from Abbott, Tony (MP) Tony.Abbott.MP at aph.gov.au via songlines.org.au
to Bruce Reyburn
date Thu, Feb 9, 2012 at 3:09 PM
subject RE: First Peoples voices in Parliament
mailed-by songlines.org.au

Thank you for your email following the release of the final report by the Expert Panel on Constitutional Recognition of Indigenous Australians.

The Coalition has a proud history of seeking to secure indigenous recognition in the Constitution. Since 2007 it has been Coalition policy to hold a referendum on the addition to the Constitution of a preamble recognising Indigenous Australians. We also support the repeal of obsolete racially discriminatory provisions.

Importantly, the key objective of any referendum is to achieve a unifying moment for the nation similar to that achieved by the 1967 constitutional referendum.

It is in that spirit that the Coalition will now carefully study the report and then release a formal response.

In examining the report we will be looking closely at the potential legal ramifications of any specific anti-discrimination power.

Thank you again for your email.

Yours sincerely

Office of the Hon Tony Abbott MHR

From: Bruce Reyburn [mailto:reyburn at songlines.org.au]
Sent: Monday, 30 January 2012 3:36 PM
To: Abbott, Tony (MP)
Subject: Re: First Peoples voices in Parliament

Amended questions, please note changes

The Hon Tony Abbott
Leader of the Opposition
Parliament House
Canberra

Dear Mr Abbott,

Do you agree that, after 110 years of Federation under the 1901 Constitution, it is time for the voices of Australia’s First Peoples to have some institutionalised form of representation so their voices and concerns can be clearly heard within the new Parliament House?

If so, what do you and the Opposition you lead propose to do about it?

If not, why not?

Yours truly

Bruce Reyburn
P.O. Box 257
Thirroul NSW 2515

cc: www.songlines.org.au

TAKE ACTION TO HELP STOP THE MUCKATY NUCLEAR DUMP

Since the NT waste dump proposal was announced in 2005, Traditional Owners and supporters have been actively opposing the plan. The ALP took office in 2007, yet due in part to community pressure, nothing has been progressed procedurally at all by the government since then. The community campaign however, has continued to build steadily. There have been rallies in Tennant Creek and across the NT, numerous letters and appeals to government, delegations making submissions and attending Parliamentary Inquiries, lobbying in Canberra, speaking tours across the country, a trade union delegation to Tennant Creek, the photo exhibition launch and much, much more.

The National Radioactive Waste Management Bill is again scheduled for debate in the Senate this Wednesday. If this Bill passes the Senate- which is likely to happen soon given the ALP and Coalition both support it- it means Muckaty can be declared as the preferred site and the environmental assessments will begin. Minister Martin Ferguson’s Bill is almost a complete cut and paste of the John Howard law it is purporting to replace and names Muckaty as the only site to be further assessed. We want all Senators to reject the Bill while it preserves the contested Muckaty nomination.

We are calling on all supporters around the country to please take four simple actions THIS WEEK:

1- A petition has been uploaded at http://www.gopetition.com/petitions/no-nuclear-waste-dump-at-muckaty.html We are hoping to have a few thousand people sign this by the time the legislation is voted on, so please sign on and send the link as far and wide as possible.

2- After you sign the petition, please take a few minutes to call or email the Senators of your state/territory and ask them to vote against the National Radioactive Waste Management Bill. All of the contacts are at http://www.aph.gov.au/senate/senators/contacts/los.htm. Cabinet members are well aware of how contested Muckaty is but some of the other Senators may not understand the level of opposition to the plan. A call from a constituent (you!) will help put it on their radar. The main point is to ask them to not support the legislation, but you can also tell them the reasons why you are opposed to the plan. If you want to hear some more from Traditional Owners before you call the Senators, watch Muckaty Voices (you can find it on youtube), or listen to any of the audio of Muckaty mob speaking that is archived on the BNI website: www.beyondnuclearinitiative.com/audio

3- This last action is the really fun one…please take a photo of yourself holding a sign with ‘No nuclear waste dump at Muckaty’, ‘No Muckaty nuclear dump’, ‘Dont dump on Muckaty’, or any similar words, and email it to natwasley(at)alec.org.au. These will be uploaded as a slideshow onto the BNI website and updated as more and more are sent in. It will be the start of a virtual march on Canberra…

4- Send this information on to all of your family and friends

Speaking of the website…

…while you are checking out your photo and all of the others on the website, you can subscribe in the right hand column to receive an email when new posts are added, the easiest way to keep up with the BNI campaign events and initiatives.

see http://beyondnuclearinitiative.com/

What is the fate of a people when their language and culture disappear? How did the Polynesians—centuries ago—navigate the vast South Pacific Ocean without any navigational aids whatsoever? And why does anthropology matter? Paul Barclay speaks with anthropologist Wade Davis at the Brisbane Writers Festival.

