The Northern Territory government has set up an apartheid education system in the Northern Territory and the Federal Government seems to accept it.
NT Early Learning Centres for indigenous communities seem to have been denied the same level of funding as similar sized schools in predominantly white communities and the Federal Government is not insisting that indigenous communities receive similar facilities (including standard of buildings, qualified and experienced teachers, furniture, air conditioning, toilet facilities, computers per student, library facilities and books, sun shelters, playground areas, drinking water, before and after school care etc) as the small suburban schools of similar size.
The issue was recently covered by the 7:30 Report program "A Tale of Two Schools" on ABC TV on 24 February 2010:
http://www.abc.net.au/7.30/content/2010/s2829391.htm
It was also raised by the Centre for Independent Studies in their article "Pretend Schools: Educational Apartheid in the Northern Territory" which is available at:
http://www.cis.org.au/executive_highlights/EH2008/eh57208.html
It is also discussed in the article "Unequal Schools - A case study documenting what some people may call institutionalised racism in the Northern Territory of Australia." at:
http://www.culturalsurvival.org.au/docs/Case%20Study_Unequal%20Schools.pdf
The federal government including Ms Julia Gillard as the relevant Minister for the "Building the Education Revolution" and the Prime Minister Mr Kevin Rudd (in light of his apology to the stolen generation and other statements on closing the gap between indigenous and other Australians) should act immediately to have these Homeland Learning Centres included under the "Building the Education Revolution" program or similar program of the Federal Government:
http://www.deewr.gov.au/Schooling/BuildingTheEducationRevolution/Pages/d...
as a matter of urgency.
The Federal Government should also audit all predominantly indigenous schools throughout Australia to ensure they have comparable facilities as other schools and have benefited equally under the "Building the Education Revolution".
A draft letter to a local Federal Members of Parliament is attached. You can amend it for you and your local federal member.
