Aboriginal Reconciliation

Mr CARR (Maroubra - Premier, Minister for the Arts, and Minister for Ethnic Affairs) [11.01]: I move:

That this House:

(1) reaffirms its commitment to the goals and processes of Aboriginal reconciliation and the importance of reconciliation to the future of the nation and the State;

(2) consistent with paragraph (e) of the preamble to the Council for Aboriginal Reconciliation Act 1991, calls on all Australian Governments to accept an ongoing national commitment to address Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander disadvantage and aspirations, and to work towards benchmarks by which to measure the performance of all governments in honouring their commitments;

(3) welcomes the Council for Aboriginal Reconciliation's intention to convene an Australian Reconciliation Convention in Melbourne in May 1997 on the thirtieth anniversary of the 1967 referendum to consider the benefit to the Australian community of a document of reconciliation between the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples and the wider Australian community; and

(4) supports the work of the Council for Aboriginal Reconciliation in the fulfilment of its obligations under the Act.

In his landmark oration, the inaugural Vincent Lingiari lecture in Darwin on 22 August, the Governor-General of Australia, Sir William Deane, called upon the parliaments of Australia to affirm their support for true national reconciliation by passing formal resolutions expressing that support. Following Sir William's call, the Chairman of the Council for Aboriginal Reconciliation, Mr Patrick Dodson, wrote to me and the other Premiers seeking our support for the convention to be held in May next year. It is altogether fitting that the Parliament of New South Wales should be among the first to respond. The senior Australian Parliament should always give leadership on great national issues.

It is important too that we recognise not only that the dispossession of Aboriginal people began here in 1788 but that this Parliament enacted laws which carried on the systematic annihilation of Aboriginal communities. It is also the responsibility of this Parliament to exercise its educative role, to put the facts before the people. The basis of the current divisive debate originated in the false and ignorant assertion that Aboriginal Australians are a privileged group. That laughable claim can be quickly dismissed. The fact is they are the most underprivileged group in Australian society. Recognition of the true facts, the hard realities, is essential to reconciliation. Sir William Deane has said:

There will be no true reconciliation until it can be seen that we are making real progress towards the position where the future prospects - in terms of health, education, life expectancy, living conditions and self esteem - of an Aboriginal baby are at least within the same area of discourse as the future prospects of a non-Aboriginal baby.

Sir William asked:

How can we hope to go forward as friends and equals while our children's hands cannot touch?

If there is to be reconciliation with justice, there must be an acknowledgment of a great wrong - something beyond the havoc wrought by the impact of our civilisation upon a people who had nurtured this continent for more than 50,000 years before 1788; something beyond the history of dispossession, disease, and disruption and the relegation of Aboriginal people to mere fringe dwellers in their own land. I refer to the fundamental denial of Aboriginal identity - the pervasive assumption that Aboriginal culture, customs, languages, beliefs and traditions were worthless. That denial permeated policies and laws passed by this Parliament over more than a century. It was the ultimate dispossession: to rob a people of the value of their identity. There could be no greater wrong than that. For two-thirds of this century that denial was enshrined in the Australian Constitution. Section 127 of the Constitution stated:

In reckoning the numbers of the people of the Commonwealth, or of a State or other part of the Commonwealth, Aboriginal natives shall not be counted.

It was the constitutional counterpart of the legal concept of terra nullius. The Constitution said that the Aborigines were not to be counted, and the law
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said that they did not inhabit the land. As The High Court ruled in its Mabo judgment, that was "a travesty of fact and a fallacy of law". True it is that this section was dropped after the 1967 referendum, together with the provision which prevented the Federal Parliament making laws relating to Aborigines. But attitudes based on the idea that Aborigines did not count as Australians persist. They remain a barrier against reconciliation. It is part of our job to challenge those attitudes wherever they exist.

The denial of Aboriginal worth and Aboriginal values found its ultimate expression in the destruction of Aboriginal families. That course was pursued as a matter of ill-conceived government policy in this State and in the rest of Australia for much of this century. That treatment resulted in generations of Aboriginal children being removed from their mothers and fathers, brothers and sisters, and communities. Even as late as December 1965 this Parliament passed an adoption Act which allowed Aboriginal children to be taken from their natural families without parental consent. Like most legislation of that kind, going back to the notorious Aborigines Protection Bill of 1915, it received bipartisan support.

Honourable members will know that the Human Rights and Equal Opportunity Commission is completing its national inquiry into the separation of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children from their families. My Government has assisted that inquiry by making a very full and frank submission. I commend that highly significant document for study by all honourable members. I acknowledge and thank on behalf of the Government the invaluable contribution of Link-Up, an organisation devoted to reuniting Aboriginal families.

The submission brings together for the first time the laws, procedures and regulations by which Aboriginal children were separated from their families and communities, and were systematically stripped of their family and community identity. It is an unflinchingly honest account of policies that resulted in thousands of families being separated for no reason other than that they were Aborigines. They are the stolen children of lost generations - and it was all done in the name of the State and in the name of this Parliament. That is why I reaffirm in this place, formally and solemnly as Premier on behalf of the Government and people of New South Wales, our apology to the Aboriginal people. I invite the House to join with me in that apology.

In doing so, I acknowledge with deep regret Parliament's own role in endorsing the policies and actions of successive governments which devastated Aboriginal communities and inflicted, and continue to inflict, grief and suffering upon Aboriginal families and communities. I extend this apology as an essential step in the process of reconciliation. In particular, we should repudiate any idea that the severance of children and the break-up of families was justified, in terms still used today, as being only for their own good.

The New South Wales submission to the national inquiry gives profound insights into the official attitudes, which were endorsed again and again by this Parliament, underlying our treatment of the Aboriginal people. At the beginning of the century the prevailing assumption was that Aborigines were a dying race. The task of governments, agencies and missions was expressed as a need to smooth the dying pillow. What then became the official policy of assimilation was a vehicle designed for their eventual disappearance - the extinction of Aboriginal identity. In the current debate, there are some who say it is pointless or counterproductive to rake over the past. In his lecture, Sir William Deane answered such assertions completely. He said:

The past is never fully gone. The present plight, in terms of health, employment, education, living conditions and self-esteem, of so many Aborigines must be acknowledged as largely flowing from what happened in the past. The dispossession, the destruction of hunting fields and the devastation of lives were all related . . . True acknowledgment cannot stop short of recognition of the extent to which present disadvantage flows from past injustice and oppression.

My Government recognises its role in reinvigorating the reconciliation process. On this issue we will take clear leadership, recognising the importance and significance of Aboriginal culture, heritage, rights and aspirations, including the recognition of rights to land. It is fitting that the first State in which dispossession of Aboriginal people occurred is the first mainland State to settle a native title claim. The successful claim at Crescent Head on the New South Wales north coast establishes the Dunghutti people's rights to land. All credit goes to the Minister for Land and Water Conservation, the local Aboriginal community and to all the negotiating parties, including the former Government, which played a role in the initial processing of the claim. Ms Mary-Lou Buck, leader of the Dunghutti people, has given the nation's Aboriginal population a basis for confidence. At the announcement of the native title claim she said:

How pleased and proud our ancestors would be on this day when a white government has fully recognised the meaning of land to the Aboriginal people.

Whatever we do in this Parliament, reconciliation will come through the people themselves, Aboriginal and non-Aboriginal Australians. There is, I believe, growing support for reconciliation all over New South Wales - a thousand points of light that contradict the negativism and hostility that comes from some. Ordinary men and women of all ages, of different ethnic backgrounds and of many occupations are coming to realise that there needs to be understanding and acceptance of the past before we can shape a better future. Let me give some examples. In Taree, more than 100 students, some of them Aboriginal, came together to stage a production of the Great South Land 1788, a musical that depicts the events that followed the arrival of the First Fleet from both an Aboriginal and non-Aboriginal perspective.

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From working together, friendships between students grew. Through this production, the young people, their parents, and members of the local community increased their understanding of Australia's history: colonisation from one viewpoint; dispossession and invasion from the Aboriginal viewpoint. On hearing about this practical example of reconciliation, I requested that the Department of School Education produce a video of the production to enable other schools to learn from Taree's experience. In Orange, a group of non-Aboriginal people meet regularly to educate themselves about Aboriginal culture and history in order to develop links with the local Aboriginal community. Jane Tonks is a mother and sign-writer. She has been involved with Australians for Reconciliation in Orange for three years. She says:

The people who come along to our group have a genuine interest in reconciliation. We've all seen racism, often from the people we would last expect, and we've all felt uncomfortable about it. Each of us is committed to promoting reconciliation in our families, among our friends, at work in, and in our communities. We're only one pebble in a huge pond, but we believe the ripples will gradually replace ignorance with understanding.

What a refreshing and positive message! In Kempsey, more than 4,000 people gathered on the banks of the Macleay River -

Mr Jeffery: Including the local member.

