Newsletter date: 12 December 2012
Contents:
* WGAR Human Rights Day open letter to PM Julia Gillard
* SNAICC News: 10 December 2012 - Human Rights Day focuses on the rights of all people
* SBS World News Video: Human Rights awards: Indigenous members recognised
* Larissa Behrendt, Age: Sadly, the Redfern speech is still the high-water mark for inclusion
* Let's Talk interview with Sol Bellear on the 20th Anniversary of Paul Keating’s Redfern Speech
* The Wire: Redfern speech still inspires hope despite decades of 'policy failures' [Featured in story: Larissa Behrendt]
* Greens Senator Rachel Siewert: Redfern anniversary a time for action
* News re 20th anniversary of Redfern Speech
* Larissa Behrendt, ABC Drum Opinion: The Indigenous justice divide
* Geraldine Fela, Solidarity: Taser deaths show why killer cops must face justice
* Other articles
* WGAR HUMAN RIGHTS DAY OPEN LETTER TO PM JULIA GILLARD:
- Media Release
Working Group for Aboriginal Rights Human Rights Day open letter to PM Julia Gillard
http://indymedia.org.au/2012/12/10/working-group-for-aboriginal-rights-h...
10 Dec 12: "Prime Minister,
The Working Group for Aboriginal Rights is calling on you and your government to change direction in your policies on Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Affairs.
We recommend you focus your strategies on the Theo van Boven principles of Reparation for Peoples who have suffered gross violations of Human Rights. His extensive work clarifies the remedial steps needed for people to recover from Human Rights abuses [UN ECOSOC Resolution 2005/30]. Apology is only the first step and the health and well-being of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islanders is dependent, in our opinion, on all seven steps of the Theo van Boven principles being implemented: restitution, compensation, rehabilitation, satisfaction and guarantees of non-repetition and prevention.
The evidence is clear that Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islanders are still suffering gross violations of Human Rights and have done so since 1788 and it is now encumbent upon your government to finally change tack and begin to deal with the reality of Aboriginal Peoples’ continuing survival against all odds. ... "
* SNAICC NEWS: 10 DECEMBER 2012 - HUMAN RIGHTS DAY FOCUSES ON THE RIGHTS OF ALL PEOPLE
- Media Release
Secretariat of National Aboriginal and Islander Child Care:
SNAICC News: Media release 10 December 2012 - Human Rights Day focuses on the rights of all people
Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples have a right to be heard and participate in decision-making.
http://www.snaicc.org.au/news-events/fx-view-article.cfm?loadref=32&id=945
10 Dec 12: "SNAICC calls on governments in Australia to heed the themes for this year's Human Rights Day being celebrated across the globe today: inclusion and the right to participate in public life.
In 2012, Human Rights Day focuses on the rights of all people - women, youth, minorities, persons with disabilities, Indigenous peoples, the poor and marginalised - to make their voices heard in public life and be included in political decision-making.
The right to participate is a key ingredient to break the cycle of entrenched disadvantage and critical to improve the realisation of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples’ rights across Australia, including children and families.
In the Prime Minister’s Closing the Gap report in February - which revealed improvements in infant mortality rates and access to early childhood services but slower progress in other key areas - Ms Gillard said the foundations for overcoming Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander disadvantage have been laid.
SNAICC strongly maintains that building on these foundations will require genuine participation and partnership with Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples, organisations and communities. ... "
* SBS WORLD NEWS VIDEO: HUMAN RIGHTS AWARDS: INDIGENOUS MEMBERS RECOGNISED
- Video
SBS World News Video: Human Rights awards: Indigenous members recognised
http://www.sbs.com.au/news/article/1719399/Human-Rights-awards-Indigenou...
10 Dec 12: "Three members of the Indigenous community have been recognised at the Australian Human Rights Commission awards in Sydney. And the main prize went to an athlete who's made it his mission to work with remote communities. He's won many golds in the pool. Now Ian Thorpe is the proud owner of a Human Rights Medal. ... Other winners include Pat Anderson who took home the award for Community Individual. ... The Aboriginal Legal Service of Western Australia was named best community organisation and 21 year old Ngoongar lawyer Krista McMeeken won the Young People's Human Rights Medal."
