Category Archives: Indigenous Australians

SES and Resilience NSW ‘failed’ to lead flood response, inquiry finds – as it happened

Posted on by

New threatened species listings include south-eastern glossy black-cockatoo

Two Australian species that were badly affected by the 2019-20 black summer bushfires have been officially listed as threatened.

The damage caused by the black summer bushfires is still being felt today and can be seen reflected in these listings today.

The fires had an immense impact on our environment, from a small reptile found in the mountains to a bird that is at home on the coast. There is still a lot of work to do.

It seems as though these positions are being offered around almost like lolly bags to senior members of the New South Wales government rather than what they’re intended to be, which is senior positions funded by the taxpayer. We shouldn’t operate like that in New South Wales. We’re slowly but surely finding out the contours of what is an absolute scandal.

There’s many questions to be asked. At the end of the day we’re expected to believe of the 8 million people who live in New South Wales, John Barilaro was independently chosen to represent our interests. I think that ... stretches credibility.

Continue reading...

Push for wider Barilaro appointment probe; state funeral for Judith Durham – As it happened

Posted on by

Former NSW deputy premier John Barilaro is expected to appear at the parliamentary inquiry on Monday to answer questions about his appointment to a US trade job. This blog is now closed

Hastie ‘open-minded’ about visiting Taiwan

Hastie is asked if Australia could be doing more to help Taiwan.

We should be talking with everyone, we should be maintaining good relationships with everyone, and that’s true of Taiwan, as it is of China.

I’m open-minded to going there. I have a very full dance card... with a young family and enough travel as it is, but certainly I’m on the record that I would like to visit Taiwan at some point.

They have invited me... I will wait and see.

The advice I received from Defence as assistant minister for defence was that we were going to cover that gap with the life of type extension for the Collins class. They are still a regionally superior submarine.

The question is how quickly can we deliver a nuclear submarine or several of those boats to the Royal Australian Navy. That’s why I’ve said again, several times over the last month that Richard Marles as defence minister needs to be focused on delivering those submarines as quickly as possible. Every single day he should be thinking about it. When he wakes up he should be thinking about submarines. When he goes to bed, when he is asleep, he should be dreaming about submarines. We need political focus on delivering these submarines for our country.

Continue reading...

National Indigenous Music awards 2022: stars pay tribute to Archie Roach in emotional ceremony

Posted on by

Incredible lineup of First Nations acts perform at the Amphitheater in Darwin’s botanic gardens

An emotional tribute to the late, much-loved Gunditjmara-Bundjalung songman Archie Roach was at the heart of the National Indigenous Music awards in Darwin on Saturday night.

Led by Emma Donovan and Fred Leone, a group of artists gathered on stage to pay tribute to their beloved Uncle Archie, who died last week after a long illness aged 66.

Sign up for the fun stuff with our rundown of must-reads, pop culture and tips for the weekend, every Saturday morning

Continue reading...

‘This joint is important’: Linda Burney issues ultimatum over future of Redfern’s National Centre of Indigenous Excellence

Posted on by

Minister for Indigenous Australians says negotiating organisations have one week to agree on future of community centre

Linda Burney has given the organisations negotiating the future of the National Centre of Indigenous Excellence in Redfern one week to determine the future of the social and community hub, before the government intervenes.

In a heated community meeting on Friday, the minister for Indigenous Australians said her priority was for the tenants of the George Street facility to be given permanency, for the centre to stay open, and for its 50 staffmembers to keep their jobs.

Sign up to receive an email with the top stories from Guardian Australia every morning

Continue reading...

Australia politics live: leaders trade question time barbs over climate and power prices; CMO ‘confident’ Covid wave has peaked as 85 deaths recorded

Posted on by

The parliament will sit at 9am – once the morning proceedings are done, it will be into the climate bill – people are getting ready to head to the galleries to watch it pass the house.

It has been a very, very long decade. There are a lot of people who need to see this, even if there is still a very, very long way for us to go to actually start acting.

The inclusion of an Objects clause that addresses targets, accountability, expert advice and the need for climate action in line with the science makes it clear that this is the beginning of a new era in Australia,” Chaney said in a statement.

Continue reading...

‘It’s not wise to be rushed’: Linda Burney says government will consult extensively on Indigenous voice

Posted on by

Minister says Labor’s plan is ‘five years in the making’ as she seeks to clear up confusion about approach

The Indigenous Australians minister, Linda Burney, says there will be extensive consultation with Indigenous leaders and engagement with the wider Australian community as the Labor government seeks to enshrine a voice to parliament in the constitution.

