Newsletter date: 13 July 2012
Contents:
* Sisters of Saint Joseph: Younger Sisters Voice their Solidarity
* Background: Calls for 'Stronger Futures' laws to be subject to Human Rights scrutiny
* Craig Longman: Stronger Futures shines a light on a nation’s racism
* Jon Altman: NT intervention: what happened to outcomes?
* Michael Brull: Strong Futures: no evidence things are getting better
* Emma Murphy: Aboriginal rights movement mourns stolen futures
* Eva Cox: Income management starts throughout Australia
* Interview with Eva Cox on the extension of income management
* Penny Howard: Intervention laws pass but support for fight in Bankstown builds
* Paddy Gibson: Locked up and killed for being black: Racism, deaths in custody and the NT Intervention
* More 'Stronger Futures' Legislation related articles
* Background to 'Stronger Futures' new NT Intervention laws
* Background to the Northern Territory (NT) Intervention
* Chris Graham: Constitutional Reform: There’s a sucker born every minute
* SISTERS OF SAINT JOSEPH: YOUNGER SISTERS VOICE THEIR SOLIDARITY
- News
Sisters of Saint Joseph: Younger Sisters Voice their Solidarity
http://www.sosj.org.au/news-events/view_article.cfm?id=897&loadref=7
9 Jul 12: "The Under 60 year old Sisters of Saint Joseph from Peru, Brazil, New Zealand and Australia, many of whom live, work and are in solidarity with Indigenous Peoples, came together in Sydney last week to network and celebrate life together. ... With Northern Territory Elders and the National Congress of Australia’s First Peoples we call on the Indigenous Affairs Minister Jenny Macklin to allow the Parliamentary Committee on Human Rights to examine all control measures proposed in the Stronger Futures Bill."
* BACKGROUND: CALLS FOR 'STRONGER FUTURES' LAWS TO BE SUBJECT TO HUMAN RIGHTS SCRUTINY
Last updated: 12 July 2012
http://indymedia.org.au/2012/07/07/background-calls-for-stronger-futures...
* CRAIG LONGMAN: STRONGER FUTURES SHINES A LIGHT ON A NATION'S RACISM
- Analysis / Opinion
agendaTracker: Stronger Futures shines a light on a nation’s racism
http://tracker.org.au/2012/07/stronger-futures-shines-a-light-on-nations...
12 Jul 12: "NATIONAL: The character of a society can be determined through its legislative process. So what does Stronger Futures say about Australia, asks CRAIG LONGMAN*. This month, the federal government’s Stronger Future’s Legislation passed the Senate. ... The legislation clearly discriminates on the basis of race, and so is, on its face, in breach of the Racial Discrimination Act, unless it can be characterised as a 'special measure'." Craig Longman, senior researcher, Jumbunna Indigenous House of Learning, University of Technology, Sydney
* JON ALTMAN: NT INTERVENTION: WHAT HAPPENED TO OUTCOMES?
- Analysis / Opinion
Crikey: NT intervention: what happened to outcomes?
http://www.crikey.com.au/2012/07/12/nt-intervention-what-happened-to-out...
