Newsletter date: 8 December 2012
Contents:
* Sovereign Union: Act of Recognition is an insult to First Nations Peoples
* The Wire: Sovereign group says Act of Recognition is 'so insulting'
* Background to the Aboriginal sovereignty movement
* NIRS: Media coverage influences Indigenous policy: Report [Demise of bilingual programs]
* Background to the use of Aboriginal languages in NT schools
* NSW Greens: Ausgrid will "get off with a modest fine" over the destruction of a significant Aboriginal site [Source: Tracker]
* SNAICC News: Royal Commission must ensure the engagement of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples
* Brisbane Times: Brisbane tent embassy to be shut down
* Background to the Aboriginal tent embassies
* Other articles
* SOVEREIGN UNION: ACT OF RECOGNITION IS AN INSULT TO FIRST NATIONS PEOPLES
- Media Statement
Sovereign Union: Act of Recognition is an insult to First Nations Peoples
http://nationalunitygovernment.org/content/act-recognition-insult-first-...
4 Dec 12: "Sovereign Union spokesperson Michael Anderson, slams the Act of Recognition introduced by Jenny Macklin as an absolute insult to First Nations Peoples.
Mr Anderson said in a media release that First Nations people have been denied human rights since the invasion under military rules in 1788.
"By not declaring war the invasion developed into a genocide, in which women, children and non-combatants were slaughtered and they could avoid taking prisoners of war," he writes in his media statement.
"If Jenny Macklin and the Gillard government had any decency they would withdraw this Act of Recognition immediately and first consult First Nations people whether they approve of this type of action. On the other hand, recognition of our continuing sovereignty is the most prudent way forward." ... "
- Related News
Koori Mail: Anderson calls Act an insult
[scroll down page] http://www.koorimail.com/index.php
5 Dec 12: "ABORIGINAL rights campaigner Michael Anderson has called on the Federal Government to withdraw the Act of Recognition, saying it was an insult to First Nation’s Peoples. Mr Anderson said the Act submitted by Federal Indigenous Affairs Minister Jenny Macklin into the Federal Parliament recently has nothing to remedy the 'genocidal and ethnocidal practices being perpetrated against Aboriginal people'. "If Jenny Macklin and the Gillard government had any decency they would withdraw this Act of Recognition immediately and first consult Aboriginal people nationwide whether they approve of this type of action. On the other hand, recognition of our continuing sovereignty is the most prudent way forward," he said."
See:
WGAR News: Amy McQuire: Act of Recognition introduced to lower house (3 Dec 12)
[scroll down page] http://indymedia.org.au/2012/12/03/wgar-news-a-decision-to-discriminate-...
* THE WIRE: SOVEREIGN GROUP SAYS ACT OF RECOGNITION IS 'SO INSULTING'
- Audio Interviews
The Wire: Sovereign group says Act of Recognition is 'so insulting'
Produced by Lisa Burns
http://www.thewire.org.au/storyDetail.aspx?ID=9939
6 Dec 12: "It’s been talked about for a long time, but finally an Act to recognise First Nations Peoples in Australia’s Constitution has been tabled and was introduced to Federal parliament last week. ...
Featured in story:
* Michael Anderson, Founder of the Sovereign Union National Unity Government
* Mick Gooda, Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Social Justice Commissioner, Australian Human Rights Commission"
- Related Audio
Central Australian Aboriginal Media Association:
http://caama.com.au/radio#tabs-6
http://caama.com.au/wp-content/uploads/2012/12/am-5-12.mp3
5 Dec 12: "A veteran Aboriginal human rights campaigner [Michael Mansell] says the Gillard Labor governments tabling of a bill as an act of Recognition of his people is a hollow and meaningless gesture which diverts attention away from the promise of constitutional recognition."
See:
WGAR News: Amy McQuire: Act of Recognition introduced to lower house (3 Dec 12)
[scroll down page] http://indymedia.org.au/2012/12/03/wgar-news-a-decision-to-discrimiate-b...
* BACKGROUND TO THE ABORIGINAL SOVEREIGNTY MOVEMENT:
Last updated: 5 December 2012
http://indymedia.org.au/2012/04/22/background-to-the-aboriginal-sovereig...
* NIRS: MEDIA COVERAGE INFLUENCES INDIGENOUS POLICY: REPORT [DEMISE OF BILINGUAL PROGRAMS]
- News
National Indigenous Radio Service: Media coverage influences Indigenous policy: Report
http://www.nirs.org.au/news/latest-news/7668-media-coverage-influences-i...