Burney, speaking at the Garma festival in Arnhem Land, also said Labor had a plan “five years in the making”, as she sought to clear up questions and confusion about the government’s approach.

Continue reading...

‘Big tree down’: Archie Roach remembered as a truth-teller, healer and First Nations champion

Posted on by

Cathy Freeman, Paul Kelly and Linda Burney among those who have paid tribute to the musician after his death

The Indigenous Australian songwriter and activist Archie Roach has been praised as a “courageous” and “powerful” truth-teller, as leading figures in politics and the arts mourn his passing.

Roach died aged 66, after a long illness, surrounded by his family and loved ones at Warrnambool Base Hospital.

Continue reading...

Archie Roach, Australian songman and voice of the stolen generations, dies aged 66

Posted on by

Tributes pour in for musician whose song Took the Children Away became the anthem of the stolen generations

Archie Roach, the Indigenous Australian songwriter whose celebrated song Took the Children Away brought national attention to the story of the stolen generations, has died aged 66.

Roach died at Warrnambool Base hospital after a long illness, surrounded by his family and loved ones.

Continue reading...

Indigenous voice campaigners say ample detail already available in wake of PM’s stirring speech

Posted on by

Uluru Statement from the Heart advocates praise Anthony Albanese’s Garma festival speech but Coalition wants more details

The prime minister, Anthony Albanese, acknowledged we have been here before as a nation: at a crossroads, about to decide a path that will affect the lives of Aboriginal and Torres Islander people for generations to come.

But for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people, this time the stakes are so much higher, because the past is littered with the broken promises of politicians.

Continue reading...

Coalition offers qualified support for Indigenous voice as PM reveals referendum wording – as it happened

Posted on by

Anthony Albanese announces draft wording of referendum question in Garma festival speech. This blog is now closed

AFP says reports of human trafficking and slavery reach highest ever level

Reports of human trafficking and slavery to the AFP have increased to their “highest ever reported”, according to new data released today.

This is the first time in Australia’s history where the uptake of a unified training and awareness-raising protocol to combat human trafficking and slavery will be delivered across all frontline agencies and jurisdictions.

This represents a critical step to addressing the scourge of human trafficking in the Australian community and it’s a job the AFP and our partners will work together to combat.

Dr Khorshid was elected AMA president during the first peak of the pandemic and quickly became the voice of reason, of calm and of urgency when needed – lobbying government, and fronting the media, along with hard-working vice-president Dr Chris Moy, to send clear messages about the pandemic.

His leadership was particularly critical during the early stages when there was no vaccine, and the focus was on implementing effective public health measures to ensure the safety of the community and healthcare workers.

Continue reading...

Uluru statement campaigners welcome Albanese’s referendum commitment

Posted on by

Campaign director Dean Parkin says the prime minister flagging set referendum question brings ‘level of clarity’

Key players in the Uluru Statement from the Heart campaign have welcomed the PM’s commitment to a referendum question on an Indigenous voice to parliament and a form of words in the constitution, saying the proposal is almost identical to the wording they had put forward in 2018.

The From the Heart campaign director, Dean Parkin, said the announcement is a very promising step forward in a long campaign for change.

Continue reading...

Anthony Albanese reveals ‘simple and clear’ wording of referendum question on Indigenous voice

Posted on by

Prime minister uses Garma festival speech to suggest Australians should be asked a simple yes or no question on enshrining a voice in the constitution

The prime minister, Anthony Albanese, says the Australian people should be asked a “simple and clear” yes or no referendum question regarding whether an Indigenous voice to parliament should be enshrined in the constitution.

“We should consider asking our fellow Australians something as simple as ‘Do you support an alteration to the constitution that establishes an Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Voice?’” Albanese said in a landmark speech at the Garma festival in Arnhem Land on Saturday.

Continue reading...

‘Momentum is building’: high hopes for an Indigenous voice to parliament as Garma festival starts

Posted on by

Anthony Albanese is first prime minister to visit Arnhem Land festival since Malcolm Turnbull in 2017

Momentum is building for an Indigenous voice to be enshrined in the constitution, an Uluru Statement from the Heart leader says, as the annual Garma festival begins in the Northern Territory.