Wade Davis – Ethnographer, anthropologist, ethnobotanist, filmmaker, photographer and National Geographic Explorer-In-Residence

http://www.abc.net.au/radionational/programs/summertalks/wade-davis/3729242

The Hon Tony Abbott
Leader of the Opposition
Parliament House
Canberra

Dear Mr Abbott,

Do you agree that, after 110 years of Federation under the 1901 Constitution, it is time for the voices of Australia’s First Peoples to have some institutionalised form of representation so their voices and concerns can be clearly heard within the new Parliament House?

If so, what do you and the Opposition you lead propose to do about it?

If not, why not?

Yours truly

Bruce Reyburn
P.O. Box 257
Thirroul NSW 2515

cc: www.songlines.org.au

“Acknowledging the need to secure the advancement of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples”

Advancement? This is a term straight out of the mid-1900s, and one which lays claim to modern Western notions of ‘progress’ as the only ‘normality’ in Australian life.

It is part of the mentality which depicted First Peoples as backward remnants of the stone age, and suffering from some form of imaginary deficiency.

The thinking in the Expert Panel, as reflected by its recommendations and language, seems to belong to a White Australia tradition which we need to leave well behind us.

While there is no denying the disadvantage which First Peoples have suffered as a result of the failure of the Anglo-Australian state (since 1788) to engage in genuine exchange relationships, this does not mean that First Peoples have to be ‘advanced’.

There is an equal case to be made that mainstream Anglo-Australian practices need to be reformed in order to reduce and repair the damage done to life here by the notions of progress which were in place in the late 1890s when the original Constitution was written. Some rebalancing all round is required.

Constitutional recognition needs to be in terms which affirm First Peoples as First Peoples, not in terms which unfairly put them in a bad light. It was the failings of the colonial authorities (no treaty, no recognition, no exchange relationships) which disadvantaged indigenous Australians.

The present wording of this proposed Section 51(A) clause carries with it an ‘unconscious’ negative characterisation of the respective positions of Australia’s First Peoples vis-à-vis non-indigenous Australians.

As things stand, a referendum question based on the expert panel’s recommendation would, if successful, cement an obsolete 20th century stereotype of First Peoples into the Constitution.

A far better form of words, which avoids empowering this one-sided and increasingly obsolete ideology of ‘progress’, would be:

“Acknowledging the need to restore and secure the full well-being of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples.”

This leaves room for First Peoples to be empowered on terms which are in keeping with their own values, practices, worldviews and cosmologies.

What do the speakers of Australia’s original languages have to say about that?

Executive summary
Recommendations
Recommendations for changes to the Constitution
The Panel recommends:

…

5 That a new ‘section 127A’ be inserted, along the following lines:
Section 127A Recognition of languages
(1) The national language of the Commonwealth of Australia is English.
(2) The Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander languages are the original Australian languages, a part of our national heritage.

http://www.youmeunity.org.au/uploads/assets/Expert%20Panel%20report%20-%20Executive%20Summary%20and%20Recommendations.pdf

Joint Media Release with:

The Hon Julia Gillard MP, Prime Minister

The Australian Government today received the expert panel’s report on the recognition of Indigenous people in the Australian Constitution.

Over the past year, the panel of Indigenous and community leaders, constitutional law experts and parliamentary members have led wide-ranging national public consultations to develop options to recognise the special place of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples in the Constitution.

The panel talked to more than 4,600 people, in more than 250 meetings in 84 locations across the country and received more than 3,500 submissions.

They also sought extensive advice from Indigenous leaders and constitutional experts and gathered data through research and surveys.

The Government will now carefully consider the panel’s recommendations before determining the best way forward.

The Australian Constitution is the foundation document for our laws and our government, but it is silent on the special place of our first Australians.

Constitutional recognition of Indigenous Australians is a significant step towards building a nation based on strong relations and mutual respect, which recognises the unique and special place of our first peoples.

The Government thanks the panel, including co-chairs Mark Leibler and Professor Patrick Dodson for their dedication and tireless work over the past year. They have helped build a strong foundation for change.

