forwarded from kirsty@austlii.edu.au
I'm about to send a series of three e-mails containing three documents:
- The text of the letter and appeal regarding Native Title and the 'Stolen
Generation' contained in the paid advertisement that appeared in the
British Press last week;
- A media release put out by the group who organised the advertisement;
and
- Some explanatory notes as to why the action was taken.
On Monday (23rd June - i.e. today, probably!) Australia Talks Back (Radio
National, 12 Noon) will be looking at the issue of such international
appeals for assistance - i.e. both the letter to the Times and this paid
advertisement. (Trudy Bray has already forwarded a copy of the letter to
the Times to recoznet-l).
It would be excellent if those sympathetic to this issue could call in.
Undoubtedly those who feel that we mustn't, whatever happens, embarrass
the Prime Minister overseas, will be calling in - and an explanation of
why some issues take precedence over the PM's 'embarrassment' will be
vital. The number is (and it's tollfree)
1800 802 341.
Regards,
Kirsty
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
AN OPEN LETTER TO HER MAJESTY QUEEN ELIZABETH THE SECOND, QUEEN OF
AUSTRALIA
First their children were stolen.......
Now their land too?
Your Majesty,
We write to appeal to you as Australia's constitutional Head of State. We
do so as a matter of some urgency and not without hope. We are looking to
you to protect the interests of the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander
peoples of this land, Australia.
We love this land and are proud of our achievements but we cannot be truly
at peace in this country until such time as we properly acknowledge our
full history and remedy what can, and must, be put to rights.
The history of the treatment of the first Australians at the hands of
Europeans is a sad one. It is a tale of disease, treachery, deprivation
and murder.
For many decades - as recently as the 1970s - Aboriginal babies and
children were forcibly taken from their mothers, to be brought up in
missions and foster families and assimilated into white society. Many
were used as cheap labour, many were sexually abused. All were meant to be
stripped of their culture and identity. Many never saw their mothers or
fathers again. They have become known as "the stolen generation."
The Australian Human Rights and Equal Opportunity Commission has just
issued a major report concluding that past Australian government policy
resulting in the stolen generations constituted an act of Genocide, as
defined in the International Convention of 1948. Their finding has been
supported by the Executive Council of Australian Jewry. It makes for
harrowing reading, and has moved many to tears including parliamentarians
and distinguished jurists. Your Governor General, His Excellency the Hon
Sir William Deane, has given a gracious and generous apology. However, the
report called for a national apology from the Prime Minister of Australia,
but so far he has refused.
It was only in 1967 that Australians decided in a referendum to recognise
indigenous Australians as human beings to be counted in the census rather
than being counted among Australias flora and fauna.
As recently as March 1996, following a visit to Australia, Amnesty
International reported "... a pattern of ill-treatment and arbitrary
arrests occurs against a backdrop of systematic discrimination against
Aborigines."
Even now an Aboriginal child is three to five times more likely to die in
infancy than other Australian children. Most Australians will live into
their seventies, while most Aborigines will die in their fifties.
Australia is one of the richest countries in the world but still has not
provided safe drinking water to many Aboriginal communities.
Despite the odds, Aboriginal people have survived in Australia. They do
not want to dwell on the past or to apportion blame. They are people of
exceptional generosity of spirit, who are working hard to climb out of the
whirlpool of ill-health, sorrow and social dislocation which Australian
colonisation has caused. Their vision of the future is one of harmonious
co-existence with their fellow Australians.
But this vision can only be realised if Aboriginal people have access to
their traditional lands. Land is special to all who live and work on it,
but to Aboriginal people land is of exceptional spiritual and cultural
importance. Their religious traditions and culture cannot be practised
without access to sacred and culturally significant sites, making land
central to both their sense of identity and their survival. Land also
enables Aboriginal people to negotiate about their future and to benefit
from economic development.
Alone of Britains former colonies there has been no treaty with Australias
first inhabitants. It was not until 1992 that the Australian High Court
acknowledged that Australia was in fact inhabited when Captain Cook landed
in 1770, and that Aboriginal people in many parts of Australia still have
some rights to their land. Six months ago the High Court further ruled
that native title rights could co-exist with the rights of pastoralists.
Your Prime Minister, Mr John Howard, is now proposing legislation which
will take away most of these remaining Aboriginal rights to land -
legislation that will give that land to the pastoral industry, an industry
dominated by Australias largest and wealthiest companies and families.