5 Dec 12: "A new report shows media coverage of Indigenous issues can influence the way Indigenous affairs policies are developed, communicated and implemented. ... One of the chief investigators of the report, Dr. Kerry McCallum from the University of Canberra, says public discussion of Indigenous policy is often poor and often doesn't lead to good policy outcomes. She says one example was in 2008, where after intense media coverage of the Northern Territory's poor NAPLAN results, the government announced a controversial policy change - a greater focus on teaching English in the Territory's schools, which resulted in the demise of bilingual programs."
* BACKGROUND TO THE USE OF ABORIGINAL LANGUAGES IN NT SCHOOLS:
Last updated: 11 November 2012
http://indymedia.org.au/2012/05/05/background-to-the-use-of-aboriginal-l...
* NSW GREENS: AUSGRID WILL "GET OFF WITH A MODEST FINE" OVER THE DESTRUCTION OF A SIGNIFICANT ABORIGINAL SITE [SOURCE: TRACKER]
- News
newsTracker: Ausgrid will get off with "modest" fine over Cromer damage: Greens
http://tracker.org.au/2012/12/ausgrid-will-get-off-with-modest-fine-over...
5 Dec 12: "NEW SOUTH WALES: Ausgrid, formerly Energy Australia, will most likely "get off with a modest fine" over the destruction of a significant Aboriginal site on Sydney’s north shore, the NSW Greens say. Greens MLA David Shoebridge yesterday slammed the state Office of Environment and Heritage (OEH) and minister Robyn Parker over the damaged site in Cromer. In December 2010, workers for Macaya Electrical Services cut through a large carving of a footprint, situated on the side of a road while laying electrical cables. It was one of the most significant Aboriginal sites on the north shore. It has now been completely destroyed, and the site has not been preserved." By Amy McQuire, a Darumbal and South Sea Islander woman, editor of Tracker
* SNAICC NEWS: ROYAL COMMISSION MUST ENSURE THE ENGAGEMENT OF ABORIGINAL AND TORRES STRAIT ISLANDER PEOPLES
- Media Release
Secretariat of National Aboriginal and Islander Child Care:
SNAICC News: Media Release - Royal Commission must ensure the engagement of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples
http://www.snaicc.org.au/news-events/fx-view-article.cfm?loadref=32&id=934
4 Dec 12: "National peak bodies SNAICC and NATSILS [National Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Legal Services] have called for the forthcoming Royal Commission into institutional child sexual abuse to use the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child as the basis for its work and ensure the effective engagement of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples.
NATSILS Chairperson Shane Duffy said it was critical the Royal Commission’s work was framed by human rights principles "so that the special and unique rights of children are at the forefront of everyone’s minds throughout the inquiry and to ensure that well-established human rights standards are applied."
According to SNAICC and NATSILS, the Terms of Reference should specifically include the experiences of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children and young people who were forcibly removed by past policies of state and Commonwealth governments and placed in institutions, those in state care and those in detention. ... "
See:
SNAICC News: NATSILs and SNAICC joint submission on the Royal Commission into Institutional Responses to Child Sexual Abuse.
http://www.snaicc.org.au/news-events/fx-view-article.cfm?loadref=32&id=932
28 Nov 12: NATSILs and SNAICC have provided a joint submission on the Consultation Paper on the establishment of the Royal Commission into Institutional Responses to Child Sexual Abuse. This redresses core issues for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children and youth in the terms of reference and the form that the Royal Commission should take. ... "
WGAR News: The Wire: Call for indigenous commissioners to head up abuse investigation [Interview with Tjanara Goreng Goreng] (22 Nov 12)
http://indymedia.org.au/2012/11/21/wgar-news-the-wire-call-for-indigenou...
WGAR News: Don’t abandon us as you did in other Royal Commissions (By NIT reporter Geoff Bagnall) (27 Nov 12)
http://indymedia.org.au/2012/11/27/wgar-news-don%E2%80%99t-abandon-us-as...
* BRISBANE TIMES: BRISANE TENT EMBASSY TO BE SHUT DOWN
- News
Brisbane Times: Brisbane tent embassy to be shut down
http://www.brisbanetimes.com.au/queensland/brisbane-tent-embassy-to-be-s...