Mr CARR: And he is to be commended for his attendance. They gathered to witness a performance based on the paintings of the renown Aboriginal artist, the late Robert Campbell Junior. Aboriginal and non-Aboriginal students performed dances of the traditional stories depicted in the paintings and acted out the encounter between Aborigines and Europeans in the Macleay Valley. The performance began with a child leading a procession of Aboriginal elders and non-Aboriginal community leaders to the river where they floated flickering candles on pieces of bark into the river in a dramatic act of remembrance and reconciliation. In Muli Muli, near Kyogle, a pilot project is under way to deliver a coordinated approach to housing, health and infrastructure. Matthew Green, the coordinator of the Muli Muli Aboriginal Land Council, said:

I've had the privilege of living in both cultures but many of our people still don't understand European culture. Through the Land Council we have decided to educate our people about European society, and what it expects of us. At the same time, we want to be able to talk about our own lives, about the hardship we have endured. It has to go both ways. Both societies have to do more to understand each other.

What a beautiful quote! What a beautiful summation of a process that Aborigines and non-Aborigines can embark on together - understanding the historical experience, fusing all we have and working as Australians on this great task. How refreshing it is to dwell on that message and not on the messages of negativism and hostility that emanate from some. That is what we are doing in this Parliament today. These are the gestures, symbolic yet enormously significant, that are occurring in towns and cities around the State. Let us focus on them, elevate them and advertise them because examples like this put to shame the strident and rancorous voices raised against reconciliation and the change of attitudes on which it depends. But of course it is only a beginning. The study of the past, not only of the past 200 years but our increasing knowledge and respect for the Aboriginal achievement over 50 millennia, teaches us important lessons. What stands out for me from this history is the persistence, perseverance, and resilience of the Aboriginal people - a brave and hardy people.

The reconciliation process has stalled; it must be restored. On behalf of the Government, I present our program for progress towards reconciliation in New South Wales. The Government will make a landmark statement to be published by August 1997 on its responsibilities and duties to Aboriginal people. The Government is planning new ways to deliver housing to Aboriginal communities and will respond to the report of the Aboriginal Housing Development Committee by July 1997. The Government is reviewing progress in relation to the national commitment for the delivery of services to Aboriginal people and Torres Strait Islanders and will promote necessary reforms through the ministerial council on Aboriginal affairs by December next year. The Government is implementing the national Aboriginal health strategy and the principles of reconciliation are being put into practice in health services. Last year an agreement was signed between the Government and the Aboriginal Health Resource Co-operative, the peak organisation for Aboriginal community controlled health services.

The partnership agreement enables Aboriginal communities to have direct input into decisions about health and health resources. An improved consultative framework for Aboriginal people to achieve tangible results in health, living standards, socioeconomic conditions and employment is being established. Today I announce, for example, the formation of an Aboriginal reference group, a consultative body that will advise the Government through my colleague the Deputy Premier. The work of the group will enable us to draw on the knowledge, skills and networks of Aboriginal people. Finally, to improve employment opportunities the Government is re-designing government assistance for Aboriginal enterprise. That will be completed by June 1997. The aim of all these programs is to make a specific and concrete response to the call by the Governor-General. They recognise, in the words of Mr Dodson's letter "the urgent need to achieve real improvements . . . by setting effective benchmarks".

We should be under no illusions. If Australia continues to allow Aboriginal people to suffer the world's highest infant mortality and one of the world's lowest life expectancies, if Australia back-tracks on the Mabo legislation, if Australia side-tracks the recommendations of the Royal Commission into Aboriginal Deaths in Custody, we
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will find ourselves as a nation before the International Court of Justice. In four years time, Sydney will celebrate the most important event in our nation's history: the 100th anniversary of the proclamation of the Commonwealth of Australia on 1 January 1901.

There is not one aspect of those celebrations - the genuine pride that we are all entitled to take in the achievements of one of the world's greatest and oldest democracies - that would not be diminished and disfigured if we were to fail by 2001 to have made meaningful advances towards what Sir William Deane has described as true national reconciliation. The claim that the Aboriginal people make on Australia is no more and no less than the claim that we Australians of the fifth or first generation make for ourselves. That claim is the right to belong to Australia with full dignity, worth, equality and justice. I repeat that there can be no true reconciliation without justice. I commend the motion to the House.

Mr COLLINS (Willoughby - Leader of the Opposition) [11.20]: It is a pleasure for me to offer the support of the New South Wales coalition for the motion before the House. At this time in our history, when some of those in positions of authority and some of those in the parliaments of Australia seek the divide the nation along racial lines, I welcome this opportunity for politicians in this, the first State of Australia, to set an example, to take the lead. I am disappointed that people within our parliaments have sought to divide the nation when they have been elected to heal wounds and to bring the nation together. It is up to all Australian parliaments to ensure that the sentiments in the motion become part of the Australian psyche, our common beliefs and our values system.

The motion is about reaffirming that, as an advanced democratic society, we believe that people should be judged on their individual worth and merit, not on where they were born or the colour of their skin. Based on that principle, the motion is about reaffirming that we have a responsibility to correct those instances in our past when we did not live up to our values system. The motion ensures that as a nation and as a Parliament we are committed to addressing the disadvantages and aspirations of the indigenous people of Australia. We as Liberals and Nationals on this side of the Parliament support the reconciliation process and reaffirm our commitment to it in this debate.

Twenty years ago I took the Aboriginal Senator, Neville Bonner, to Redfern to look at the plight of urban Aborigines for an ABC television program that was specifically examining urban Aboriginal problems. The visit provided me with a valuable first-hand insight into the problems faced by the Aboriginal people of Redfern. It left a deep impression on me, as it did on the first Aboriginal Senator in the Australian Parliament, who happened to be a member of the party that I represent in this Parliament. It should be remembered that in 1975 the Fraser Government took an important step in the reconciliation process and passed legislation which gave legislative effect to the 1974 resolution of the Federal Parliament. A former Liberal Minister in this Parliament, the Hon. Tim Moore, for the first time encouraged Aborigines to run national parks. In 1989 the Greiner Government, in which I was a Minister, adopted the following sentiment after a review of State schools:

Very few Australians understand the immense difference between the environment of the western world and the traditional culture, religion, family and tribal structures, divisions of labour and methods of learning and communication of the Aborigines. Fewer still know of the rich and complex history of the Aboriginal people, their achievements in survival, conservation of natural resources, their development of skills and creative arts. To know is to appreciate the present sense of alienation and loss of dignity, and sense of purposes of many Aborigines. To spread a sympathetic understanding throughout the community is an essential step in the healing and uniting process.

Those sentiments and that understanding, reinforced by a series of sensitive and imaginative policies approved by Aboriginal educators, have been implemented throughout New South Wales schools to the great benefit of both Aborigines and non-Aborigines. It was the coalition in this House that introduced the bill embracing a charter of principles for a culturally diverse society. We want the nation to be built on unity, community social cohesion and cultural diversity. As the New South Wales coalition leader, I now reaffirm that vision and commitment to the reconciliation process. There are times when we as politicians get bogged down in terms that the people of New South Wales do not understand. It is important that during this debate they understand that in broad terms reconciliation means bringing all aspects of the Australian community together: Aborigines, those from ethnic backgrounds and other Australians.

Reconciliation refers not only to healing the wounds of the past but to strengthening the bonds between the original inhabitants of this country for the future. Ultimately, we should aim for justice and equity for all, and a united Australia where everyone respects the quality of life we enjoy in this nation. That is the vision of the Council for Aboriginal Reconciliation. It is the vision of the coalition's charter of cultural diversity, and it should be enshrined by this Parliament as the vision for all Australians. In strict terms, reconciliation means better relations with Aborigines and Torres Strait Islander people, the original inhabitants of this continent, and the wider Australian community. No-one could or should argue with that goal. It is a goal we should all be striving for, not only in relation to the Aboriginal community. That goal must become an article of faith for all Australians.

In the end we want a community that encourages children, supports adults and families, and fosters a mature, tolerant society. In terms of the Aboriginal community, the concept of reconciliation is based on the principle that Aborigines need to overcome the disadvantages that they suffered after
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being dispossessed and dispersed from their traditional lands by European settlers. But reconciliation is about more than simply a piece of paper or a contract; it is about recognising that we all share this land and that, because of the disadvantages suffered by Aborigines, this country, this nation, this State has a responsibility to get things right. That will happen only when and if the whole nation embraces reconciliation; it cannot be achieved by the actions of only a few.

Laws in themselves cannot confer equality, dignity and respect. Individual attitudes will determine and divide or unite a community, and genuine understanding will remove many of the artificial causes and prejudices of division. Australian Aborigines have been and remain disadvantaged despite efforts and public expenditure to mitigate hardship. The greatest invasion of the traditional lifestyle of Aborigines was not by weapons but by the spread of western communicable diseases, respiratory infections, smallpox, measles and so on, to which they were and remain vulnerable. The western diet has added its toll of diabetes and alcoholism. Part of the reconciliation process is to recognise that European settlers brought these diseases and alcohol. We should spare nothing in trying to rectify these wrongs; today we must renew our commitment to righting the wrongs of the past. For a start, better living conditions, improved health and hygiene are vital.

I note that several health Ministers from both sides of politics, including the current Minister, have attempted to improve the health and lifestyle of Aborigines. I had the honour to serve as health Minister in this State for three years. Today I choose to recognise the enormous effort made by Aboriginal health workers in the New South Wales health system. The leadership and the example that they have provided to their community and to the community at large should be better understood by the New South Wales community. It represents an extraordinary effort for a modest outlay in public funds - an effort that I recognise in this debate today. Despite the millions of dollars that have been spent on improving the health of the Aboriginal people, it cannot be said that we have any right to rest or that we have achieved our objective.

