Category Archives: Indigenous Australians

Advocates call for urgent action after two ‘incredibly tragic’ Aboriginal deaths in custody

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Linda Burney says rates of Indigenous incarceration and deaths in custody 30 years after royal commission are a ‘national shame’

Advocates say the “heartbreaking” deaths of two Aboriginal people in custody within days of each other in Western Australia over Christmas should jolt state and federal governments into urgent action.

A 41-year-old First Nations woman died in a Perth hospital on Christmas Eve after suffering a “medical episode” in Wandoo rehabilitation prison 13 days earlier.

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Claims Labor lacks detail on Indigenous voice are ‘rubbish’, Linda Burney tells Woodford folk festival

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‘We’re going to succeed with the referendum,’ Noel Pearson tells crowd ahead of 2023 vote

Linda Burney has rejected as “rubbish” suggestions that Labor has not released enough detail about the Indigenous voice to parliament, as the Liberals continue to call for a free vote in the referendum.

The Indigenous Australians minister and Anthony Albanese both gave major speeches at the Woodford folk festival on Wednesday, countering claims from the Liberal National Coalition that the body would not help improve outcomes for First Nations people.

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First Nations public servants report higher rates of harassment

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Survey finds 16% of Indigenous Australian staff experienced bullying or harassment – almost double the rate of their non-Indigenous coworkers

First Nations staff in the federal public service have reported higher rates of bullying and harassment in the workplace than their non-Indigenous colleagues for the past four years.

Each year the Australian Public Service Commission asks staff to complete a survey detailing their experiences, including whether they have been subjected to harassment and bullying in the workplace.

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Ancient Aboriginal rock art destroyed by vandals in ‘tragic loss’ at sacred SA site

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Archeologist says artwork was ‘unique in Australia’, calling for better protection at Koonalda Cave

Vandals have destroyed a 30,000-year-old artwork at a sacred cave in South Australia, as experts decried the “massive, tragic loss” and expressed frustration at the lack of protection at the site.

The vandals entered Koonalda Cave at Nullarbor Plain and scrawled graffiti across the heritage-listed site, writing “don’t look now, but this is a death cave”.

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‘Only fit for a bulldozer’: nurse alleges children in distress and clinic ‘crumbling’ at Don Dale

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Exclusive: Some young detainees are so anxious about lockdowns they request anti-psychotic medicine, ex-employee claims

A nurse who worked at the Don Dale youth detention centre alleges it is an unsafe environment for staff and that children detained there are so distressed they ask for anti-psychotic medication.

The nurse, whodoes not want to be named, says Don Dale is “only fit for a bulldozer” and feels that not enough has changed since a royal commission into the notorious Northern Territory facility.

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Strip-searching of First Nations children by Victoria police ‘state-sanctioned violence’, inquiry hears

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Indigenous children routinely subjected to racist slurs and excessive force, including use of stun guns, Yoorrook Justice Commission told

First Nations children are routinely strip-searched by police and it amounts to “state-sanctioned violence”, a defence lawyer has told Victoria’s Indigenous truth-telling commission.

Tessa Theocharous told the Yoorrrook Justice Commission that the constant mistreatment of Aboriginal children by Victoria police was rooted in racism.

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Essential poll: three-quarters of voters believe cost-of-living crisis will worsen but majority give Albanese thumbs up

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More than 60% also say they support the Indigenous voice to parliament, with the Liberal party at risk of alienating younger voters if it backs the Nationals’ position

Australians are bracing for increased consumer prices, expensive power bills and higher interest rates in the year ahead, but 40% of Guardian Essential poll respondents think 2023 will be better than 2022.

The nascent optimism as the summer break approaches comes ahead of a special sitting of federal parliament on Thursday to pass new legislation capping gas prices, which is the first tranche of an intervention to reduce power bills.