6 Dec 12: "The indigenous tent embassy at South Brisbane's Musgrave Park is set to be shut down. Lord Mayor Graham Quirk said the move was supported at "a special meeting of elders" on Wednesday. ... activist Wayne Wharton has written to Cr Quirk expressing his "absolute disgust" that the Lord Mayor "would seek to move against the Brisbane Aboriginal Sovereign Embassy". Mr Wharton's letter says Cr Quirk could not claim any legitimacy or consent based on the people in attendance at the meeting on Wednesday." By Katherine Feeney and Daniel Hurst
- Related News
Yahoo7!: Elders move to pack up Brisbane's tent embassy
http://au.news.yahoo.com/latest/a/-/article/15575228/elders-move-to-pack...
7 Dec 12: "Some of the protesters at Brisbane's tent embassy say they will remain at the site, despite being told by elders yesterday to leave. A group of elders yesterday informed the council they would pack up the tents and protest signs at Musgrave Park in South Brisbane because of increasing violence and rubbish. ... one elder Judulu Colin, says he is not moving and the site is in good condition. "There's no mess or rubbish - there's a bit of a thing there that's reclaimable and reusable, that are stacked neatly in the corner," he said."
ABC Brisbane: Sovereign embassy at Musgrave Park to close
http://www.abc.net.au/local/stories/2012/12/06/3649152.htm
6 Dec 12: "The Brisbane Lord Mayor says the Aboriginal sovereign embassy at Musgrave Park will be closed at the request of Elders. Brisbane Lord Mayor Graham Quirk says Brisbane City Council was approached by members of the Indigenous community to have the site closed amid concerns over the state of the site and growing violence in the park. ... Judulu, a Woomera man who was at the site on Thursday told ABC Radio that more people need to be consulted. "This is a people's movement, and there's a lot more Elders that need to be consulted. ... " By Emma Sykes
Business Spectator: Brisbane tent embassy to shut
http://www.businessspectator.com.au/bs.nsf/Article/Brisbane-tent-embassy...
6 Dec 12: "Brisbane's controversial indigenous tent embassy in Musgrave Park is to be shut down, Lord Mayor Graham Quirk says. The mayor says the removal of the tent embassy was called for by elders who unanimously supported the move at a special meeting at city hall on Wednesday. They were concerned about increased levels of violence at the site and an accumulation of rubbish."
* BACKGROUND TO THE ABORIGINAL TENT EMBASSIES:
Last updated: 5 December 2012
http://indymedia.org.au/2012/04/22/background-to-the-aboriginal-sovereig...
* OTHER ARTICLES:
- Audio
Central Australian Aboriginal Media Association:
http://caama.com.au/radio#tabs-6
http://caama.com.au/wp-content/uploads/2012/12/am-5-12.mp3
5 Dec 12: "National Indigenous Television Australia’s dedicated Aboriginal and Islander television service will be available free-to-air for all Australians for the first time, when it begins broadcasting on SBS from the 12th December."
- News
APO NT - Aboriginal Peak Organisations Northern Territory: NT Coordinator-General for Remote Services 2012 Report
http://apont.org.au/index.php/nt-coordinator-general-for-remote-services...
6 Dec 12: "The Northern Territory Coordinator-General for Remote Services (NTCGRS), Ms Olga Havnen released her report into government expenditure, programs and service delivery on 24 September 2012. A copy of this report can be found below in PDF format. The report focuses on four major themes based on the approach taken by governments since the 2007 NT Emergency Response (NTER) and reflects national partnership goal and proposed arrangements over the next ten years under Stronger Futures measures. These are: ... "
National Indigenous Radio Service: Uranium spills concern Goldfields traditional owner
http://www.nirs.org.au/news/latest-news/7669-uranium-spills-concern-gold...
6 Dec 12: "A traditional owner of Western Australia's Goldfields region says she presented a letter to directors of uranium mining company Toro Energy at their annual general meeting in Adelaide last week. Vicki McCabe from Leonora is concerned about the transport of uranium from a proposed mine at Wiluna to the north because of health and environmental issues. Toro is waiting final approval from the Federal Government for the project."
ABC: Woodside's fast track application under scrutiny
http://www.abc.net.au/news/2012-12-05/opposition-to-woodside27s-fast-tra...
