Newsletter date: 2 February 2013
Contents:
* Hands Off Country: UN Intervention called for at James Price Point
* The West: Push for UN to visit gas hub
* Respect and Listen: Save the Kimberley: Report on Walmadany - James Price Point
* Hands Off Country: Video: Barnett Blooms in Broome
* The West: Premier coy on ways to stop FLNG
* Background to the Save The Kimberley Campaign - James Price Point, north of Broome, WA
* NIRS: Income management admin costs over a million a year: Report
[sic - actually the amount is over one hundred million a year]
* Background to 'Stronger Futures' new NT Intervention laws
* Background to the Northern Territory (NT) Intervention
* NIRS: Sovereignty before constitutional recognition: Smallwood
* Background to the Aboriginal sovereignty movement
* NIRS: Nuclear industry "irresponsible" on Maralinga issue
* Background to Justice for Aboriginal victims of Maralinga nuclear tests
* NIT: Ryan’s defence of mining plan dismissed by angry protesters
* SBS World News Video: Saltwater/Yabun festivals shine
* Other articles
* HANDS OFF COUNTRY: UN INTERVENTION CALLED FOR AT JAMES PRICE POINT
- News Compilation
Hands Off Country: UN Intervention called for at James Price Point
http://handsoffcountry.blogspot.com.au/2013/01/un-intervention-called-fo...
31 Jan 13: "The project has also angered environmentalists and concerned paleontologists, with the state government's bid to compulsorily acquire the land after a legal stoush between native title claimant groups proving a particularly contentious issue. "We are supposed to have the right for free and prior informed consent; instead we get the compulsory acquisition of our land,'' Goolarabooloo elder Phillip Roe said. "We're supposed to have the right to protect our law, culture and sites, but when we ask for our sites to be protected, the state government approves their destruction. "When we try to stop this destruction, we're given move on notices from the police and told we'll be arrested.''"
[This article includes links to several other news items on the call for a UN intervention at James Price Point.]
* THE WEST: PUSH FOR UN TO VISIT GAS HUB
- News
The West: Push for UN to visit gas hub
http://au.news.yahoo.com/thewest/a/-/newshome/16027378/appeal-push-for-u...
30 Jan 13: "KRED Enterprises, a charitable trust set up by the Kimberley Land Council and representing three native title groups in the region, last week requested a UN visit to ensure the rights of native title holders are protected under resource development agreements. Today, the Goolarabooloo people said they had sent an urgent appeal to the UN’s Special Rapporteur on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples, telling it their rights under 15 articles of the Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples are being violated by the State Government and resource companies." AAP, The West Australian
* RESPECT AND LISTEN: SAVE THE KIMBERLEY: REPORT ON WALMADANY - JAMES PRICE POINT
- Report
Respect and Listen: Save the Kimberley: Report on Walmadany - James Price Point
[scroll down to bottom of page] http://www.respectandlisten.org/kimberley/save-the-kimberley.html
"At our WRN meeting in September, we were privileged to hear from Deborah Wall OAM who is working on her PhD Thesis which is focussed on Walmadany - James Price Point.
Some of the key points and aspects related to:
The clash between two cosmologies: a land-based cosmology culture and a Western commodity economy culture makes the narrative of connection to Country difficult to represent in a political process that values the prospect of industrialization in West Kimberley. Deborah talked about the story of how Paddy Roe formed the Goolarabooloo organisation and the Lurujarri Heritage Trail and how the concept of 'heritage' was represented in Goolarabooloo and the WA Government’s websites. ... "
See:
Respect and Listen - Kimberley
http://www.respectandlisten.org/kimberley.html
Respect and Listen - Home
http://www.respectandlisten.org/
* HANDS OFF COUNTRY: VIDEO: BARNETT BLOOMS IN BROOME
- Video
Hands Off Country: Barnett Blooms in Broome
http://handsoffcountry.blogspot.com.au/2013/01/barnett-blooms-in-broome....
30 Jan 13: "The Broome Community No Gas Campaign is therefore calling on the Minister Burke to immediately appoint an independent expert panel to identify what the social impacts of the proposed gas hub project are likely to be on the town of Broome, and to evaluate whether they are addressed by the WA Government’s plans outlined in the SAR. No decision on approval for the project should be made until the issue of social impacts has been addressed to the satisfaction of the Broome community."
See:
Broome Community No Gas Campaign
http://www.broomenogas.org/
"Welcome to the Broome Community No Gas Campaign website. We are a coalition of concerned community members dedicated to stopping the proposed industrial development at James Price Point (Walmadany), north of Broome."
* THE WEST: PREMIER COY ON WAYS TO STOP FLNG
- News
The West: Premier coy on ways to stop FLNG
http://au.news.yahoo.com/thewest/business/a/-/wa/16031768/premier-coy-on...
