7th United Nations Permanent Forum on Indigenous Issues,
United Nations, NY: April 2008

INTERVENTION by Barbara Shaw, FAIRA

Madam Chair, distinguished members, Indigenous brothers and sisters, ladies and gentlemen,

My name is Barbara Shaw. I am a Kaytetye-Arrernte woman from Central Australia. I am here to speak on behalf of the Indigenous grass-roots people of Central Australia, on the Australian Government’s policy of Intervention.

In June of 2007, on the emotive pretext of protecting children from sexual abuse, the previous federal government introduced racially based punitive measures for Aboriginal people living in designated places (prescribed areas). There was no mention of child protection in the 700 pages of legislation, which was rammed through parliament in a single day.

The Emergency Response Legislation:

– Suspended the Racial Discrimination Act 1975 (RDA);

– Compulsorily acquired Aboriginal lands;

– Appointed government business managers to communities;

– Quarantined 50% of every person’s welfare payments in prescribed areas;

– Legislated that customary law was irrelevant in sentencing;

– Took away community-based jobs programmes (CDEP);

– Gave police ‘star chamber’ interrogation powers, normally reserved for suspected terrorists;

– Removed the permit system, opening up homelands and removing Aboriginal people’s power to protect their sacred sites.

The new federal government (elected in November 2007) is still implementing and expanding the Intervention to other Aboriginal communities and has not committed to reinstating the Racial Discrimination Act 1975, nor has it endorsed the Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples, even though it made an election promise to do so.

The Australian Human Rights and Equal Opportunity Commission released a report in March 2008 damning the ‘Northern Territory National Emergency Response’ and recommended, amongst a raft of other changes, the reinstatement of the RDA.

Our people believe that the intent behind the Northern Territory Emergency Response was and is a land grab to secure our natural resources and minerals in the national interest of the colonial Australian government.

We recommend that the United Nations 7th Permanent Forum on Indigenous Issues;

* Recognises that the Australian ‘Northern Territory Emergency Response’ legislation contravenes the International Covenant on the Elimination of all forms of Racial Discrimination (ICERD);

* Requests a response from the Australian Government, in this 7th Permanent Forum, to the following demands:

– We recommend that the Australian Government implement Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples;

– We recommend that the Australian Government immediately reinstate the Racial Discrimination Act 1975;

– We recommend that the Australian Government repeal the ‘Northern Territory Emergency Response’ legislation 2007;

– We recommend that the Australian Government implement the 97 recommendations of the Ampe Akelyernemane Meke Mekarle-Little Children Are Sacred Report (Anderson & Wild 2007)

* Requests a report on Australia, before the 8th Permanent Forum, from the UN Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights and fundamental freedoms of Indigenous Peoples, identifying breaches of the International Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Racial Discrimination (ICERD) and the domestic Racial Discrimination Act 1975.

We recommend that the government extend a formal invitation to the Special Rapporteur on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples to report on the Northern Territory Emergency Response Intervention.

And finally we support the statements made by Social Justice Commissioner Tom Calma in his report released on 31 March 2008.

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To reuse this speech contact Barbara Shaw directly.

Source of speech:
Barbara Shaw, Trainee with FAIRA: Foundation for Aboriginal & Islander Research Action
Mobile: 0401 291 166
FAIRA website: http://www.faira.org.au/

Speech posted by WGAR: Working Group for Aboriginal Rights (Australia)

To reuse this speech contact Barbara Shaw directly.

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That's all very well but the 7th Session of the United Nations Permanent Forum being held in New York has been usurped by climate change issues in an effort by the World Bank to usurp indigenous peoples' rights and issues for their own agenda of urgently setting up a Carbon Offset trading scheme around the world to help the now-impoverished global financiers and international banking corporations to recoup their recent devastating losses and to help them survive what is to come by creating a huge fake scheme to sell thin air back to everybody.

PROTEST-Indigenous Peoples "2nd MAY REVOLT" at the UNPFII


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You guys in Australia, not just the NT, need to WAKE UP before you/we are all forced or cleverly deceived into a new method of enslaving us for the enrichment of the few. This is no longer merely an agenda of the Green Left or about having a token native Australian ("aborigine" to you white fellas) speaking meaninglessly at the already-hijacked United Nations!

Also see blog at Garnaut under Fire from Polluter Lobby’s “Scare Campaign” - he deserves to be under fire, uhh.

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Freedom is Enlightenment!