12 Jul 12: "The fifth anniversary of the Northern Territory Emergency Response Intervention ticked over Tuesday. It was supposed to be “liberation” day for prescribed communities in the Northern Territory, by now supposedly "stabilised, normalised and exited". Instead it was another day of shame for the many Aboriginal people who are demeaned and humiliated by intervention measures and resent such "special" treatment." By Jon Altman of ANU's Centre for Aboriginal Economic Policy Research
* MICHAEL BRULL: STRONG FUTURES: NO EVIDENCE THINGS ARE GETTING BETTER
- Analysis / Opinion
ABC The Drum Opinion: Strong Futures: no evidence things are getting better
http://www.abc.net.au/unleashed/4118526.html
9 Jul 12: "All it took was one night of debate in the Senate, for the Stronger Futures legislation to pass into law. All done in about eight hours, from 6.00pm on June 28, to about 2:15am the next morning. This was in the face of vast Indigenous opposition to this expansion of the intervention. Rev Dr Djiniyini Gondarra OAM, speaking for 8,000 Aboriginal people in the Northern Territory, declared the day the laws passed a "day of mourning". Similarly, Rosalie Kunoth Monks announced "We will never accept this racist legislation"." Michael Brull, is involved in Stop The Intervention Collective Sydney (STICS)
* EMMA MURPHY: ABORIGINAL RIGHTS MOVEMENT MOURNS STOLEN FUTURES
- News
Green Left: Aboriginal rights movement mourns stolen futures
http://www.greenleft.org.au/node/51571
6 Jul 12: "In the early hours of June 29, the Australian Senate passed legislation that is expected to entrench assimilation, disadvantage and racism for another decade in the Northern Territory. Aboriginal leaders across the NT declared a period of mourning after the new laws - called Stronger Futures - were passed as they reel from the decision, take stock and plan to up the ante in their fight against the latest neoliberal assault on their communities. ... One thing we know from the history of Aboriginal resistance is that the fight in the NT will continue, in new and creative ways. A strong, nationwide solidarity campaign is as needed as it ever was: ... " Emma Murphy, Darwin
* EVA COX: INCOME MANAGEMENT STARTS THROUGHOUT AUSTRALIA
- Analysis / Opinion
The Conversation: Income management starts throughout Australia
http://www.sbs.com.au/news/article/1667198/Income-management-starts-thro...
9 Jul 12: "Despite a lack of evidence that financial control improves parenting or social order, income management is going ahead and few know it is happening, writes Eva Cox from UTS. ... Income management was originally trialled in 72 Aboriginal communities in the Northern Territory under Intervention legislation, but is now spreading throughout Australia. The amending legislation went through parliament late last Thursday night, and on Monday Centrelink started signing up "customers". ...clients are being identified in five new areas: Bankstown, Shepparton, Playford, Logan and Rockhampton." By Eva Cox, University of Technology, Sydney
* INTERVIEW WITH EVA COX ON THE EXTENSION OF INCOME MANAGEMENT
- Audio Interview
Indigenous radio station 98.9FM Brisbane:
Eva Cox
http://www.989fm.com.au/category/podcasts/
12 Jul 12: "Eva Cox AO is a writer, feminist, sociologist, social commentator, and activist. Eva has been an active advocate for creating more civil societies"
Listen to this interview on-line:
http://www.989fm.com.au/podcasts/lets-talk/eve-cox/
[Includes discussion of the extension of income management.]
* PENNY HOWARD: INTERVENTION LAWS PASS BUT SUPPORT FOR FIGHT IN BANKSTOWN BUILDS
- News
Solidarity: Intervention laws pass but support for fight in Bankstown builds
http://www.solidarity.net.au/47/intervention-laws-pass-but-support-for-f...
July 2012: ""The Government has shown absolute disregard for our wishes and our human rights", Dr Djiniyini Gondarra, Yolngu Nations Assembly spokesperson, declared after "Stronger Futures" laws passed the Senate on June 29. The laws extend the Northern Territory Intervention for ten years and have been condemned by the Yolngu Nations and many Aboriginal, community and church organisations. 42,000 people signed a petition opposing the legislation. One aspect of what many now describe as “Stolen Futures” is the expansion of the policy of Income Management or welfare quarantining. The Sydney suburb of Bankstown is one of five areas chosen for the expansion, although the Minister can now designate other sites at will." Penny Howard
* PADDY GIBSON: LOCKED UP AND KILLED FOR BEING BLACK: RACISM, DEATHS IN CUSTODY AND THE NT INTERVENTION
- Analysis / Opinion
Solidarity: Locked up and killed for being black: Racism, deaths in custody and the NT Intervention
http://www.solidarity.net.au/47/locked-up-and-killed-for-being-black-rac...