5 Dec 12: "A proposal to fast-track approvals for Woodside's Kimberley gas hub development had attracted 1,700 submissions by yesterday's deadline. The broader LNG precinct, north of Broome, has already been ticked off by the Environmental Protection Authority. But, the EPA now needs to consider whether or not to approve Woodside's facility within the hub. Woodside wants its processing facility to be treated as a 'derived proposal', or part of the already approved precinct project. It is the first time an application has been made to use the legislation in such a way."
The Transcontinental: Constitution recognises Aboriginal people
http://www.transcontinental.com.au/story/1166589/constitution-recognises...
5 Dec 12: "Aboriginal people could be officially recognised in the South Australian constitution following the introduction of Constitution (Recognition of Aboriginal Peoples) Amendment Bill by Premier Jay Weatherill. He said in state parliament that it would help to "raise the self-esteem of Aboriginal South Australians". But Port Augusta man, Arrabanna chairperson Aaron Stuart says it is not enough. It is his preference to see changes to the Commonwealth constitution that would mean recognition for all Aboriginal people, regardless of which state or territory they lived in."
ABC: More prisoners will have to work, says Elferink
http://www.abc.net.au/news/2012-12-05/elferink-on-prison-work-gangs/4410136
5 Dec 12: "Corrections Minister John Elferink says more Northern Territory prisoners will be forced to participate in work gangs under the Country Liberals Government. An extra $450,000 has been committed to the program as part of yesterday's mini budget. It will create two additional prison work gangs. Mr Elferink says they will help provide services for pensioners, including the mowing of lawns in Darwin and Alice Springs. He says he wants convicted criminals to repay their debt to society."
National Indigenous Radio Service: Alcohol policy should be "based on evidence, not politics"
http://www.nirs.org.au/news/latest-news/7666-alcohol-policy-should-be-qb...
5 Dec 12: "The North Australian Aboriginal Justice Agency says the Federal Government has expressed support to engage Indigenous communities to develop alcohol management plans. The Northern Territory 'Grog Summit' was held recently, where community members and organisations discussed greater Aboriginal involvement in decision-making to manage alcohol in troubled communities. NAAJA CEO Pricilla Collins says there's no doubt about the harm of alcohol, but governments must acknowledge cultural complexities."
newsTracker: Gurrumul refused taxi in racist incident
http://tracker.org.au/2012/12/gurrumul-refused-taxi-in-racist-incident/
5 Dec 12: "NATIONAL: A Melbourne taxi driver’s refusal to pick up award-winning Aboriginal singer Geoffrey Gurrumul Yunupingu could only be a result of racism, his manager has said. Gurrumul’s manager Mark Grose told ABC Radio today that he had hailed a taxi for Gurrumul and his girlfriend Bronwyn after the blind singer-songwriter had performed at the Palais Theatre in Melbourne. Gurrumul was on tour with singer Missy Higgens. Mr Grose said he then went back to get Gurrumul. "The taxi driver looked at him, said no, locked the car and drove off," Mr Grose told the ABC."
newsTracker: NSW bowling club’s racist penalty: tribunal
http://tracker.org.au/2012/12/nsw-bowling-clubs-racist-penalty-tribunal/
4 Dec 12: "NATIONAL: A western NSW bowling club racially discriminated against an Aboriginal woman when it suspended her for two years for swearing on the phone, a tribunal has found. Bourke Bowling Club imposed a "harsh" penalty on Patricia ‘Bo’ Brown for swearing in March 2009, despite the fact other members freely admitted swearing was "common" in Bourke, the Administrative Decisions Tribunal (ADT) said. The tribunal ordered the club to pay $8000 to Ms Brown and apologise for racially discriminating against her."
ALS Aboriginal Legal Service (NSW/ACT)
ALS News: ALS welcomes government report on NSW Bail laws
http://www.alsnswact.org.au/news_items/67
28 Nov 12: " Aboriginal Legal Service (NSW/ACT) is supportive of the NSW government’s response to the Law Reform Commission’s report on Bail, released 28 November 2012. John McKenzie, Chief Legal Officer of ALS, says the time spent preparing their response to the Law Reform Commission’s recommendations appears to have been worth it. "This is definitely going in the right direction," says Mr McKenzie. "The reforms advocated hit at the heart of what we at the ALS are concerned about, and that’s the over-representation of Aboriginal juveniles in detention and remand. ... "
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http://indymedia.org.au/2012/04/30/about-wgar-news-working-group-for-abo...
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