The opportunity for a voice to parliament has arrived and if it is missed it may not return for another generation, Wiradjuri man Geoff Scott warned on Friday.

Continue reading...

Conservative Christian groups lobby federal MPs against territories’ assisted dying rights legislation

Posted on by

Australian Christian Lobby says it is ‘… completely inappropriate for the new government to prioritise a controversial bill such as this’

Conservative action groups are mobilising supporters against a government push to allow territories to make their own laws on euthanasia, raising concerns around potential impacts on Indigenous Australians in the Northern Territory.

The Australian Christian Lobby is flooding federal MPs with emails in a campaign to block a private member’s bill to be introduced next week, but territories minister Kristy McBain says she’s confident it will pass parliament.

Continue reading...

Australia still failing to hit more than two-thirds of Closing the Gap targets, new data shows

Posted on by

Minister for Indigenous Australians says more is needed to address systemic disadvantage as data shows four of 13 targets on track

The nation is failing to address the systemic disadvantages experienced by First Nations communities, according to the latest Closing the Gap data released by the Productivity Commission on Thursday.

Four of the 13 targets are on track: the birth weights of Indigenous babies, preschool kids attending early childhood education, and youth detention rates are trending in the right direction, while gains are being seen in land and sea rights.

Sign up to receive an email with the top stories from Guardian Australia every morning

Continue reading...

Gordon Copeland inquest: inspector says police would not have called off search if all details were known

Posted on by

Senior inspector who oversaw search for drowned Gomeroi man says she did not read officer statements before attending scene

A senior inspector in charge of the search for a Gomeroi man who drowned in a river has told the inquest into his death the police search was called off before officers knew all of the details.

Inspector Helen McWilliam coordinated the search for 22-year-old Gordon Copeland, who drowned in the Gwydir River in the early hours of 10 July 2021. Police called off the search after three days, and his body was not found until authorities reopened the search three months later in October after sustained community pressure.

Sign up to receive an email with the top stories from Guardian Australia every morning

Continue reading...

Zoe Daniel and Sally Sitou call for climate action in first speeches to parliament – as it happened

Posted on by

Cash: No way the Coalition will support a lower emissions target

The next interview on ABC radio RN is with the shadow employment minister, Michaelia Cash, who has a lot to say about the scrapping of the ABCC. Cash, you may remember, was one of its biggest supporters while in government.

The Coalition won more votes than the Australian Labor party.

Continue reading...

Gordon Copeland’s friend says he feared police on night of NSW drowning

Posted on by

Jabour Clarke, 21, tells family during inquest he is ‘sorry’ and says he thought Copeland had been arrested or gotten away

A friend of a Gomeroi man who drowned in a Moree river has told the man’s family at an inquest he is “very sorry” for failing to tell authorities the deceased man, Gordon Copeland, was with him on the night he died, and that at the time he was scared of the police.

Copeland, a 22-year-old father of three, drowned in the Gwydir River in the early hours of 10 July 2021. The NSW coroner is examining the death, and counsel assisting, Peggy Dwyer, told the inquest Copeland went into the water after police followed the vehicle in which he was a passenger, mistakenly thinking it was stolen.

Sign up to receive an email with the top stories from Guardian Australia every morning

Continue reading...

Indigenous death in NSW jail from ear infection ‘the result of systemic failures’: coroner

Posted on by

Douglas ‘Mootijah’ Shillingsworth’s ear problems would have been picked up by proper procedures, coroner Joan Baptie finds

The death of an Aboriginal man from an ear infection while in custody was preventable and due to failures in the New South Wales justice system, a coroner has found.

Douglas “Mootijah” Shillingsworth, a Budjiti and Murrawarri man, died of a middle ear infection, known as otitis media, at the age of 44 on 15 February 2018 while incarcerated at the Silverwater prison in Sydney.

Continue reading...

NT minister says deaths of Indigenous woman and baby should have been ‘all over the news’

Posted on by

Deaths prompt renewed calls for attention on First Nations domestic violence victims and needs-based funding

The shooting of an Indigenous woman and her infant child should have been “all over the news”, the Northern Territory’s police minister has said, in a push for needs-based domestic violence prevention funding in the region.

The bodies of a 41-year-old man, a 30-year-old woman and a baby were found at an outstation 25km north of Alice Springs on Sunday, prompting renewed calls for more attention on Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander victims of domestic violence.

Continue reading...