July 2012: "Disgracefully, Labor has continued this Intervention and just passed "Stronger Futures" legislation that will extend its key powers until 2022 ... The recent growth in the numbers of Aboriginal people locked up-and dying in custody-indicates the growing level of oppression of Aboriginal people thanks to the policies of the Howard government and their extension by Labor. Family spokesperson Patricia Morton-Thomas has said her nephew Kwementyaye Briscoe was, "a victim of the NT Intervention". This is not just because there are more police, with more powers, than before 2007, but also because, "the Intervention has let every closet racist in the Territory to come out". It has dehumanised Aboriginal people, legitimising the sort of brutal treatment and indifference to suffering demonstrated by the police in the Briscoe case. Without turning around policies like the NT Intervention, there will be more Aboriginal people behind bars and more grieving families." Paddy Gibson
- Related News
Solidarity: How police killed Kwementyaye Briscoe
http://www.solidarity.net.au/highlights/how-police-killed-kwementyaye-br...
July 2012: "The full, shocking truth about the death of Kwementyaye Briscoe in Alice Springs has been exposed by a two-week coronial investigation. Kwementyaye was an Anmatjere man, and his death is a tragic story of police brutality, criminal neglect and systemic racism. ... Patricia Morton-Thomas put out a joint statement with the Stop the Intervention Collective Sydney, calling for charges to be laid: "If my nephew had not been taken into police custody, he would be alive today....Aboriginal people are sitting in jail for things far less serious than what [Evans] did to my young fella."" Paddy Gibson
* MORE 'STRONGER FUTURES' LEGISLATION RELATED ARTICLES:
- Analysis / Opinion
SMH: NT's tough love: helping hand or a heavy hand?
http://www.smh.com.au/opinion/politics/nts-tough-love-helping-hand-or-a-...
7 Jul 12: "Written by another former indigenous affairs minister, Fred Chaney, the submission expresses the concern that the top-down structure of the response will preclude the very engagement with local communities that Macklin accepts is essential. ... Wisely, Macklin has made it plain that the legislation will be amended if it is not achieving the "desired outcomes" of reducing alcohol-fuelled violence, increasing school attendance and improving health and employment. The legislation is in place, but the debate about whether this is the best way to achieve results is only just beginning." Michael Gordon, national affairs editor, The Age
The Conversation: The 30-year cycle: Indigenous policy and the tide of public opinion
http://theconversation.edu.au/the-30-year-cycle-indigenous-policy-and-th...
6 Jul 12: "Last week, the Stronger Futures legislation passed through the senate – laws which extend the Northern Territory Intervention for another 10 years. The relative merits and faults of the legislation aside, equally noteworthy is the policy’s duration. It was Howard who initiated the Intervention in 2007, but there is a longer tradition at play here of public opinion shaping and forming Indigenous policies." Mark Moran, Adjunct Associate Professor, University of Queensland
- News
National Indigenous Times: Leaders challenge conduct of protesters against Minister at NAIDOC Ball
http://www.nit.com.au/your-say.html
http://www.nit.com.au/news/1418-macklin-brought-to-tears.html
12 Jul 12: "By National Indigenous Times Editor Stephen Hagan. Federal Indigenous Affairs Minister Jenny Macklin, the architect of the Stronger Futures Legislation (The Intervention) that passed through the Senate on June 29 required an intervention of her own at the 2012 NAIDOC Awards Ceremony and Ball held in Hobart on Friday night after unrelenting interruptions from around 20 Tasmanian protesters in... "
National Indigenous Times: Claims $250 incentive on offer at Bankstown to take up BasicsCard
http://www.nit.com.au/news/1414-claims-250-incentive-on-offer-at-banksto...