Aborigines still experience significant disadvantages in the health delivery area. In some cases they still live in areas without clean drinking water and without adequate access to hospitals and doctors, and they are the sorts of issues that we, as a society, must address. I am proud that a Liberal Government commissioned the most comprehensive analysis of Aboriginal health needs ever undertaken in this country. That report, entitled "The Last Report", was undertaken by Aborigines to identify the health needs of Aborigines. A commitment was given by the coalition to adopt that report and significant steps were taken to implement its recommendations. But that was a modest beginning .

On law and order we, as a Legislature, should be deeply concerned about the overrepresentation of Aborigines in our prison system. I acknowledge that the justice system has sought to deal appropriately with all those who come before the criminal courts. However, we must query why so many Aborigines are given custodial sentences. This is not just a problem with adult Aborigines; more significantly it is a problem with juveniles, with young Aborigines. As Attorney General I attempted to implement recommendations to reduce the incidence of black deaths in custody - an effort that has been followed by my successors and by the present Attorney General. Everything must be done to ensure that that gross and tragic overrepresentation of the Aboriginal community and the problem of deaths in custody are addressed and put in the past.

In my view, unemployment is the overriding cause of these high levels of incarceration. There can be no denying that social security, health and housing are important, but unless Aborigines, as with others, have access to worthwhile and satisfactory employment they cannot achieve the spirit of independence that is as vital to their well being as it is to that of the rest of the community. If reconciliation is truly to take place we must tackle the problem of unemployment within the Aboriginal community. I pledge my support for that priority. It is only through employment that many of the justice and social issues faced by Aborigines can be addressed.

Some years ago a visit to the town of Walgett gave me an exceptionally valuable insight into the housing issue and a range of lifestyle issues, and I came close to the core of understanding what this Parliament should be looking at today. I visited an Aboriginal housing estate at one end of Walgett that had been built entirely by the Government under a Federal Government project. There was a cluster of about a dozen new, European-style homes that were about 10 years old. The sewerage system and the garbage collection system for that housing estate had broken down and there were major health problems as a result. That health risk was impacting on the community. At the other end of Walgett was another Aboriginal housing settlement, but that one had been built by Aboriginal people, using available material.

The difference between the two housing estates will stand out in my mind for ever. The housing estate built by the Aboriginal people, although more modest in dimension, less orthodox in architectural terms and slightly different in planning terms, was far better than the housing estate provided by the Federal Government. Where Aborigines have been given an opportunity to develop their lives, their properties, their dwellings and to own them, that sense of ownership means as much to them as it does to any Australian. We as a society must engage and involve Aboriginal people in rectifying these problems. If we give Aboriginal people a sense of ownership we will be rewarded - it will be used and the results will be obvious. Those people were proud of their homes - as proud as anyone else. To me it was a stand-out example.

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I turn now to the arts. I pay tribute to the achievement of Aboriginal people in the arts from pre-history to the current day. Let us look at the achievements of a few Aboriginal people. The Bangarra Dance Company performed in Atlanta in the main arena at the handover ceremony of the Olympics to Sydney. The Bangarra Dance Company, which was really the centrepiece of that ceremony, is as good as we can get in contemporary dance in this country. A few years ago I had the privilege of opening a contemporary art exhibition at Seoul within the Asian region, that we do so much business with these days. The most vivid memory I have of that exhibition was of an Aboriginal artwork by Lin Onus, an artist who died only two weeks ago. I am proud to say that that artwork is now on exhibition in the permanent Aboriginal section of the New South Wales Art Gallery, which I as Minister for the Arts had the privilege of funding.

I pay tribute to that artist, Lin Onus, who, had he lived beyond the age of 47, would have been one of the great artists - forget Aboriginal - of this country in the second half of this century. The death of Lin Onus two weeks ago robbed us of a life of enormous creativity and vision. I will conclude on this note: we have to offer a conciliatory hand to the indigenous people of this country. We have to reach out to them and say that we recognise the wrongs of the past; that we are committed to never repeating those wrongs; and that we should make a better future together as Australians. That is the plea that I make to all Australians. We must all participate in this process; there should be no exemptions. We must understand one another. Returning for a moment to an arts analogy, about five years ago in Broome, Western Australia, a group of Aboriginal people put together Bran Nui Dae, one of the most joyous musicals that has been produced in Australia in the past 20 years. Wherever it has been performed it has been a great hit because it conveys a simple message of joy, confidence and a spirited and lively people with a sense of humour and warmth. It conveys the spirit of Aboriginal people in the twentieth century.

I will end on that note. The title of that musical, Bran Niu Dae, is really what reconciliation is all about. We, as Australian people, must recognise the past and never repeat it and we, together with Aboriginal people must enter that brand new day. That is what I pledge myself to on behalf of the Opposition and what I ask all honourable members of this House to commit themselves to. But I go beyond that and say that the broader community, every Australian, every citizen in this State must embrace the concept of reconciliation, and we must enter the future together. I commend the motion to the House.

Dr REFSHAUGE (Marrickville - Deputy Premier, Minister for Health, and Minister for Aboriginal Affairs) [11.40]: Those who cannot remember the past are condemned to repeat it, and Australia must not repeat its treatment of indigenous Australians. The Governor-General, Sir William Deane, has called on this Parliament to respond to our whole history. He rightly said:

Where there is no room for national pride or national shame about the past, there can be no national soul.

Reconciliation must be based on truth. We must accept the truth of our past and the reality of our present, and we have to learn from it and change the path we take in the future. Truth has been an elusive concept in the debate of late. It is claimed that the Aboriginal communities are privileged and offered advantages that are unavailable to other Australians. What revolts us about this opinion is not just that it is racist, ill-informed or cruel but that it is untruthful. By any measure, indigenous Australians are disadvantaged by comparison with the general Australian population. Indigenous Australians miss out on many of the privileges that other Australians take for granted.

The results are obvious and undeniable. The average life expectancy of Aboriginal people is between 18 and 20 years less than that of the average Australian. Mortality rates vary between three and six times greater than in other communities. Infant mortality is three times higher than in other communities. Incarceration rates are dramatically higher than the proportion of Aboriginal people in the population. On every socioeconomic indicator Aboriginal communities show the greatest disadvantage of any community within our country. It is a truth we can feel and see. That is a truth that every Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander experiences every day. It is a truth that any Aboriginal community can prove. Any person who has taken the time to look will be able to point to a number of ways in which this disadvantage manifests itself. All the opinion polls in the world will not change this truth. In his first Boyer lecture this week, Pierre Ryckmans identified the role of truth in the process of intellectual inquiry. He said:

Truth is always the beginning of thought. Thinking starts after an experience of truth has struck home.

We know what the truth about Aboriginal Australians is today. That truth must be the point at which we start thinking. An audit of the financial affairs of the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Commission should not be the terms of reference for exploring our national soul. Many indigenous Australians are now in a position of gross disadvantage and they did not arrive there by magic. Different communities over generations have been subject to attack by either direct Government policy or by the side effect of Government policy. This began with the policy of terra nullius on through to dispossession, murder, starvation, enslavement and the theft of generations of children. These policies shared a common thread: they were developed by governments for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people.

The Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people were not involved in the development of these policies - they had no choice. That is the core truth we learn when we accept our history. Not everything was done for evil motives. Many government officials believed that they were doing
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the right thing. They believed that they were protecting Aboriginal people by forcing them into missions. They believed that they were giving Aboriginal children a chance of a better life by stealing them from their families. Even today there are some who defend the stealing of those children on the grounds that they were given some rudimentary education. Last year, some 50 years after the Second World War, all Australian parliaments debated under the banner of "Australia Remembers". There are some people today who when talking about Aboriginal issues want to start with "Australia forgets".

The Returned Services League got it right: Lest we forget. White Australians have almost always treated Aboriginal people as a problem we must fix. As long as we continue down the path of telling Aboriginal people what they should do, we will continue to get it wrong. There must be a partnership, a partnership between policy makers and the communities affected by those policies. We must allow Aboriginal communities to be true partners in decision making on their own issues; and to be true partners we must support the existence of representative and responsible indigenous organisations. Those organisations must have the resources necessary to properly contribute to developing and implementing policy. There are positive things the Government must do and is doing to ensure that action follows from the words being said here today. New South Wales has introduced a number of initiatives to ensure a sustained and committed focus on Aboriginal affairs.

The Government has both a Minister and a Parliamentary Secretary for Aboriginal Affairs overseeing a full and separate Department of Aboriginal Affairs. This Government has set up a Cabinet committee and a chief executive officers forum on Aboriginal Affairs. This Government has implemented its policies on Aboriginal affairs in partnership with Aboriginal communities. The Premier announced today the formation of an Aboriginal reference group. This is total acknowledgment that the Government needs to know directly from Aboriginal people what the issues are and what needs to be done to address them. The Government must be informed by Aboriginal people so it is able to respond. This Government recognises and acknowledges the role of peak Aboriginal bodies, those who have been struggling for so long to address the many problems and injustices that Aboriginal people face.