Many overseas companies and individuals also stand to benefit.
Despite appeals from the leaders of the other parties in Parliament he
refuses to guarantee his legislation will comply with Australian laws
against racial discrimination. Prime Minister Howard refuses to guarantee
that constitutional powers will not be used against the interests of the
first Australians.
Aboriginal people are not asking for anyones land to be taken away. They
simply want the right to co-exist and to live with mutual respect.
At the time of the granting of pastoral leases last century the Crown
stated its concern for the rights of the Aboriginal and Torres Strait
Islander peoples of this continent. Historical records demonstrate that
the intention in pursuing pastoral leases was to preserve the hunting and
other rights of the Aboriginal occupants, not to drive them into the sea.
Today those rights are at grave risk, and many fear that the final act of
dispossession is about to occur. In these circumstances we appeal to you
to take all appropriate steps within your power to ensure all Australians
have full enjoyment of their rights, most particularly the full Native
Title rights which the High Court has properly recognised.
We also appeal to you to do all within your powers as Australian Head of
State to ensure a full apology to the stolen generation and all those that
have suffered from the policies of forced removals of children, as
recommended by Sir Ronald Wilson and the Human Rights and Equal
Opportunity Commission. We commend your willingness, evident in the
apologies you offered to the indigenous peoples of New Zealand, to
recognise and acknowledge the continuing effect of past injustices
We particularly ask that you seize the opportunity of your meeting this
week with Prime Minister Mr Howard, to pursue these matters.
Yours sincerely,
Australians for Native Title,
Liberty (The Australian Council for Civil Liberties),
The Australian Forum of Human Rights Organisations (Action Committee),
Sisters of St Joseph (NSW),
Human Rights Council of Australia,
the Australian Conservation Foundation,
Deaths in Custody Watch Committee (WA),
Community and Public Sector Union (PSU Group),
the Australian Youth Policy and Action Committee,
the Construction, Forestry, Mining and Energy Union (National Office).
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
An appeal to the British People:
As Australians we share the views of the British Prime Minister on the
importance of human rights in domestic and foreign policy. We support the
appeal to Mr Blair to raise this grave human rights situation with Mr
Howard in their discussions and to seek a commitment from him to respect
the views of indigenous Australians and to work together with them for the
realisation of their human rights
As Australians we acknowledge the ties of history and shared values with
the women and men of the United Kingdom. Many of you have been part of
our history. We need your help now to help us build a future free of
discrimination and based on respect for the rights of the first
Australians.
Please write to the Australian High Commissioner, in London at ....
urging the Australian Government to respect the anti-discrimination
legislation and to pursue a path of true co-existence between Aboriginal
and non-Aboriginal Australians
Please send in a donation to the address below to help this
campaign.
Please tick the box if you would like further information and
enclose a self-addressed envelope.
Coupon:
Yes, I would like to help make sure the rights of Aboriginal Australians
to their land and culture are respected and the survivors of the forced
removals of babies and children receive an apology and proper
compensation.
Please accept my donation of 10 30 50 100
Please make cheques out to Supporters of Australian Native Title
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Supported by Australians for Native Title, Liberty (The Australian Council
for Civil Liberties), The Australian Forum of Human Rights Organisations
(Action Committee), Sisters of St Joseph (NSW), Human Rights Council of
Australia, the Australian Conservation Foundation, Deaths in Custody Watch
Committee (WA), Community and Public Sector Union (PSU Group), the
Australian Youth Policy and Action Committee; the Construction, Forestry,
Mining and Energy Union (National Office).
MESSAGE TWO
MEDIA RELEASE
AN APPEAL TO THE QUEEN OF AUSTRALIA
Supported by Australians for Native Title, Liberty (The Australian Council
for Civil Liberties), The Australian Forum of Human Rights Organisations
(Action Committee), Sisters of St Joseph (NSW), Human Rights Council of
Australia, the Australian Conservation Foundation, Deaths in Custody Watch
Committee (WA), Community and Public Sector Union (PSU Group), the
Australian Youth Policy and Action Committee; the Construction, Forestry,
Mining and Energy Union (National Office).