12 Jul 12: "By National Indigenous Times reporter Geoff Bagnall. Centrelink has been offering inducements in an attempt to get people to sign up to the BasicsCard in Bankstown in New South Wales in a repeat of tactics used in the Northern Territory Intervention. Paddy Gibson from the Stop the Intervention Collective, Sydney (STICS) said on the Monday when the... "
Koori Mail: Ten more years of Govt intervention
[scroll down page] http://www.koorimail.com/index.php?page=Current+Edition
11 Jul 12: "ABORIGINAL people living in prescribed communities across the Northern Territory face another ten years of government intervention in their lives. The Stronger Futures bills were passed by the Senate last week, and then ratified by the House of Representatives. The laws include tough alcohol restrictions, and a program that cuts the welfare payments of parents whose kids skip school, known as the Students Enrolment and Attendance Measure (SEAM), and prohibit cultural considerations being taken into account in sentencing. The package also expands income management for people on welfare to five trial sites outside the NT - in Bankstown, NSW, Playford, SA, Shepparton, Victoria, and Rockhampton and Logan in Queensland from 1 July."
SMH: No state deal yet on welfare trial
http://www.smh.com.au/national/no-state-deal-yet-on-welfare-trial-201207...
9 Jul 12: "THE Victorian government is yet to reach agreement with the Commonwealth about what part it will play in a welfare quarantining trial - originally introduced as part of the intervention in Northern Territory's remote indigenous communities - that has started in the town of Shepparton. ... But because Victoria has not reached agreement with the Commonwealth, for the time being only those who volunteer for income management will participate in the scheme."
The Mercury: Policy salvo for MP at ball
http://www.themercury.com.au/article/2012/07/08/344505_tasmania-news.html
8 Jul 12: "FEDERAL Indigenous Affairs Minister Jenny Macklin has been booed and heckled off stage at the gala NAIDOC Ball in Hobart. The spontaneous outpouring of disgust on Friday night was in response to Ms Macklin's support for the Government's extension of the controversial Northern Territory Aboriginal intervention scheme for a further 10 years. Ms Macklin was at the NAIDOC Week event to present the award for Aboriginal of the Year. But as soon as she walked on to the stage, people began a chorus of booing."
Shepparton News: Macklin defends Shepparton income management trial
http://www.mmg.com.au/local-news/shepparton/macklin-defends-shepparton-i...
5 Jul 12: "Families Minister Jenny Macklin says a controversial income management trial being run in Shepparton will ensure welfare payments are used in the best interests of children. About 1000 Shepparton people are expected to have their Centrelink payments controlled under the Federal Government’s income management pilot scheme, Families Minister Jenny Macklin said yesterday."
- Video
Today Tonight: Centrelink's new Basics card
http://au.news.yahoo.com/today-tonight/video/watch/29921745/centrelinks-...
http://au.news.yahoo.com/today-tonight/video/
9 Jul 12: "A radical system designed to give Centrelink more control over who gets welfare and how they use could mean a revolution, or just an angry revolt."
* BACKGROUND TO 'STRONGER FUTURES' NEW NT INTERVENTION LAWS:
Last updated: 9 July 2012
http://indymedia.org.au/2012/04/22/background-to-stronger-futures-new-nt...
* BACKGROUND TO THE NORTHERN TERRITORY (NT) INTERVENTION:
Last updated: 4 July 2012
http://indymedia.org.au/2012/04/22/background-to-the-northern-territory-...
* CHRIS GRAHAM: CONSTITUTIONAL REFORM: THERE'S A SUCKER BORN EVERY MINUTE
- Analysis / Opinion
agendaTracker: Constitutional Reform: There’s a sucker born every minute
http://tracker.org.au/2012/07/constitutional-reform-theres-a-suck-born-e...
11 Jul 12: "NATIONAL: I don’t normally agree with anything George Brandis says, but in this piece in The Australian last week it finally happened. ... In short, while-ever the Northern Territory intervention laws remain on our books; while-ever the jailing rates of Aboriginal people are world-beaters; while-ever Aboriginal children die of rheumatic heart disease; while-ever governments deny Aboriginal people basic land and human rights… there should be no engagement with government by Aboriginal leaders on constitutional reform." By Chris Graham, Walkley Award and Human Rights award winning writer, Managing Editor of Tracker
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