Recently the Government launched the Social Justice Direction Statement "Fair Go, Fair Say, Fair Share". The Government has committed itself to a number of initiatives. It will work with the Aboriginal reference group to prepare the landmark statement for next year. Housing will be improved and made more accessible. The whole issue of service delivery to Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people will be reviewed in the light of the national commitment to improvement. New South Wales has started implementing the national Aboriginal health strategy. Aboriginal enterprises will receive a new focus with assistance designed to meet their needs. This Government's pilot environmental health projects will focus a whole-of-Government approach to the effort of the total health of Aboriginal communities. This Government is also developing alternatives to full-time incarceration, and will implement its juvenile justice mentor scheme. Improvements to Aboriginal education will also be introduced.

In each part of this process the Government will review and improve the way it consults with Aboriginal people. Aborigines must be part of developing those programs; otherwise the programs will not work. The chairperson of the reconciliation council, Mr Patrick Dodson, has reminded us that there can be no reconciliation without justice. There are two areas that still cry out for justice. The process of reconciliation will be judged by our response to the native title decision and the inquiry of the Human Rights and Equal Opportunity Commission into the separation of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children from their families. Native title addresses the truth of our history, the truth that Australia was not terra nullius when Europeans first settled. Native title addresses the truth that despite systematic attempts to destroy or marginalise Aboriginal communities those communities have maintained continued contact with their land. The Dunghutti people from Crescent Head were the first to obtain native title agreement on any Australian mainland State. Mary-Lou Buck spoke for her community when she said:

How pleased and proud our ancestors would be on this day when a white government has fully recognised the meaning of land to the Aboriginal people.

That should be a marker for the future. As members of Parliament we should keep our minds focused on how badly policy can go wrong when Aboriginal people are not involved in its development. Within our lifetimes officials of government have forcibly separated Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children from their families for no reason other than the colour of their skin. Among indigenous people over the age of 25, one in four were removed from their families; in New South Wales the figure was one in three. The results have been tragic. Of the 99 cases of deaths in custody investigated by the royal commission, 45 involved people who had been taken away from their families. Our past is revealed in the national inquiry of the Human Rights and Equal Opportunity Commission into the separation of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children from their families. The inquiry is almost completed; public submissions have been made and countless private hearings have been conducted. We have an opportunity to go forward, and I ask all honourable members to make sure we are part of that movement of reconciliation.

Mr ARMSTRONG (Lachlan - Leader of the National Party) [11.50]: I speak on behalf of the National Party with great pride and pleasure on this most important motion on what will no doubt
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become an historic day in the reconciliation process for New South Wales and Australia. This Reconciliation Day motion is of particular significance to this Parliament, the mother of Australian Parliaments, which is situated on the very cove that hosted the first white explorers and the first white settlers more than 200 years ago. Since then the relationship between the indigenous inhabitants of Australia and the many millions of Australians drawn from scores of nations around the world has never been as one.

Talk of unity, one nation, reconciliation and recognition has been well meaning but frustrated by prejudice, bias, overeagerness and unreal expectation. Australia in 1996 wants reconciliation, but I am not sure it knows quite how to go about it. Some amongst us want it right now and some say we must work harder to achieve the one-nation, one-flag ideal that reconciliation will eventually deliver. I am among the latter, who see many complexities that must be addressed and overcome before we can justifiably say that we are achieving positive progress towards reconciliation.

That is not to say that these hurdles cannot be overcome, but attitudinal difficulties that exist throughout all sections of the community can be simplified and softened only by education, explanation and encouragement within rational debate. It could be argued that the progress of reconciliation is made more difficult by the recent robust debate on immigration and racism, which has been mainly directed towards Asian migration to this country. I have no doubt that the process of reconciliation will survive and endure the more emotive debate over Asian immigration. My personal wish is quite simple: I long for all Australians to be as one, observing one Constitution and one set of laws, and recognising one flag. I want our indigenous people to have the same desire and opportunity as non-indigenous people in bringing about a partnership founded on equality, justice, fairness and respect.

But this partnership will never eventuate until Aborigines and Torres Strait Islanders are able to feel a sense of dignified belonging, until all Australians recognise the awesome heritage of this ancient people, and until we all share common ideals and objectives, free of the guilt imposed upon this generation for the faults of an earlier generation. For that to happen we have to be patient. We have to start from ground level before we build our palace of understanding, before we all share the trust that will be the mortar holding us together. Starting at ground level means identifying and acknowledging what changes must take place in our minds, our homes and our schools, and in the way we approach housing, employment, education, health, law and order, and welfare.

This should not be a one-way concern. It should be an attitude shared by indigenous and non-indigenous Australians, not in a them-and-us culture. We all need to know about the Aboriginal culture, and about the contribution made by Aborigines to the development and defence of modern Australia. We need to remind ourselves and our children of the selfless sacrifices made by the original Australians in defence of our country, and of the way those same people so generously helped us to develop our culture with their music and art and their simple and mystic literature. Aborigines have played a magnificent part in the creation and development of our giant pastoral and agricultural industries, and their sporting prowess is legendary in many sporting arenas.

Modern Australia needs to recognise this as it moves towards the next millennium. But more than that, we need to agree on what has to be done and how to do it to bring about reconciliation and unity. I have long held that all the efforts that have been applied to improving the health of our indigenous people have either failed or been only partially and briefly successful. Health constitutes not only physical wellbeing but a combination of factors such as adequate housing, clean water, appropriate sewage disposal, electricity, wholesome food and access to an adequate health service. Indigenous health will advance only when indigenous people share responsibility for decision making and the formulation and implementation of policies at all levels. I have long remembered the words of an Aboriginal elder, who said to me:

All the money and all the white doctors and nurses will make no real difference to our health until we have our own people trained to look after us.

What he said to me rings true. The Aboriginal culture still basically lacks faith in the white man's medicine, and we seem to have failed to recognise that fact. How simple that should be to fix. How amazingly simple it should be to educate more Aboriginal doctors, nurses and medical aides for our indigenous communities. If that is one achievable objective that can be shared by indigenous and non-indigenous communities, how many other improvements can be attained through similar cooperation? Let us believe that this and other debates can proceed and mark the beginning of the real process of reconciliation. Let us look forward to the time when our mutual efforts towards reconciliation result in one Australia, equality and justice for all.

I draw attention on this historic day to an exhibition in the foyer of the Parliament and an item of artwork by Mrs Emily Goolagong entitled The Dance of the Brolgas. Mrs Goolagong, who is attending a commercial needlecraft advanced certificate course at the Western Institute of TAFE, Condobolin campus, has demonstrated her many talents in the creation of The Dance of the Brolgas. Leather, different fabrics and threads, and gumnuts have been used with a variety of stitches and appliques in Emily's creation. The Director of the Western Institute of TAFE drew my attention to this artwork in Parkes last week. I am told that it embodies every stitch used in applique and embroidery that is taught in the TAFE system, and it
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is an outstanding piece of work. With the assistance of the Western Institute of TAFE, that work of art has been brought to Sydney. I thank Mr Speaker and Mr President for allowing it to be displayed in the foyer today. I hope it will hang in a commercial gallery in the city, to be announced at the end of the recognition of Aboriginal Reconciliation Week. I commend this motion to the House.

Mr MARKHAM (Keira) [11.58]: It gives me great pleasure to contribute to this historic debate. I congratulate the Premier, the Leader of the Opposition and the Deputy Premier on their contributions to the debate. I can assure this House and Aboriginal people throughout the State and the country of my unswerving support for this motion. I will continue to make sure that this House not only speaks about issues affecting Aboriginal people but puts those words into actions - because actions speak louder than words. Mr Patrick Dodson, a Yawuru man from Broome, Western Australia, who is in the gallery listening to this debate, was appointed Chairperson of the Council for Aboriginal Reconciliation in 1991. He is a former commissioner into Aboriginal deaths in custody. Recently Mr Patrick Dodson wrote:

Reconciliation is about changes and the attitudes, the systems and the structures and the nature of the relationship that we want to create for the future.

Australia will celebrate the centenary of Federation in the year 2001. It will be an historic moment indeed, a sign of maturity, of a nation comfortable with itself - its acknowledgment and acceptance of its history, and its mistreatment of Aboriginal Australians. It needs to be remembered that the Council for Aboriginal Reconciliation was established with the unanimous support of the Commonwealth Parliament. The former Prime Minister, Paul Keating, stated:

The process of reconciliation had to start with an act of recognition. Recognition that it was we non-Aboriginal Australians who did the dispossessing; and yet we had always failed to ask ourselves how we would feel if it had been done to us.

It is not to inflict guilt on this and future generations of Australians that we should face the realities of Aboriginal dispossession, it is to acknowledge our responsibility and their right to know.

James Cook was instructed:

You are also with the consent of the natives to take possession of convenient situations in the name of the King of Great Britain.

The eminent anthropologist W. E. H. Stanner said in the 1968 Australian Broadcasting Corporation Boyer lectures:

The principle of the consent of the natives was buried at the very centre of the cult of disremembering.