MEDIA RELEASE
EMBARGO: 8.00 am (EST)
Thursday 19 June 1997
An appeal made in hope of Reconciliation
This morning (Thursday 19 June 1997) a full page has been purchased in
London's Independent newspaper to carry an appeal directly to Queen
Elizabeth II, as Australia's Head of State.
The appeal, backed by a number of Australian human rights, religious,
environmental, labour and community organisations, simply seeks the
Queen's support in encouraging all Australians, but most particularly
Prime Minister John Howard, to seize the opportunity that exists for
genuine Reconciliation with indigenous Australians.
The appeal (a copy of which is attached) is essentially a plea on the part
of many ordinary Australians for tolerance and the proper, secure
recognition of Native Title and other rights of Aboriginal and Torres
Strait Islander peoples.
The appeal appears in the London press simply as a matter of necessity:
London being the home of Australia's Head of State, and the public appeal
being the most available means of gaining the Queen's attention directly
in the short time available.
As is said in the Open Letter, "We love this land and are proud of our
achievements but we cannot be truly at peace in this country until such
time as we properly acknowledge our full history and remedy what can, and
must, be put to rights."
The appeal reflects a conviction that we are faced with a clear choice and
an unprecedented opportunity:
- either we can properly acknowledge the past, recognise its continuing
effect upon the daily lives of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander
people and set it to rights, thereby finally allowing us to move forward
together
- or, we can turn our backs on history and perpetuate its most profound
injustices which is a one-way route to social inequity and division.
This is a time of critical significance for Australia and for all
Australians. The Government's response to the "Stolen Generations" inquiry
and the Australian Parliament's decisions on the legislative response to
Native Title and the High Court's judgement on Wik will determine which
path this country takes.
MESSAGE THREE
OPEN LETTER TO THE QUEEN:
WHY THE QUEEN? WHY NOW?
A BACKGROUND
Approaching the Queen, through an open letter to a British newspaper, is
an unusual and perhaps unprecedented course of action for Australians to
take over human rights concerns. The notes below are intended to explian
why this course of action was taken and felt to be necessary.
As Australians we are at the crossroads -
- either we can properly acknowledge the past, recognise its continuing
effect upon the daily lives of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander
people and set it to rights, thereby finally allowing us to move forward
together
- or, we can turn our backs on history and perpetuate its most profound
injustices which is a dead-end of division and distrust.
The Government's response to the "Stolen Generations" inquiry and the
Australian Parliament's decisions on the legislative response to Native
Title and the High Court's judgement on Wik will determine which path this
country takes.
The appeal was addressed to the Queen because she is Australia's Head of
State and:
* She has direct responsibilities with respect to the welfare of all
Australians, but since London is her place of residence, she is likley to
have limited opportunities to know of or acquaint herself with the
circumstances confronting indigenous Australians at first hand. At the
same time any Australian choosing to communicate directly with our Head of
State is obliged to go abroad.
* Prime Minister Howard may not have raised these issues himself and it
is important the Queen be alerted to the seriousness of the situation and
the atmosphere that pervades the current debate in Australia.
* Meetings between the Prime Minister and the Head of State are
comparitively rare.
* The appeal is based on a genuine belief that Queen Elizabeth can assist.
Her willingness to acknowledge the wrongs done to the Maori people is a
precedent of great significance to Australia.
* It was an open letter because this was the only effective option
available at this time - a private letter could have been snarled up in
the bureaucracy and protocols and arrived too late for the issues to be
raised in person.
* This is seen as an issue of international importance. The holocaust put
an end to any pretence that human rights could be anything other than an
international concern and experience since then has proven that where any
Government fails to properly respect the rights of its people it will
attract international attention.
* There are many reasons for extending the appeal for support to Prime
Minister Blair and the British people; amongst the most compelling lie in
our historical roots. The current debate in Australia at this time stems
from decisions made and decisions ignored during the our colonial past.
This is evident in the High Court's Mabo and Wik decisions.
* Historical records demonstrate that the intention in pursuing pastoral
leases was to preserve the hunting and other rights of the Aboriginal
occupants, not to drive them into the sea. It is an enduring fact that the
British Colonial office, for example, provided specific instructions
regarding the preservation of Aboriginal enjoyment of the land granted
under pastoral lease. Reservations were included, for example, in the
relevant Letters Patent applied in South Australia.
* The British Government can properly be expected to maintain a continuing
interest in these matters.