* LARISSA BEHRENDT, AGE: SADLY, THE REDFERN SPEECH IS STILL THE HIGH-WATER MARK FOR INCLUSION
- Analysis / Opinion
Age: Sadly, the Redfern speech is still the high-water mark for inclusion
http://www.theage.com.au/opinion/sadly-the-redfern-speech-is-still-the-h...
10 Dec 12: "Twenty years ago, Keating offered a national narrative of genuine recognition. WHEN I was a law student in Sydney in the late 1980s it was an urban myth that taxi drivers wouldn't take you to Redfern. The ABC's critically acclaimed series Redfern Now might show how far we have come from this stereotype; ... So if taxi drivers believed that Redfern was a no-go zone, imagine what it must have been like to hear 20 years ago that the prime minister was paying the neighbourhood a visit." By Larissa Behrendt, professor of law, University of Technology, Sydney
* LET'S TALK INTERVIEW WITH SOL BELLEAR ON THE 20TH ANNIVERSARY OF PAUL KEATING'S REDFERN SPEECH
- Audio Interview
Indigenous radio station 98.9FM Brisbane:
Let's Talk - Sol Bellear and Gwen Taylor
http://www.989fm.com.au/category/podcasts/lets-talk/
10 Dec 12: "Sol Bellear - Chairperson of the Aboriginal Medical Service in Redfern on the 20th Anniversary of Paul Keating’s Redfern Speach.
Gwen Taylor - Queensland Council of Unions talks about Qld stolen wages."
Listen to this interview on-line:
http://www.989fm.com.au/podcasts/lets-talk/sol-bellear-and-gwen-taylor/
* THE WIRE: REDFERN SPEECH STILL INSPIRES HOPE DESPITE DECADES OF 'POLICY FAILURES' [FEATURED IN STORY: LARISSA BEHRENDT]
- Audio Interview
The Wire: Redfern speech still inspires hope despite decades of 'policy failures'
Produced by Tim Roxburgh
http://www.thewire.org.au/storyDetail.aspx?ID=9952
10 Dec 12: "The speech made 20 years ago today by the then Prime Minister Paul Keating in Redfern is now considered one of the most significant speeches in Australian political history. But for many Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people the anniversary of the speech is a bittersweet occasion. The speech inspired much optimism, but some say that the last 20 years of federal politics has seen more policy failures than policy successes in addressing indigenous disadvantage. One person who was there in Redfern when the speech was made was Larissa Behrendt. Then a graduate fresh from law school, she’s now Professor of Law and Director of Research at the Jumbunna Indigenous House of Learning at the University of Technology, Sydney.
Featured in story:
Larissa Behrendt - Professor of Law, Director of Research at the Jumbunna Indigenous House of Learning"
* GREENS SENATOR RACHEL SIEWERT: REDFERN ANNIVERSARY A TIME FOR ACTION
- Media Release
Greens Senator Rachel Siewert: Redfern anniversary a time for action
http://rachel-siewert.greensmps.org.au/content/media-releases/redfern-an...
10 Dec 12: "Aboriginal & Torres Strait Islander Issues
The Australian Greens said today the 20th Anniversary of Paul Keating’s landmark Redfern speech should serve as an opportunity for today’s politicians to reflect on what still needs to be done to deliver better outcomes for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Peoples.
"There is much to be done by Governments to improve outcomes for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples and reduce the gaps in education, employment and life expectancy that continue to exist," Senator Rachel Siewert, spokesperson on Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Issues said today.
"The Redfern speech helped put us on a path towards reconciliation, but this is far from a complete process. It is important that we continue the spirit of the Redfern Speech and the Apology to the Stolen Generations, rather than lose momentum.
"Unfortunately we still see many flawed approaches, this ALP Government has taken on the interventionist approach of the Howard Government and continued and expanded the Northern Territory Intervention through Stronger Futures. Rather than continued with unproven, paternalistic approaches, the Greens are looking to deliver the policies and investments needed to improve outcomes. ... " [said Senator Rachel Siewert] "
* NEWS RE 20TH ANNIVERSARY OF REDFERN SPEECH:
- News
National Indigenous Radio Service: Nation celebrates 20th anniversary of Redfern Speech
http://www.nirs.org.au/news/latest-news/7679-nation-celebrates-20th-anni...