Consent was never given. Indeed, it was never sought. The relationship between Aboriginal and non-Aboriginal people has been characterised by violence, dispossession and racism. Whole communities were shunted from their country. Children were taken from their families. The lives of Aboriginal people were regulated and subjected to control and supervision. To a greater or lesser extent the scrutiny is still occurring. It is unfortunate, then, that Aboriginal people are still not able to participate fully in Australian society. In recent weeks the reconciliation process between Aboriginal and non-Aboriginal people in this country has been wrecked by the likes of Hanson and company. It is a fundamental responsibility of the New South Wales Parliament and the Federal Parliament to vigorously challenge the exaggerated and misinformed comments made by Hanson and others. It is common decency that that happen during this period of unrest. Prime Minister Howard stated:

I see reconciliation as best being expressed through remedying disadvantage, but I don't want people to believe that just because I'm doing it differently from my predecessor that I'm any less committed.

I wonder about his commitment when the Howard Government has slashed huge amounts of money from the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Commission budget, spelling an end to community groups that run much-needed services such as housing, child care, education and employment programs, legal aid and aged care. Aboriginal people are also wondering about the commitment and what the Howard Government has in store next. It worries me greatly, but it is even more worrying for the local Aboriginal community in the Illawarra district, which has written to me of its concerns as follows:

Dear Mr Markham

On behalf of the Illawarra Aboriginal Corporation I request your urgent intervention to ensure that quality of life can be maintained and provided through the wide range of programs directed toward the 5000 Aboriginals of the Illawarra district.

Statistics have identified that the Illawarra region has the largest number of suicides, and a great number of people lost through drug overdoses. The impact of these unusual social problems is affecting the local Aboriginal community who feature proportionately in those statistics.

That information is frightening and concerning. I could continue to list the social deprivations outlined in the letter addressed to me. In the majority of cases only one organisation oversees the service provision of these programs, and that is the local land council, an Aboriginal organisation. Reconciliation is not about special treatment. Aboriginal people are frustrated with the old ways of native welfare, and they are tired of being excluded from decisions that affect their lives. Social injustice, third world health, poor housing and chronic unemployment are the living reality for all Aboriginal Australians. Reconciliation is about rights and reparation, not concessions. It is about equality and social justice for the traditional owners of this land. It is about the legacy of dispossession and continued disempowerment of Aboriginal Australians. It is about the future of this country. In 1933 King Barunga of the Tharawal group said:

It quite amuses me to hear people say that they don't like the black man, but he's damned glad to live in a black man's country all the same.

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. . . there is also plenty of fish in the river for us all and land to grow all we want. 150 years ago the Aboriginals owned Australia and today he demands more than the white man's charity. He wants to right to live.

Have we learned a great deal from that heartfelt statement made by King Barunga many years ago? Aboriginal culture is both rich and unique. Aboriginal culture is alive and vibrant. For example, Aboriginal art is readily identifiable globally as one of the symbols of Australia, perhaps even more so than kangaroos and koalas, as well as being a major export earner for Australia. Colonisation, dispossession, the stolen generations, institutionalisation, discrimination and the denial of basic human rights are impacting and will impact on generations to come. These inequalities are not imagined but have been a very real part of the daily existence for Aboriginal people for the past 208 years, and continue to be. Patrick Dodson, Chairman of the Council for Aboriginal Reconciliation, said:

Whether it is a crisis or not, we are at a crossroads and need to choose the right direction. Together, indigenous and other Australians are called upon to choose the path we now take. Our choices will determine the future shape of our nation.

Will it be a nation which lives in harmony because it has healed the wounds of its past with generosity of spirit and wisdom of intellect? Or will it be a nation where the wounds created by dispossession and injustice still fester, and where the same old conflicts still linger, because the imperative of reconciliation did not inform crucial decision?

The vision of the Council for Aboriginal Reconciliation is something that every Australian should know, understand, respect and support. The Council for Aboriginal Reconciliation has adopted the following vision statement:

A united Australia which respects this land of ours; values the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander heritage; and provides justice and equity for all.

Later today a reception will recognise walking together: the Aboriginal people, the Torres Strait Islander people and the Australian people walking as one, shoulder to shoulder, to impress the rest of the world with what we have been able to achieve, to impress the rest of the world with our respectfulness and mindfulness of the first inhabitants of this great country.

Mr HAZZARD (Wakehurst) [12.08]: On 8 September 1971 a man who did not have the opportunity to attend preschool, who had little formal education and who never got beyond the basics of primary education, stood before the Federal Parliament and said:

All within me that is Aboriginal yearns to be heard as the voice of the indigenous people of Australia. For far too long we have been crying out and far too few have heard us.

As shadow minister for aboriginal affairs and as a member of the Liberal Party, I am proud to acknowledge that those words were spoken on behalf of indigenous Australians by the first Aboriginal Australian to become a member of an Australian Parliament. His name, of course, is Neville Bonner and he served as a Liberal coalition member in the Federal Parliament. I am today privileged to be here in the mother Parliament of Australia, the New South Wales Parliament, and to be able to take part in this bipartisan debate, and in so doing make it clear to all Australia that the New South Wales coalition is committed to the goals and processes of Aboriginal reconciliation, that we have heard the voice of the indigenous people of Australia and want earnestly to respond to that call. In the future, with the maturity of the reconciliation process, I hope to see many more Aboriginal Australians as members of parliament around Australia. I hope to see all Australians being proud of the growing self-esteem that the Aboriginal flag represents to Aboriginal people, whilst at the same time sharing in the pride that all Australians should feel in the Australian flag.

Senator Bonner in his maiden speech in 1971 noted that at that time it was a little less than 200 years since "white man came". He reflected upon the fact that from that time "my people were shot, poisoned, hanged and broken in spirit until they became refugees in their own land". From the moment Captain James Cook sailed into Botany Bay in 1770 the way of life of the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people of this great continent that had served both them and the land so well for at least 60,000 years was to be inevitably changed. Whilst some of Captain Cook's observations may now seem less than appropriate, indeed paternalistic, they still give an insight into the first Australians and their relationship with the land. Cook said:

In reality they are far more happier than we Europeans; being wholly unacquainted not only with the superfluous but with the necessary conveniences so much sought after in Europe, they are happier in not knowing the use of them. They live in tranquillity which is not disturbed by the inequality of condition; the earth and sea of their own accord furnish them with all things necessary for life. They covet not magnificent houses, they live in a warm and fine climate and enjoy a very wholesome air. They think themselves provided with all the necessaries of life.

Now, 206 years later, Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people struggle in many parts of New South Wales, and indeed Australia, to fit into the changed circumstances brought about by the inevitable clash of cultures. This should come as no surprise to any of us today. It was easily foreseeable by those who played roles in bringing about the change from an ancient land with ancient cultures to an ancient land with a mixture of ancient and European cultures. In 1838 Major Mitchell observed:

We cannot occupy their land without providing a change fully as great as that which took place on man's fall and expulsion from Eden.

And so the coming of Europeans, and later Asians, and indeed people from all over the world, into our wonderful, modern, multicultural society has wrought fundamental change in the condition of the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people of this continent. That change has not for the most part been positive. The physical and psychological harm has been substantial; there have been great stresses.
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The complex and nurturing culture of Aboriginal Australians has suffered accordingly. The trustees who had charge of the land for over 60,000 years have suffered all manner of disadvantage in the struggle to either maintain their own traditional lifestyle or fit within the mould necessitated by the arrival of Europeans. In 1848 Sir T. L. Mitchell observed that the Aboriginal people enjoyed:

Such health and exemption from disease; such intensity of existence, in short, must be far beyond the enjoyments of civilised men . . . and the proof of this is to be found in the failure of all attempts to persuade these free denizens of uncultivated earth to forsake it for the tilled ground. They prefer the ground unbroken and free.

The recognition and acknowledgment by all of us that European settlement changed all this and left generations of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people in limbo, an environment which made them less healthy, less capable of enjoying the intensity of existence, and less freely connected with the land is, in my view, the start of the reconciliation process. To argue, as a small minority have done recently, that we as a nation should not seek to spend moneys on and make efforts to join with Aboriginal Australians in improving the lot of this group of Australians who have so many disadvantages is an argument which reeks of such levels of ignorance and inhumanity that one could be excused for considering it has a racist basis.

Certainly our efforts need to be focused and the moneys raised by taxes paid by all Australians should be spent with all the care that the trustees of these moneys can muster. Our efforts to bring about reconciliation must be focused on the disadvantages that are so pronounced, so dismal and of such a longstanding nature that they should be of great concern to each and every one of us as Australians who believe in a fair go. The disadvantages have already been enumerated to some degree but I will mention some of them quickly.

The disadvantages are: young Aboriginal children dying at up to three times the rate of non-indigenous children; Aboriginal mothers dying in childbirth at far greater rates than non-indigenous Australians; Aborigines being gaoled at 12 to 16 times the rate of non-indigenous Australians and occupying 22 per cent of all places in New South Wales gaols; Aboriginal people dying in gaol from natural causes and from suicides at much higher rates than non-indigenous people; Aboriginal people suffering disease at much higher rates and dying 18 to 20 years younger than non-Aboriginal people; Aboriginal people being four to five times more likely not to attend school and to have far less opportunity to attend preschool; and Aboriginal communities having poor or no running water and inadequate health facilities. There are so many more disadvantages.