31 Jan 13: "Premier Colin Barnett will not rule out using the State's petroleum approvals system to block offshore processing of gas from Woodside's $40 billion Browse project. Mr Barnett repeated his assertion yesterday that he had the power to stop Woodside and its joint venture partners from shifting their focus from the James Price Point site, to a cheaper floating LNG solution favoured by Shell. "It's the State's gas, the gas belongs two thirds to the Commonwealth and one third to the State ...," Mr Barnett said in Albany." Peter Kerr and Keir Tunbridge, The West Australian
* BACKGROUND TO THE SAVE THE KIMBERLEY CAMPAIGN - JAMES PRICE POINT, NORTH OF BROOME, WA
Last updated: 31 January 2013
http://indymedia.org.au/2012/11/22/wgar-news-background-to-the-save-the-...
* NIRS: INCOME MANAGEMENT ADMIN COSTS OVER A MILLION A YEAR: REPORT
[sic - ACTUALLY THE AMOUNT IS OVER ONE HUNDRED MILLION A YEAR]
- News
National Indigenous Radio Service: Income management admin costs over a million a year: Report
http://www.nirs.org.au/news/latest-news/7801-income-management-admin-cos...
31 Jan 13: "A new report by the Australian National Audit Office has found the Federal Government spends more than $100 million per year to administer income management in the Northern Territory. ... The scheme costs the Commonwealth Government between $6,600 and $7,900 dollars per person, per year. Stop the Intervention Collective Sydney's Paddy Gibson says he condemns the Government's decision to maintain compulsary income management. "It's just appalling that the government would prioritize controlling and demonising people through the income management system ... " [said Paddy Gibson]"
See:
About the National Indigenous Radio Service
http://www.nirs.org.au/about-us
"For over three decades, NIRS has provided a radio programming and media marketing service for over 140 Indigenous community radio stations. We continue to deliver 24 hours of programming each day throughout all major metropolitan, regional and, perhaps most importantly, remote communities."
* BACKGROUND TO 'STRONGER FUTURES' NEW NT INTERVENTION LAWS:
Last updated: 30 January 2013
http://indymedia.org.au/2012/04/22/background-to-stronger-futures-new-nt...
* BACKGROUND TO THE NORTHERN TERRITORY (NT) INTERVENTION:
Last updated: 31 December 2012
http://indymedia.org.au/2012/04/22/background-to-the-northern-territory-...
* NIRS: SOVEREIGNTY BEFORE CONSTITUTIONAL RECOGNITION: SMALLWOOD
- News
National Indigenous Radio Service: Sovereignty before constitutional recognition: Smallwood
http://www.nirs.org.au/news/latest-news/7800-sovereignty-before-constitu...
31 Jan 13: "Leading Aboriginal academic Gracelyn Smallwood says recognising Indigenous Australians in the Constitution without first dealing with the issue of sovereignty will be a fruitless exercise. ... James Cook University's Gracelyn Smallwood says sovereignty and a treaty must come first. "If I had a dozen eggs in a basket, and I had to take two, it has to be sovereignty and treaty. "The third one is a bill of rights. ... "We're the only colonised country that's still debating whether First Nations Australians are human beings or still flora and fauna. We haven't even given treaty a go.""
See:
About the National Indigenous Radio Service
http://www.nirs.org.au/about-us
"NIRS strives to provide a range of voices for Indigenous communities via a schedule of various radio programs, supported by a national satellite service. It is argued the NIRS satellite footprint is the largest in the southern hemisphere."
* BACKGROUND TO THE ABORIGINAL SOVEREIGNTY MOVEMENT:
Last updated: 31 January 2013
http://indymedia.org.au/2012/04/22/background-to-the-aboriginal-sovereig...
* NIRS: NUCLEAR INDUSTRY "IRRESPONSIBLE" ON MARALINGA ISSUE
- News
National Indigenous Radio Service: Nuclear industry "irresponsible" on Maralinga issue
http://www.nirs.org.au/news/latest-news/7796-nuclear-industry-qirrespons...
31 Jan 13: "The Co-Chair of the Australian Nuclear Free Alliance says Aboriginal victims of British atomic testing in central Australia should be adequately compensated. A British court recently ruled British veterans of the nuclear testing at Maralinga couldn't prove their illnesses were connected to their work in the 1950s and 60s. Arabana man Peter Watts from South Australia says the British Government is shirking its responsibility by refusing to acknowledge the effects of nuclear testing."
See:
About the National Indigenous Radio Service
http://www.nirs.org.au/about-us
"The National Indigenous Radio Service Limited (NIRS) is a national service provided from a hub station residing in Brisbane. It networks material for Indigenous media organisations that don't have the staffing or capital requirements to provide a 24-hour high quality broadcast to their audience."