10 Dec 12: "NIRS/ABC/98.9fm
The chairman of the Aboriginal Medical Service in Redfern says more still needs to be done for Indigenous Australians, 20 years after former Prime Minister Paul Keating acknowledged the past wrongs of Australian governments. Aboriginal elders gathered in Sydney to mark the 20-year anniversary of Paul Keating's Redfern speech, considered one of the most important addresses in Australia's history. Speaking to a crowd at Redfern Park on December 10, 1992, the then-prime minister acknowledged the impact of European settlement on Indigenous Australians."
newsTracker: First nations reflect on Keating’s speech
http://tracker.org.au/2012/12/first-nations-reflect-on-keatings-speech/
10 Dec 12: "NATIONAL: Aboriginal community members have gathered in Sydney to mark the 20th anniversary of Paul Keating’s historic Redfern speech. The former prime minister’s speech on December 10, 1992, was the first time an Australian political leader had publicly acknowledged the impact of colonial and contemporary government policies on Aboriginal and Torres Strait islander people. The speech put reconciliation on Australia’s political agenda and is credited as paving the way for 2007′s formal apology to indigenous Australians."
Yahoo!7: Redfern marks Keating speech, 20 years on
http://au.news.yahoo.com/latest/a/-/latest/15587948/redfern-marks-keatin...
10 Dec 12: "Aboriginal elders gathered in Sydney to mark the 20th anniversary of Paul Keating's Redfern speech, considered one of the most important addresses in Australia's history. Speaking to a crowd at Redfern Park on December 10, 1992, the then-prime minister acknowledged the impact of European settlement on Indigenous Australians. The speech put reconciliation between Indigenous and non-Indigenous Australians firmly on the political agenda, and some say it paved the way for the formal apology to Indigenous Australians."
Australian: Redfern speech promised much, delivered little
http://www.theaustralian.com.au/national-affairs/indigenous/redfern-spee...
10 Dec 12: "THEY were a jaded and restless crowd who'd heard it all before. And when Paul Keating delivered the opening line of his Redfern Park speech - "I'm very pleased to be here today" - many saw no reason to listen too closely. Then with five words, Labor's treasurer turned prime minister changed history. "The problem starts with us," declared Keating in a historic acknowledgement of past wrongs." By Natasha Robinson
Australian: Call to extend land rights after initial 'leaps and bounds'
http://www.theaustralian.com.au/national-affairs/industrial-relations/ca...
10 Dec 12: "THE nation's peak indigenous body will today make a declaration on progress 20 years after Paul Keating's Redfern address, calling for an extension of land rights." By Patricia Karvelas
* LARISSA BEHRENDT, ABC DRUM OPINION: THE INDIGENOUS JUSTICE DIVIDE
- Analysis / Opinion
ABC Drum Opinion: The Indigenous justice divide
http://www.abc.net.au/unleashed/4419290.html
10 Dec 12: "Can our legal system, which is so quick to lock up Indigenous offenders, deliver justice for Indigenous people when they are the victims of crime, asks Larissa Behrendt. Human Rights Day is a time for reflection on how we meet benchmarks for human rights protections and where we can improve our protections; particularly of the disadvantaged and marginalised. One issue that concerns me, perhaps due to my background as a lawyer, relates to our criminal justice system. New data released last week shows that the incarceration rates for Aboriginal women have increased." By Professor Larissa Behrendt, Professor of Law and and Director of Research, Jumbunna Indigenous House of Learning, University of Technology, Sydney
- Related Audio
Central Australian Aboriginal Media Association:
http://caama.com.au/radio#tabs-6
http://caama.com.au/wp-content/uploads/2012/12/am-10-12-update.mp3
10 Dec 12: "A 20 per cent increase in the number of Aboriginal women being locked up has led to a faster rate of increase for women being jailed than men according to new figures released by The Australian Bureau of Statistics."
See:
WGAR News: Twenty per cent increase in Indigenous women in prisons: ABC The World Today Audio (10 Dec 12)
http://indymedia.org.au/2012/12/10/wgar-news-twenty-per-cent-increase-in...
* GERALDINE FELA, SOLIDARITY: TASER DEATHS SHOW WHY KILLER COPS MUST FACE JUSTICE
- Analysis / Opinion
Solidarity: Taser deaths show why killer cops must face justice
http://www.solidarity.net.au/51/taser-deaths-show-why-killer-cops-must-f...
Nov 2012: "Aboriginal people in Australia know well that there is no justice in the justice system. The police will not be brought to account without a fight.