These are the sorry facts 206 years after Captain Cook arrived. I have travelled to many parts of New South Wales and central Australia and have seen the reality of these disadvantages. It is not necessary to travel far: disadvantage is as close as Sydney's doorstep. Whether it be Redfern, one of the western suburbs or the far west of the State, it is there to be seen but only by those with eyes prepared to see. When I visited Broken Hill prison and discussed with some of the Aborigines, who comprise 95 per cent of the prison population, the disadvantages that their community suffered, it was obvious that many of the disadvantages had been major factors resulting in the inevitable path to prison, although not always.

Those disadvantages included: limited educational opportunities - next to none of the Aborigines attended pre-school and few made it past primary school; devastated families, with some adults having grown up separated from their families as young children, and some subjected to abuse from one or more parents who had no job, no self-esteem, no hope and often a severed connection with the land and their own people. These are the real manifestations of disadvantage. To the extent that these disadvantages were brought about by events which to us are history, we as modern Australians of the late twentieth century should not feel guilt. But as Australians we must not walk away from or deny the reality of the serious issues which face us as a nation today.

These disadvantages can be addressed. The challenge is to live and breathe a vision for a fairer Australia for our first Australians and, indeed, for all those Australians who have come thereafter. Reconciliation, or at least a willingness to be part of the process, offers all Australians a chance to be better people as we share in the vision of what Australia can be. That vision should in every way be a shared vision, and may well be the same as that offered by the Council for Aboriginal Reconciliation. Before I conclude with a summary of that vision, I indicate that I am very pleased to see so many members of the Council for Aboriginal Reconciliation here today and others who are earnestly willing to take part in the reconciliation process.

I acknowledge that speeches will be made today in the upper House, where the Hon. Helen Sham-Ho, a member of the Liberal Party and of the Council for Aboriginal Reconciliation, will confirm the coalition's commitment to the reconciliation process. The shared vision that all Australians should have can be summarised in the vision given by the council, that is, a united Australia which respects this land of ours, values the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander heritage and provides justice and equity for all. I emphasise that the coalition is absolutely committed to providing justice and equity for all. On behalf of the Opposition and as the shadow minister for Aboriginal Affairs, I am absolutely committed to this motion.

Mr YEADON (Granville - Minister for Land and Water Conservation) [12.18]: At the heart of Aboriginal culture, at the heart of Aboriginal aspirations and at the heart of reconciliation is land. There can be no more significant act of
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reconciliation than the recognition of the tie of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people to their land. Land can provide spiritual solace, cultural growth, economic independence and long-awaited justice. It has both practical and symbolic significance. New South Wales was the first State in Australia to recognise Aboriginal people's native title over land via the Native Title Act.

The agreement at Crescent Head has been hailed as a timely and powerful symbol of reconciliation and an example of what could be. Importantly, it has had benefits for both black and white communities. Years of uncertainty for 19 land-holders at Crescent Head on the New South Wales north coast ended following the settlement of the claim on their subdivision. Development of the town of Crescent Head, which had been held up for years, can now proceed. The local residents were unstinting in their praise of the agreement and the very mature terms of the agreement. At the same time, the native title rights of the Dunghutti people were recognised. As Mrs Mary-Lou Buck said at the ceremony when the title was handed to her people, for the first time her people's existence at Crescent Head and their thousand-year link with the land was acknowledged. That the Dunghutti people agreed to allow the State to acquire that title is a demonstration of their moderation and goodwill.

The compensation package provided $256,000 for 19 residential blocks already sold and developed prior to the enactment of the Native Title Act 1993, $482,000 for a further 35 blocks that had not been privately sold, and compensation arrangements for the adjoining block B, linked to its future development. That money will be put to good use to improve the housing of the local people, to develop a culture centre and to revive the local language. The claim showed how flexibility and maturity can ensure a good outcome for everyone involved in native title of land. The claim showed how native title need not cause division among Aboriginal and white societies, but be a model for banishing fear and helping to foster understanding and goodwill.

Indeed, goodwill is required in good measure to negotiate such claims. It takes patience and commitment to reach a settlement. Despite the Government's determination to process this claim, it still took many months to reach an outcome suitable to all parties. I can only commend Mrs Buck and her people for their tolerance, patience and dogged determination to see this through. Mrs Buck is a truly noble woman whose genuine feeling for her land and her people struck every person at the ceremony when native title for the land was acknowledged. Indeed, I acknowledge also the work of the previous Government in laying the foundations for the agreement we were eventually able to strike.

The handing-over ceremony was the most proud and gratifying moment of my political life; indeed, of my whole life. While each native title claim is different and must be dealt with on its merits, the Crescent Head claim has shown what can be achieved. Native title is not unworkable. In New South Wales we are making it work and taking significant steps towards reconciliation. Other States can do the same and I urge them to follow the lead of New South Wales to recognise the connection of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people with their land and to obliterate the concept of terra nullius. Indeed, recognising native title is just one way that I as Minister for Land and Water Conservation and the Carr Government demonstrate commitment to a more harmonious and fairer society.

One other key mechanism for reconciliation in New South Wales is the longstanding New South Wales Aboriginal Land Rights Act, which I administer. This Act was passed in 1983 and was the initiative of the last Labor Government. It was a visionary piece of legislation that recognised for the first time in New South Wales the importance of land to Aboriginal people. It provided for 7.5 per cent of the State's land taxes to be channelled to Aboriginal communities to use to buy back land and to run land councils. The money will continue to go into the relevant fund until 1998 when the interest will be enough to finance future activities. In 1996 the Government processed 477 claims. More than half of those claims were granted, involving a total of 4,406 hectares.

Within a few months of coming to office, this Government approved the most valuable land claim ever granted under the Act. The land, which is near the shores of Lake Macquarie, conservatively estimated to be worth $20 million, was granted to the Koompahtoo Aboriginal Land Council. This 1,000 hectares of land once belonged to the Morisset psychiatric hospital. This claim will benefit the Aboriginal people and the wider community. The land council plans to build a cultural centre on the site, including a bush tucker walking track, space for visiting artists and a theatre. Again, the ceremony at which that land was handed over was most moving.

This year I have already processed 84 claims and granted 43. Claims are being dealt with more quickly since I introduced a 12-month finalisation period for all new land claims. This procedure benefits everyone. It means that local government, land councils, community groups and neighbours can plan their future with certainty once the claim is settled. While it is not necessary for land claimed under the New South Wales Aboriginal Land Rights Act to be land with which a particular Aboriginal group has a traditional connection, the granting of land under the Act is nevertheless a very important step. For many groups it is the key to economic independence; the key to building community businesses and culture centres. It goes part of the way to bringing justice to Aboriginal people. As the Premier said, there can be no reconciliation without justice.

While it is undeniable that much work still needs to be done on the issue of land rights, both under native title and under the Aboriginal Land
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Rights Act, the New South Wales Government is committed to bringing reconciliation closer by recognising that land is a key part of that process. As Minister for Land and Water Conservation I have been concerned not just to acknowledge the links of Aboriginal people with the land, but to harness their knowledge of the land for the benefit of all Australians. Last week I had the pleasure of launching a strategy designed to increase the numbers of Aboriginal people employed in my department. All government departments in New South Wales are devising Aboriginal employment programs. Each department, be it health, education, women's affairs or police, can benefit from the contribution that Aboriginal people can make to policies and practices.

However, I believe it is particularly appropriate that the Department of Land and Water Conservation should boost the number of Aboriginal people that it employs. Aboriginal people have been the custodians of this land for many thousands of years, and it is only right that they be properly represented in the department responsible for the care of that land today. Fittingly, the department's employment strategy is the second largest of the Government's Aboriginal employment programs. More importantly, the department has the highest target for placement of Aboriginal people within its organisation. These positions are to be permanent, which is an important feature of the strategy because, in the past, positions for Aboriginal people have often been on a training basis and opportunities available to them have been only temporary. This situation is unsatisfactory for the department and the Aboriginal people.

This strategy will provide permanent training and career development opportunities previously unavailable to Aboriginal people, and aims to provide representation at all levels and in all occupational areas of the department. It means also that Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander women will have the opportunity to work with the department. That is important as Aboriginal women have their own particular perspective and ideas to contribute. While this initiative has obvious benefits for Aboriginal people, non-Aboriginal people also stand to gain. Non-Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people will be offered cultural awareness training. They will also have the opportunity to share in the knowledge about our State's land and water resources, which many of our new Aboriginal recruits have.

Additionally, the department can increase its knowledge and understanding of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Island perspectives on land and water issues. I look forward to this information exchange. As we approach the turn of the century we must ensure that all Australians feel that their aspirations are met by society and that they have a place in the nation's future. The Carr Government recognises that embracing land rights is an essential part of ensuring Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people are part of our society. Indeed, it is essential if we are to have a fair and just society. The Crescent Head example shows how consultation, goodwill and negotiation can work. It shows that reconciliation is possible. I pledge that I will not shirk from the task of making it a reality.

