but then refueses to apologise saying "I didn't mean to do it. It was an accident. I will not apologise." Or worse, like a small child that deliberately strikes out at his classmate but refuses to even acknolwedge culpability despite being caught red handed by the teacher. Much like small children, self interest and self interest alone determines our actions.

The second angle from which this problem needs to be addressed is all about doing a better job of including Aboriginals into mainstream society. It is what John Howard would call practical reonciliation. "Black people make up only 2 per cent of the population but account for a fifth of jail inmates. They have the nation's highest rates of disease and infant mortality." On consideration of this a few things seem clear. Firstly, this state of affairs is unacceptable and it is incumbent on the Australian Government to help Aboriginals improve their situation in life. Help them to end the cycle of poverty and disadvantage. The second thing that is apparent is that this