Justice for Briscoe:
Right now in the Northern Territory the family of Kwementyaye Briscoe are showing us how to fight. The coroner’s report into the Anmatjere man’s death on January 5 this year laid blame clearly on police negligence. Briscoe’s family has led a strong campaign calling for charges to be laid for negligent manslaughter. Demonstrations have taken place across the country, ... " By Geraldine Fela
- Related Audio
Central Australian Aboriginal Media Association:
http://caama.com.au/radio#tabs-6
http://caama.com.au/wp-content/uploads/2012/12/am-10-12-update.mp3
10 Dec 12: "Trish Morton Thomas will address a rally on deaths in custody, policing and justice on International Human rights Day following the death in custody of her nephew Kwementyaye Briscoe."
See:
WGAR News: Alice Springs Human Rights Day Rally demands justice for Kumentjaye Briscoe: MR (9 Dec 12)
http://indymedia.org.au/2012/12/09/wgar-news-alice-springs-human-rights-...
WGAR News: STICS's response to Coroner’s report about the Death in Custody of Kwementyaye Briscoe (1 Oct 12)
http://indymedia.org.au/2012/09/30/wgar-news-sticss-response-to-coroner%...
[STICS: Stop the Intervention Collective Sydney]
WGAR News: "Coronial report highlights systemic flaws" [ANTaR & National Police Accountability Network] (21 Sep 12)
http://indymedia.org.au/2012/09/21/wgar-news-coronial-report-highlights-...
Petition: Petitioning Chief Minister of the Northern Territory:
Justice for Kwementyaye Briscoe - lay charges against police
Petition by Trisha Morton Thomas, Alice Springs, Australia
http://www.change.org/petitions/justice-for-kwementyaye-briscoe-lay-char...
* 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-11-12.mp3
11 Dec 12: "* The founder of Australia’s first registered Aboriginal political party says that he is looking for candidates to stand for both the House of Representatives and the Senate and the next Federal election so that all Australians can have choice in who represents them.
* Peak Aboriginal Organisations in the NT says the recent mini-budget cuts to Aboriginal directed services are a false economy that will lead to increased preventable harm and cost the community more in the longer term."
The Wire: Indigenous media suffering from a 'policy vacuum' says expert
Produced by Tim Roxburgh
http://www.thewire.org.au/storyDetail.aspx?ID=9953
10 Dec 12: "This week will see the launch of Australia’s first nationally-broadcast, free-to-air indigenous television channel. But amidst the launch festivities, one expert on indigenous media says that the sector is operating in a virtual policy vacuum. Michael Meadows is a Professor in the school of Humanities at Griffith University. He wholeheartedly welcomes the launch of the national channel, but says that it should have happened long ago. He says that a lack of a public discussion about the sector has led to a lack of coherent policy and insufficient support for community-led media initiatives. ...
Featured in story:
Michael Meadows - Professor in the School of Humanities, Griffith University"
- News
National Indigenous Radio Service: City council proposals don't satisfy Sandon Point mob
http://www.nirs.org.au/news/latest-news/7678-city-council-proposals-dont...
10 Dec 12: "The chair of the Illawarra Local Aboriginal Land Council in New South Wales says he rejects the Wollongong City Council's draft management plan of Sandon Point. Roy 'Dootch' Kennedy says Sandon Point contains a sacred burial site and an Aboriginal Tent Embassy was established 12 years ago to protect it. The Wollongong Council is calling for comment on the plan setting out how the land will be managed, which includes four options for the future of the Embassy. Mr. Kennedy says none of the options allow for the Embassy to stay in its intended and desired form."
National Indigenous Radio Service: Jailing people won't reduce reoffending rates: ALS
http://www.nirs.org.au/news/latest-news/7681-jailing-people-wont-reduce-...
11 Dec 12: "The New South Wales/ACT Aboriginal Legal Service (ALS) says it supports a movement to push governments to spend more money on crime prevention programs rather than putting people in jail. A Senate inquiry will look at the approach of justice reinvestment, in particular its potential to reduce the over-representation of Indigenous people in prison. The Aboriginal Legal Service's Chief Legal Officer John McKenzie says high incarceration rates have devastating impacts on Indigenous communities. Mr. McKenzie says putting people in jail often doesn't stop them from reoffending."
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http://indymedia.org.au/2012/04/30/about-wgar-news-working-group-for-abo...
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