Mr D. L. PAGE (Ballina) [12.28]: It gives me a great deal of pleasure to support this motion on the need for reconciliation between indigenous and non-indigenous Australians. I grew up near the Baryulgil Aboriginal reserve. Aborigines were mostly employed in the Baryulgil asbestos mines and, of course, many of them suffered, and many died, from asbestos-related diseases. As a child I knew little about racial discrimination, about pre-European history or even the need for reconciliation. What I did know was that many of my friends at Copmanhurst primary school were Aborigines and I never thought of them as being different from the rest of the class. But as I became older I had contact with adult Aborigines travelling on the school bus between Baryulgil and Grafton. I became more aware of the problems associated with alcohol abuse particularly, the prejudices that permeate our society and the need to achieve a lasting reconciliation between indigenous and non-indigenous Australians.

My desire for genuine reconciliation has been heightened by my experience as a member of Parliament. I have had frequent dealings with members of the Aboriginal communities at Ballina, Byron Bay, Ocean Shores and Cabbage Tree Island. Incidentally, Cabbage Tree Island has the oldest continuous public school for Aborigines in New South Wales; it celebrated its centenary a couple of years ago. I am proud that under the guiding hand of a local Ballina Aborigine, David Capeen, and Inspector Barry Leacy, who at the time was the inspector in charge, Ballina police station became the first station in New South Wales to implement a program that involved Aborigines who had been arrested being counselled by an Aboriginal leader at the station. The Aboriginal leader would explain what was going on and stay at the police station with those arrested so that they did not believe that the only way out of the situation was to commit suicide or to do themselves an injury.

That program, which was one of the recommendations of the inquiry into Aboriginal deaths in custody, has subsequently been the focus of national attention and is being adopted around the country. I am happy to have been associated with that program since its commencement. We all need to recognise that Aborigines have made a significant contribution to our country in terms of war service, art, music, literature, culture, sport, contributions to our pastoral industries and a host of other fields of human endeavour. Who could be anything but impressed by the magic of the Ella brothers on the rugby union field, Cathy Freeman powering her way to the finishing line at the Commonwealth Games or Olympic Games, or Torres Strait Islander Christine Anu's beautiful music? We should not forget that our indigenous people have helped to shape our identity as Australians.

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Having said that, I am aware that in my electorate, for example, accusations are being made that Aborigines are being given favoured treatment in relation to punishments for certain crimes. It has been said that the police are reluctant to arrest Aborigines because magistrates will only slap their wrists and not impose an appropriate punishment. Police officers have certainly approached me about that matter. My reply to them has been that if that is the case, it is more a reflection on the magistracy than on anyone else. My experience indicates that Aboriginal community leaders would not endorse any preferential approach in these circumstances because they realise that such action is counterproductive to equity, harmonious relations and a genuine reconciliation between indigenous and non-indigenous people.

It seems to me that the Aboriginal community is increasingly rejecting the patronising approach of authorities, including governments, and endorsing an approach that basically provides for equality of opportunity and treatment whilst allowing for the recognition of special needs. Whilst some special needs are common to all Aboriginal communities, it is important to recognise that circumstances vary significantly among Aboriginal communities, as they do in the non-indigenous community. The special problems of Aborigines in Redfern, for example, may well be different from those of the Aborigines at Todd River, and they may be different again from those of the Aborigines in Ballina, Baryulgil or Bourke. Wherever we live, however, the aspirations of non-indigenous and indigenous Australians have a common theme. In essence that theme is a concept of a fair go. That concept of a fair go should not be used only when we feel like it or as a slogan to make us feel good. A fair go underpins community relationships in Australia, and is admired and envied by other countries throughout the world.

I do not believe that Aboriginal leaders and the Aboriginal community want anything more than a fair go, because to provide favourable treatment is, as I said, counterproductive and does not assist the reconciliation process. However, that is not to say that we must not recognise the special needs of Aboriginal communities. Indeed, we must do so. We must recognise the unacceptably high level of Aboriginal incarceration in our prison system and measures must be taken to correct it. We must understand the health and educational problems that beset Aboriginal communities, and provide the services and resources necessary to resolve them. We must ensure that the water supply is clean and reliable, and that adequate sewerage is provided.

Reconciliation requires a considerable effort from both parties to it. A husband and wife cannot have a proper reconciliation after a significant disagreement without the active participation and commitment of both parties to the final objective. Similarly, both indigenous and non-indigenous people in this country must want a real and lasting reconciliation before it can be achieved. I strongly believe that most Australians want to achieve reconciliation. If that is so, how do we get there? Firstly, non-indigenous Australians must accept certain facts. We must accept that, by establishing a western civilisation in this country, non-indigenous Australians disrupted and in some cases destroyed the existing Aboriginal culture, wreaking havoc among Aboriginal communities, forcibly separating families and introducing such substances as alcohol and western diseases that significantly disadvantaged those communities. Before we achieve reconciliation there must be acceptance.

Once we accept the mistakes of the past we can look to the future with hope and optimism. I do not support the idea that today's non-indigenous Australians should carry a permanent guilt complex, but we must accept the mistakes and realities of the past and, having done that, commit ourselves to a better future. That will involve some effort from both Aboriginal and non-Aboriginal communities. We must all do more to understand our different cultures, to respect and appreciate those differences, and then resolve to live harmoniously together as Australians. The problems of the past and the significant benefits that have been achieved for Aboriginal people over the past two centuries must be acknowledged. Only when we face with honesty both the good and the bad of the past will we as a nation be able to move forward to the most desirable of all goals: a lasting reconciliation. I have a strong personal commitment to the reconciliation process and to justice for the Aboriginal community. I am pleased to support the motion. I am equally pleased that it enjoys bipartisan support.

Mr DEBUS (Blue Mountains - Minister for Corrective Services, Minister for Emergency Services, and Minister Assisting the Minister for the Arts) [12.38]: While I am delighted to participate in the debate and to support the process of reconciliation between indigenous and non-indigenous Australians, at the same time it is sad to reflect that imprisonment plays such a significant role in the lives of Aboriginal people. Reconciliation cannot be achieved without tackling the appallingly high level of Aboriginal incarceration throughout Australia. One of the great tragedies of modern Australia was revealed during the hearings of the Royal Commission into Aboriginal Deaths in Custody. The royal commission highlighted for the first time the overrepresentation of Aboriginal people in prison and recognised that this high rate of incarceration is behind the high rate of Aboriginal deaths in custody.

The tragedy of our prison system is that the number of Aboriginal people incarcerated is so disproportionate to their numbers in the population. Aboriginal people are more likely to be arrested, remanded in custody and imprisoned than non-Aboriginal people. The situation has become much worse over the past 15 years. Since the annual inmate census began in New South Wales in 1982 the Aboriginal proportion of the prison population has doubled. In 1982, 5.8 per cent of inmates were Aboriginal; the figure is now 12.4 per cent. The
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problem is a national one. In both New South Wales and Victoria, Aboriginal people are more than 17 times more likely to be imprisoned than non-Aboriginal people. In South Australia they are 23 times more likely to be imprisoned and in Western Australia they are 25 times more likely to be imprisoned. In Australia as a whole Aborigines are more than 18 times more likely to be imprisoned than non-Aboriginal Australians.

On average, Aboriginal inmates are younger and Aborigines are imprisoned more often than non-Aborigines. They are more likely to serve shorter sentences, reflecting the fact that they are less likely to have committed homicide or drug offences, which traditionally attract longer sentences. On the other hand, the trend appears to be that the younger the age at which one is imprisoned, the more likely one is to reoffend and to be imprisoned again. Today we are not faced with the simple matter of diverting minor offenders from the prison system. While a larger proportion of Aboriginal than non-Aboriginal inmates are serving time for fine default, a significantly larger proportion of Aboriginal inmates are also serving time for assault, including serious assaults. A study conducted by the research and statistics unit of the Department of Corrective Services showed that 29.7 per cent of Aboriginal inmates had committed serious assault offences compared to 13 per cent of non-Aboriginal inmates.

The profile of offences between Aboriginal and non-Aboriginal offenders was otherwise very similar. However, Aboriginal people were underrepresented in the category of drug offences. These statistics indicate that one of the primary causes of the increasingly high level of Aboriginal imprisonment is the appallingly high levels of violence in Aboriginal communities, as might be expected of people who suffer the extreme levels of social disadvantage that Aborigines do. Violence against Aboriginal women in particular is alarmingly prevalent. According to a recent Victorian study, while non-Aboriginal women are more likely to be the victims of property offences, Aboriginal women are three times as likely to be the victims of an offence against a person and are six times as likely to be the victims of indictable assault offences. These figures are, of course, likely to understate the reality as Aboriginal women could be assumed to be far less likely to report victimisation to the police.

Not enough attention has been paid to Aboriginal women, both as offenders and victims, in the criminal justice system. It is not commonly recognised that the overrepresentation of Aboriginal women in the prison system is even worse than that of Aboriginal men. Approximately 17 per cent of the female inmate population is now Aboriginal, compared to 12 per cent of the male population. Recently, I was given figures which show that there are more Aboriginal men in our prison system than there are in our tertiary institutions. Those are appalling statistics. The correctional system, which is confronted with the reality of Aboriginal incarceration on a daily basis, has been at the forefront of efforts to reduce it. Its efforts are often driven by the remarkable Aboriginal workers and volunteers who are now associated with the correctional reform process.