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‘Toxic rhetoric’: marriage equality plebiscite offers ugly lessons for Indigenous voice to parliament referendum

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Support and self-care will be vital during the campaign, which could stir up ‘perfect storm for fear and hate’

From the age of five Keenan Smith knew they felt different, lacking the sense of ease other children in country Australia took for granted and bristling at being pushed towards rough and tumble sports and toy trucks and guns.

“I didn’t like the same things that boys would use in that age group, things like sports and those traditionally gendered things,” the Wirangu, Mirning and Kokatha person says.

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Archie Roach mourners fined for running red lights will not have penalties dismissed

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Victoria police confirm at least seven infringements totalling $462 each were issued for ‘serious traffic offences’

Mourners who were fined for running red lights during late music icon Uncle Archie Roach’s funeral procession will not have them overturned.

Victoria police confirmed at least seven infringements totalling about $462 each were issued to mourners travelling as part of the motorcade, including the driver of a hearse carrying Roach’s body back to Country in August.

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Melbourne council moves to abandon Australia Day citizenship ceremonies

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Federal government tight-lipped on whether it will allow ceremonies on other dates as Merri-bek council votes on change

The future of citizenship ceremonies at three Melbourne councils hangs in the balance, as the federal government refuses to reveal whether it will revoke a Coalition-era policy that forces the ceremonies to be held on 26 January.

The Greens-led Merri-bek council, in Melbourne’s north, on Wednesday voted to abandon Australia Day citizenship ceremonies and instead honour the date with a mourning event to recognise the dispossession of Indigenous Australians.

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Victoria’s child protection system is creating ‘new stolen generation’, Aboriginal leader says

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Condemnation comes as the state’s truth-telling inquiry, the Yoorrook Justice commission, prepares to hold hearings on the subject from Monday

Aboriginal leaders say Victoria’s “culturally unsafe” child protection system is creating “a new stolen generation”, as the state’s truth-telling inquiry prepares to hold hearings on the subject from Monday.

Last year, one in nine Aboriginal babies aged under one was taken away from their families by the state of Victoria, more than double the national average.

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Indigenous voice opponents say Labor is being ‘disingenuous’ on funding for campaigns

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Warren Mundine criticises government for giving tax-free status to yes vehicle but not an equivalent no group

Opponents of the voice to parliament claim the federal government is being “disingenuous” by declining to provide public funding to the respective sides of the debate, but say the growing no campaign will reach out to corporate Australia for funding.

The main campaign vehicle in favour of Indigenous constitutional recognition has backed the proposed amendments to laws governing referendums, as well as promising a major escalation in their campaigning early in 2023.

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Grieving family pays tribute to pregnant woman who died in Perth after being hit by concrete block

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Noongar woman Diane Miller and her unborn baby died in hospital three days after incident at Waterford Plaza shopping centre

Instead of planning a baby shower, Diane Miller’s family is preparing for her funeral.

The pregnant 30-year-old Noongar woman’s life support was switched off at 2am on Friday, three days after she was struck in the head with a concrete missile that was launched into her open passenger-side window at a Karawara shopping centre in Perth’s south-east.

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‘It’s awakened a consciousness in me’: Collingwood urges AFL clubs to conduct racism reviews

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Magpies implement 14 recommendations of Do Better review with four in progress as president Jeff Browne says new systems will build inclusive club

Collingwood says it is making strides to remove the stain of racism and wants other AFL teams to learn from its lessons, two years after an external review found systemic racism within the club.

The Do Better report, the result of an independent review in 2020 by the Jumbunna Institute, outlined 18 recommendations for Collingwood to transform its processes, values and culture to become a more inclusive workplace – all of which were adopted by the club.

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Labor adds extra week of Senate estimates – as it happened

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This blog is now closed

Milton Dick also makes these recommendations for things he believes may improve the parliament:

Offensive words or reflections on Members Standing Orders 88 to 90, for example, provide that Members should not use offensive words or cast adverse reflections on Members, but they do not refer specifically to language or behaviour that is sexist or otherwise exclusionary or discriminatory. Revisions to these Standing Orders, so that they explicitly include that this type of conduct is highly disorderly, would be advantageous to the Chair in ruling on such matters.