* BACKGROUND TO JUSTICE FOR ABORIGINAL VICTIMS OF MARALINGA NUCLEAR TESTS:
Last updated: 24 January 2013
http://indymedia.org.au/2013/01/21/background-to-justice-for-aboriginal-...
* NIT: RYAN'S DEFENCE OF MINING PLAN DISMISSED BY ANGRY PROTESTERS
- News
National Indigenous Times: Ryan’s defence of mining plan dismissed by angry protesters
http://www.nit.com.au/your-say.html
http://www.nit.com.au/news/2426-ryans-defence-of-mining-plan-dismissed-b...
31 Jan 13: "An angry mob of First Nations people representing Local Area Land Councils throughout New South Wales delivered the New South Wales Aboriginal Land Council (NSWALC) a blunt message at a protest rally last Friday - "Consult us before mining in our Country". And New South Wales Aboriginal Land Council Chairman, Stephen Ryan was delivered a warning by Gomeroi leader Alf Priestly, who told the Chairman the NSWALC was not welcome on Gomeroi Country if they brought with them mining licences. ... "
See:
National Indigenous Times - About Us
http://www.nit.com.au/about-us.html
"The National Indigenous Times first hit the streets on February 27, 2002. The paper is staffed and owned by Indigenous and non-Indigenous Australians and we are proud of the dedicated team of predominantly Indigenous Australian writers and columnists who contribute to the publication. It does not, and has never, received Government grants or funding."
* SBS WORLD NEWS VIDEO: SALTWATER/YABUN FESTIVALS SHINE
- Video
SBS World News: Saltwater/Yabun festivals shine
Source: NITV, SBS
http://www.sbs.com.au/news/article/1731115/SaltwaterYabun-festivals-shine
28 Jan 13: "The Saltwater Freshwater Festival is emerging as one of the biggest New South Wales events on Survival Day. NITV's Nancia Guivarra went to Taree to bring us this showcase of the event. ... Jeremy Donovan ... delivered the keynote speech at the Taree new citizen’s ceremony. "You see the flags raised predominantly the union jack and the Australian flag and its was challenging for me to stand up and make a speech about what is Australia day but I think I always remind myself on today that we have a cultural responsibility to celebrate our identity our successes and you know what we're still here," Mr Donovan said."
* OTHER ARTICLES:
- Audio
SBS Living Black: Making History on Sydney's Harbour Bridge
By Loni Cooper
http://www.sbs.com.au/yourlanguage/aboriginal/highlight/page/id/252173/t...
31 Jan 13: "The Aboriginal flag and the Australian flag raised and flown together for the first time on Survival Day 2013. The Aboriginal flag has flown on the Sydney Harbour Bridge many times but it might surprise you to know that Survival Day, 2013 was the first time it has flown beside the Australian flag. The flags were raised on the Harbour Bridge during the WugulOra ceremony. Victor Dominello is the New South Wales Minister for Aboriginal Affairs and was present at the ceremony. ... He spoke to Loni Cooper about the historic event."
- Video
SBS World News: We've let Aboriginal kids down: ombudsman
Source: AAP, NITV
http://www.sbs.com.au/news/article/1732485/Weve-let-Aboriginal-kids-down...
1 Feb 13: "The NSW ombudsman says efforts to wipe out child sexual abuse in Aboriginal communities aren't working and the plan's single biggest investment is close to being branded a failure. Ombudsman Bruce Barbour's fourth report on the Interagency Plan to Tackle Child Sexual Assault in Aboriginal Communities found little sign indigenous communities were better able to address child sexual abuse and the underlying causes. The report, tabled in the state parliament on Thursday, found only four per cent of NSW children in 2011 were Aboriginal, yet they accounted for 10 per cent of reported child sex abuse victims."
- Analysis / Opinion
National Indigenous Times Editorial: Australia or Invasion Day
http://www.nit.com.au/editorial/2406-australia-or-invasion-day.html
31 Jan 13: "The vexed question that arises around this time every year is do we, as an Indigenous collective, celebrate the 26th day of January as Australia Day or Invasion Day? The answer is quite simple: some of our mob do and some of our mob don't. In many ways the principal commonality we share as a discrete race of people is that we are all descendants of the First Australians. And in saying this I'm not... "
Crikey: Aboriginal leaders must inspire the nation to recognise
http://www.crikey.com.au/2013/01/09/aboriginal-leaders-must-inspire-the-...
9 Jan 13: "The campaign to have Aboriginal Australians recognised in the constitution has stalled. Leaders must tap into the culture to inspire a nation to say "yes", says former ministerial adviser Rita Markwell. With Australians unlikely to vote on any constitutional change to recognise Australia’s first peoples until at least 2015, campaigners need to take greater control of the issue and its destiny. For indigenous leaders it’s probably the greatest test of leadership since the native title negotiations over two decades ago." By Rita Markwell
- News
National Indigenous Radio Service: Terminally-ill man released from custody in Perth
http://www.nirs.org.au/news/latest-news/7797-terminally-ill-man-released...