It was my great privilege, as recently as last week, to meet Aboriginal workers and volunteers in the Department of Corrective Services and the National Parks and Wildlife Service in Broken Hill. Those people are making a truly creative contribution to the new programs being planned in that part of the world. It is important, when confronted with the depressing realities of Aboriginal life today, that we do not forget that over the last 200 years Aboriginal people have managed, against the most enormous odds, to resist the destruction of their culture and their race. Thanks to their efforts it is not too late for white Australia to reach a new accommodation with indigenous Australia. On a smaller scale, some of the ways in which we are trying to achieve this in corrective services include increasing the availability of periodic detention to sentencing authorities in non-metropolitan Sydney. Gaols such as Bathurst, Tamworth and Broken Hill have high Aboriginal inmate populations. At Broken Hill in excess of 70 per cent of the inmate population at any one time is Aboriginal. The construction of periodic detention centres in those towns is providing magistrates with an alternative to gaol for Aboriginal offenders.

A dedicated Aboriginal post-release service has been established and funding to community-run services has been increased in an attempt to address the high rate of recidivism among Aboriginal offenders. A dedicated Aboriginal drug and alcohol unit staffed by Aboriginal workers and using resources developed with Aboriginal inmates is attempting to address the high level of drug and, in particular, alcohol abuse that contributes to Aborigines offending. The new violence prevention program has a high representation of Aboriginal inmates in its intake. Given the prevalence of assault offences among Aboriginal inmates and the high recidivism rate for these offenders, that program should have an impact on Aboriginal incarceration. In addition, the department has also developed a plan for more radical alternatives to custody for Aboriginal offenders which I shall be launching next week.

The Government is particularly looking at establishing mobile prisons, culture camps or healing centres - as the First Nations women in Canada have done - an Aboriginal cultural enterprise and Aboriginal-run properties. I am heartened by the flood of approaches my office has received in recent days from country towns willing and happy to host programs of that sort. An important focus of those programs and others, such as the new agreement between TAFE and the Department of Corrective Services for the provision of Aboriginal education programs, is to raise the self-esteem of Aboriginal offenders by enabling them to reconnect with their people's culture and history. Finally, the review by
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the Law Reform Commission of sentencing is to turn its attention to issues of Aboriginals and sentencing in the new year.

The destructive clash between Aboriginal communities and the criminal justice system is hardly surprising when one considers the extent of social and economic deprivation and the denial of culture and history that Aboriginal people have experienced and are continuing to suffer. As a former director of Freedom from Hunger and Community Aid Abroad, I concur fully with the view that many Aboriginal communities experience Third World living standards. That is the single, substantial blot on Australia's record as a successful multicultural country, which I believe is otherwise the most successful in the world. I am proud to be part of a Government that has placed the redress of Aboriginal social disadvantage at the forefront of its new social justice strategy.

I do not want to be part of a society that condemns its indigenous people - the people who for tens of thousands of years cared for the land that we now enjoy - to ill health, homelessness, unemployment, violence, addiction and incarceration. That is not a future to which black or white Australians wish to be reconciled. When apartheid was abolished in South Africa, the process of reaching a new accommodation between black and white was called truth and reconciliation. We have to acknowledge the truths, not to feel guilty about them - at least primarily - but to enable us to deal with them and address them. I implore the Prime Minister, amongst others, to recognise that truth. Reconciliation is about acknowledging wrongs, both past and present, and working together to right them. I suggest that one of the best benchmarks of the success of such a process must be a decline in the level of incarceration of Aboriginal Australians.

Ms FICARRA (Georges River) [12.48]: Aboriginal Australia costs the Federal and State governments about $2 billion a year, yet many Aborigines are too sick to go to school, too poorly educated to work and too remote from paying jobs to survive without welfare. As previous speakers in the debate have said, indigenous Australians are still being gaoled at up to 16 times the rate of non-indigenous Australians; they are still dying in Australian prisons at a far greater rate than non-indigenous Australians; and they are suffering Third World medical problems. They are still not adequately represented in the parliaments of Australia or in senior government positions. After two centuries of white settlement almost 200 Aboriginal communities are without local medical services, more than 300 have water supplies that fail National Health and Medical Research Council guidelines, and more than 250 have no electricity.

I congratulate my Federal Liberal colleagues the Prime Minister, the Hon. John Howard, and the Minister for Defence, Ian McLachlan, on their recent action in mobilising army engineers to provide water supplies to 280 Aboriginal communities which still have no running water or basic sewerage services, despite billions of dollars being earmarked for such projects. Urgent action was needed, not more well-intentioned, do-gooder gabfests involving scores of professional procrastinators and non-accountable bureaucrats. As the honourable member for Keira said, actions speak louder than words. Plans for an initial program costing $2 million will be announced tomorrow by the Federal Minister for Aboriginal Affairs, Senator Herron. More funding will follow as the pilot program succeeds, and I have no doubt that it will. Funding has been provided by the Federal Minister for Health, Dr Wooldridge, and such interdepartmental government cooperation is to be applauded. The lack of basic water and sewerage services for Aboriginal communities is a national disgrace. Coming from a shameful base, Aboriginal child health is slowly improving. However, in central Australia 40 per cent of Aboriginal toddlers still end up in hospital with acute respiratory illness, and Aboriginal children are up to 80 times more likely to be admitted with X-ray proven pneumonia. The life expectancy of Aborigines is at least 15 years less than that of European Australians and health experts claim that in the past two decades the health of many adult Aborigines has actually deteriorated.

The survival of the culture has given birth to an Aboriginal insistence on being heard in national affairs. That has produced Mabo and a swag of legislative protections and rights. Yet despite, or perhaps because of, bureaucratic and community networks that criss-cross the country at both Federal and State level costing $40 million a week, Aborigines in their thirties and forties die at rates up to 12 times higher than whites of the same age. Infant mortality is three times that of white Australians. All Australians are exasperated by the lack of progress and the failure of funding to make inroads into the high level of disadvantage. The health of indigenous Australians is the worst of any indigenous group in the developed world. The ill health of Australia's indigenous population is preventable and can be blamed on the poor state of public health infrastructure, water quality, housing, sewerage services and the poor understanding of basic health concepts such as nutrition in some of our communities.

Australia has the distinction of being the only western country where the health of the indigenous adult population is not improving. According to the 1990 national health survey, half of the adult Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander community were smokers, compared with less than one-third of the general adult population. Diabetes, hypertension and infectious diseases are prevalent in indigenous communities. Non-fatal but debilitating diseases such as trachoma and middle ear infections affect the health and opportunities of thousands of indigenous children and adults.

The health survey revealed that the life expectancy at birth of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people living in western New South Wales
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was lower than that of the general population. Women in the former community were expected to die 14 years earlier than the total female population of New South Wales, and men were expected to die 19 years earlier than the total male population. The general approach needed to tackle these problems involves setting high priority achievable short-term and long-term goals with defined outcomes; recognising that indigenous health will only advance when indigenous people share responsibility for decision making and formulation and implementation of policy at all levels; and recognising that health is not solely the function of medical health services and appropriate infrastructure but also of complex factors including economic and social disadvantage and lifestyle.

Turning to public health infrastructure, 120 remote Aboriginal communities were identified in the survey as having inadequate water supply systems; 134 communities lacked appropriate sewage disposal systems; 250 communities were without electricity; and at least 176 communities had unsealed roads, 32 having no roads at all. In some communities there is a critical shortage of housing, with families forced to live in corrugated iron shelters exposed to extremes of temperature, or in sharing arrangements which put excessive pressure on housing facilities.

The Government needs to make the provision of water, sewerage services and housing to indigenous communities its highest priority and, recognising the huge backlog of need, to work towards achieving appropriate accommodation for all indigenous people. The debate today in the New South Wales Parliament is an important opportunity for our State political leaders to reaffirm their commitment to the principles of reconciliation so that the unity, justice and equality hoped for by all Australians can be achieved. It is worth mentioning what has been said by the Governor-General, Sir William Deane. An article in the Age on 27 May in relation to reconciliation stated:

Australia must make spiritual reconciliation between indigenous and non-indigenous Australians its first priority for the centenary of Federation in 2001, otherwise the nation would remain "diminished" . . .

To mark the beginning of National Reconciliation Week, Sir William urged Australians to remember that reconciliation was the two-way process.

"Until there is such reconciliation, there will be no prospect of real success in redressing the darkest aspect of our history, namely the past oppression and dispossession of the Aboriginal peoples," Sir William said.

"For their part, the Aboriginal peoples must recognise and accept that we now all constitute one Australian people, one Australian nation. Equally, other Australians must recognise and accept that the effects of past spiritual degradation cannot be overcome by money alone."

The present generation of Australians are well informed about Aboriginal culture and achievements, and about the injustice that has been done by many misguided past generations. They appreciate the depth and the diversity of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander cultures. Their music and art and dance have helped us to realise how much richer our national life and identity has become because of their participation. All Australians, no matter what their origin, are equal and are special members of the family of Australia. Let all public decision makers in this State and nation return respect, dignity and basic Australian human rights to the treasured original inhabitants of our great continent.

Motion agreed to.

[Mr Acting-Speaker (Mr Mills) left the chair at 12.56 p.m. The House resumed at 2.15 p.m.]