We also thank the Australian Human Rights Commission, the National Congress of Australia’s First Peoples and Reconciliation Australia, and the many people who lodged submissions, participated in consultations or helped the panel with their research.

The Government does not underestimate the challenge of achieving nation-wide consensus. Change will not happen without support from across the political spectrum and the support of the majority of Australians.

The National Apology to Indigenous Australians helped build a bridge of respect between Indigenous and non-Indigenous people. It helped generate the trust so we could work together to tackle Indigenous disadvantage.

The recognition of Indigenous people in the Constitution is another step in that journey, a step that is critical in our efforts to close the gap.

The panel’s report can be found at www.youmeunity.org.au. We encourage all Australians to visit the site to learn more and to register their support for Indigenous constitutional recognition.

Constitutional Change for Equality for All Australians

Congress says Australians who support equality and fairness in our Constitution should support recommendations to change the nation’s founding document.

“The message from this report is clear, it’s time to eliminate racism from the Australian constitution and to prohibit racial discrimination,” said Congress Co-Chair, Jody Broun.

“If taken to Referendum and passed, these reforms will establish the Constitution as a pillar against racism.

“This report is the culmination of months of public consultations and over 3,000 submissions with careful consideration of the best way to achieve successful and meaningful recognition of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples.

“It is imperative that Australians make an informed decision when voting in any future Referendum on this issue. Congress encourages everyone to read the comprehensive report and join us in supporting the recommendations.

“We call on our political leaders to be brave in taking the country forward on this issue,” she said

Congress Co-Chair Les Malezer said Constitutional recognition was one of many long term goals of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples.

“Although these reforms are substantive, Congress acknowledges that they do not address calls for a treaty or greater protection of the rights.

“A Referendum will not achieve those aspirations, so we are recommending simple, logical and just changes that can be supported by a majority of Australians.

“They will not diminish or extinguish the campaign for self-determination to be the standard to be met by all governments.

“Along with Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples’ sovereignty, these issues must be dealt with separately.

“Our Members and Delegates have already decided Constitutional Reform is among the top Congress priorities.Congress Members want us to have a major role in promoting Constitutional reform, in consulting with Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples, and in educating the whole community on the issues involved. We have remained committed to their views during this process,” he said.

Congress encourages everyone to read the full report, understand the issues and political challenges, and then add their own voice to achieve Constitutional recognition of Australia’s First Peoples.

A whole range of documents including the final report can be found on the You Me Unity site.

Congress Issues: Sovereignty and Treaty

The proposed Referendum will not adversely affect any efforts being made by Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples for a Treaty with the Government.

The Panel’s report also says that the recommendations for Constitutional reform would not adversely affect any future legal claim of sovereignty.

Check out more about these issues here.

Plain English Guide to Panel’s Recommendations

The Panel recommends that:
• section 25 is removed
• section 51(xxvi) is removed
• a new section 51A is adopted to recognise Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples and to preserve the Australian Government’s ability to pass laws for the benefit of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander
peoples
• a new section 116A is adopted, prohibiting racial discrimination
• a new section 127A is adopted, recognising Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander languages while
confirming that English is Australia’s national language
• the Government considers carefully the Panel’s advice on how to achieve a successful referendum.

To read more from the plain English guide, click here

“The question of sovereignty

At consultations and in submissions to the Panel, there were numerous calls for a reappraisal of currently accepted perceptions of the historical relationship between indigenous and non-indigenous Australians from the time of European settlement. Chapter 9 discusses one of the significant issues to have emerged during the consultation process: the aspiration of some Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples for recognition of their sovereign status.

The Panel has concluded that any proposal relating to constitutional recognition of the sovereign status of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples would be highly contested by many Australians, and likely to jeopardise broad public support for the Panel’s recommendations. Such a proposal would not therefore satisfy at least two of the Panel’s principles for assessment of proposals, namely ‘contribute to a more unified and reconciled nation’, and ‘be capable of being supported by an overwhelming majority of Australians from across the political and social spectrums’. While questions relating to sovereignty are likely to continue to be the subject of debate in the community, including among Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people, the Panel does not consider that these questions can be resolved or
advanced at this time by inclusion in a constitutional referendum proposal.”

http://www.youmeunity.org.au/uploads/assets/Expert%20Panel%20report%20-%20Executive%20Summary%20and%20Recommendations.pdf