31 Jan 13: "An Indigenous rights advocate in Perth says it's a win for the community that a terminally-ill man was released from custody yesterday. The man, who reportedly was recently diagnosed with kidney and liver failure, was released from Casurina prison after a court ruling. He was detained on remand for breaching a move-on notice and his jailing was protested by his family. Noongar Tent Embassy spokesperson Marianne McKay says it's concerning he was jailed in the first place, but he can now spend time with his family."
National Indigenous Times: Yabun Festival continues to celebrate survival after invasion of First Nations
http://www.nit.com.au/news/2425-yabun-festival-continues-to-celebrate-su...
31 Jan 13: "While non-Indigenous Australia celebrated 225 years of occupation with the slogan, "celebrate because we get to do it all again tomorrow", Indigenous Australians mourned invasion and celebrated survival. In Sydney, the Yabun Festival brought families and communities together for the 11th year with a great celebration of Indigenous culture."
National Indigenous Times: Calma calls for debate on Australia Day date
http://www.nit.com.au/news/2424-calma-calls-for-debate-on-australia-day-...
31 Jan 13: "Tom Calma has called for a national debate on whether Australia Day should be moved to a more neutral date. Dr Calma, who was named Australian of the Year for the Australian Capital Territory for his work as an inspirational advocate for human rights and social justice and is a well known and highly respected Elder, also served as Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Social Justice Commissioner."
National Indigenous Times: Wirlu-murra considers ending the control of white managers
http://www.nit.com.au/news/2423-wirlu-murra-considers-ending-the-control...
31 Jan 13: "The Wirlu-murra Yindjibarndi Aboriginal Corporation (WYMAC) is on the verge of Black control of Black affairs but there remains some internal challenges after a special board meeting last week discussed whether to bring the goup's senior most Elder of the Wirlu-murra Board Chairman, Bruce Woodley to account for revealing publicly to the National Indigenous Times allegations against the Wirlu-murra's Native Title Manager, Michael... "
National Indigenous Times: Kids are now facing lengthy stints locked up in Heakea’s adult prison
http://www.nit.com.au/news/2420-kids-are-now-facing-lengthy-stints-locke...
31 Jan 13: "Children, mostly Aboriginal children, could be held in a West Australian adult prison for up to six months after the damage done to a Perth Juvenile detention centre following a riot last week. Children rights advocates and lawyers have slammed this outcome while others have called for answers about the cause of the riots which is deteriorating conditions in the juvenile facility."
National Indigenous Times: Gillard’s motives questioned
http://www.nit.com.au/news/2419-gillards-motives-questioned.html
31 Jan 13: "Some of the Northern Territory's leading Indigenous leaders have questioned the Prime Minister's motives in her plan to parachute Nova Peris into the Senate at the next Federal election, claiming more qualified Indigenous Australians were not given the opportunity because they were too outspoken about the Federal Government's Indigenous policies, including the Northern Territory Intervention."
National Indigenous Times: Activist claim banning sacred fire is a suppression of religious rights
http://www.nit.com.au/news/2417-activist-claim-banning-sacred-fire-is-a-...
31 Jan 13: "A high profile Aboriginal activist and co-founder of the Sovereignty Tent Embassy at Musgrave Park in Brisbane said his bail conditions not to light the sacred fire at the Tent Embassy site is a suppression of his religious rights and an assault on his culture. Mr Wayne 'Coco' Wharton, Kooma man, said "The government and the courts allow the Catholics, Anglicans, Hindus, Jews, Greeks and Italians... "
National Indigenous Times: Adam Giles claims Gillard’s choice was for a "pet Aborigine"
http://www.nit.com.au/news/2413-adam-giles-claims-gillards-choice-was-fo...
31 Jan 13: "Rising Aboriginal Northern Territory politician Adam Giles has slammed Julia Gillard's "captain's pick" of Nova Peris for the Senate. He accused the Prime Minister of making a choice based on race rather than merit and suggesting Ms Peris would be a "pet Aborigine" in the parliament. "If you want to have an Aboriginal person in the Australian parliament, you have to build that from the branch level, ... "
National Indigenous Times: Hampton’s poacher jibe at Land Council protest angers Illawarra’s Yuin people
http://www.nit.com.au/news/2409-hamptons-poacher-jibe-at-land-council-pr...
31 Jan 13: "When New South Wales Aboriginal Land Council (NSWALC) South Coast Councillor, Jack Hampton called his own Yuin people poachers, they were more than outraged, they say they were betrayed. Members of the Yuin, First Nations people of the region which includes the Illawarra region on the New South Wales south coast, have called for Mr Hampton to be disciplined by NSWALC and they are considering legal action... "
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