Education and procedural support

Sanctions against disorder Under Standing Order 94{a), the Speaker may direct a Member to leave the Chamber for one hour if the Member’s conduct is considered disorderly. At times, this direction to leave can be advantageous to a Member or be worn as a ‘badge of honour’.

If a Member’s conduct is grossly disorderly, the Speaker can choose to name the Member in accordance with Standing Order 94{b), but in practice this option is not often used and not used for ordinary offences. It would assist the Speaker to have additional options to sanction a Member for disorderly conduct. For example, choices for increased penalties of time, and/or the introduction of cascading penalties of time for continued disorder, would be a disincentive to Members to be ejected.

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Australia politics live: Dutton says Coalition won’t support motion to censure Morrison – but Archer says she is ‘inclined to’

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The censure motion against Scott Morrison over multiple ministries scandal will be debated in House of Representatives tomorrow. Follow the day’s news live

Bipartisanship cedes to brinkmanship in battle over integrity commission

Meanwhile, Mark Dreyfus is preparing to stare down the Liberals and the Greens over an amendment to the national anti-corruption commission legislation which Dreyfus says risks establishing the commission and the Liberals and Greens say will ensure it won’t be political.

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David Littleproud is a ‘kindergarten kid’ whose Nationals will be ‘left behind’ on voice, Noel Pearson says

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Senator Jacinta Nampijinpa Price caught in a ‘tragic redneck celebrity vortex’ and ‘punching down on other Blackfellas’, Cape York leader says

The Cape York leader Noel Pearson has called the National party leader, David Littleproud, a “kindergarten kid” whose party is in danger of being “left behind in history” after it decided to oppose an Indigenous voice to parliament.

In a blistering interview with ABC radio on Tuesday, Pearson also accused the Northern Territory Country Liberal party senator Jacinta Nampijinpa Price of being drawn into a “a tragic redneck celebrity vortex”.

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National party won’t support Indigenous voice to parliament, saying it won’t close the gap

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The Liberals are yet to reach a position on the referendum, which is expected by the end of 2023

The Nationals will not support the proposal for a voice to parliament, putting a dent in hopes for bipartisan support for a referendum on Indigenous constitutional recognition.

The Liberal party is still to settle its party room position on the pending referendum, but at least some members of the junior Coalition partner will campaign actively against the change.

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Dutton given official warning by Speaker – as it happened

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How can strengthening federal laws stop the destruction of sacred heritage sites?

Tanya Plibersek:

I think I think it’s really worth having a look at the two inquiries that the the parliament undertook into the Juukan Gorge destruction because it describes not just the failure of laws, but the failure of process and the failure of people to listen and that happened at the commonwealth level and it also happened at the West Australian state government level.

The other thing that it describes is a company that paid lip service to consultation and really, you know, really didn’t do what it should have done when Aboriginal people said you can’t blow up caves that are 46,000 years old, that have examples of continuous use and habitation that you know, the site of finds like a 4,000-year-old hair belt, and tools that are tens of thousands of years old.

There’s absolutely a sense of urgency to ensure that this sort of cultural heritage destruction doesn’t happen again.

I completely agree with that, but a very strong message from the the First Nations Heritage Protection Alliance is also that they genuinely want to sit at the table to work through these issues in partnership and cooperation.

Yeah, I’m not going to put I’m not going to put a timeline on it yet. I think that’s something that we determined as we work through the complexity of these issues, and there are a lot of complexities involved.

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Liberals expected to give MPs freedom to campaign as they wish on Indigenous voice

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Peter Dutton says Coalition is still in discussions but sources say free vote is likely, in defiance of John Howard’s advice

The Liberal party is expected to allow members the freedom to campaign however they wish on the Indigenous voice to parliament referendum, defying advice from former prime minister John Howard.

There is a broad range of views in the opposition on Labor’s plan for constitutional recognition of Indigenous Australians, but even Liberal supporters say the government must give more information about the voice and conduct a parliamentary inquiry before they could pledge their support.

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