Comments on: ACCC alert: Macklin decides where dollars go in Yuendumu

By: eva cox

eva cox — Thu, 01 Jan 1970 10:00:00 +0000

Add this to the publication recently of the supposed proof that quaranting was working which was a survey of the stores on affected communities, and it becomes even murkier. As someone who is botha researcher and teacher of research methods, I would have failed any student who claimed evidence from biased sources was to be credible.I was already suspicious that stores that benefited from the intervention process were appropriate unbiased sources of data! And now we find that many are owned by the government.

Tch Jenny, if this is your version of evidence based policy, pull the other leg!

eva cox

By: micheal brown

micheal brown — Thu, 01 Jan 1970 10:00:00 +0000

We Are The
Forgotten Australians
Victims Of sexual Abuse, Physical Abuse, Slavery, Neglect, Emotionial Abuse, Physical Abuse, Torture, Mental Abuse, All Forms of Abuse. Of Which We, Were Only Children When We Suffered These Abuses, From Those employees That The States Had, Had To Care For Us In Their State Run Institutions, Orphanages,Girls Homes, Boys Homes, State Ward Homes, Remand Centres, State Run Church Homes,
Still To This Day The State Of New South Wales Australia Continues To Cover Up The Abuse That We Victims suffered In these Homes That Were Run By The State Of New South Wales And That Of Other States And Territories Of Australia We Are The Victims The Goverment Of Australia Have Been Covering Up From The Australian Public As To The Abuses We Had Suffered While Under State Care By State Aurthorities. The Goverment Was Responsable For Our Saftey And Welfare. This Did Not Happen In Many Cases Of Which Have Been Recorded In Senate Inquiries, And The Courts. Yet The State Of New South Wales Will Not Acknowledge Us Victims For The Abuse That We Victims Suffered They Say The Records Such As, Excursion Log Book Records, Missconduct Log Book Rcords, Medical Log Book Records, Educationial Log Book Records, Work Log Book Records,
They Say That These Records Were Either Lost, Missplaced, Or Either Destroyed. And This Was Stated In The Court Case By The State Crown Lawyers, Without The Victim Even Knowing Any Of This Information,
We Are Real Victims And We Will No Longer Be Forgotten HuffnPuff

also a lot of us victims suvive on the pensions because of what we suffered as children in these state run institutions,
and not all of us people out here will be wasting any of the money mr rudd just handed out im lucky to have $50.00.dollars left after i pay my bills ,food ,and xmass presents , all this money has done for me is catch up on bills , nothing left for me to even going have a good time out and enjoy ones self .

we suvive on very little

By: Bob Gosford

Bob Gosford — Thu, 01 Jan 1970 10:00:00 +0000

Further to Pam's comments I note that in preparing this piece I left a phone message on the Yuendumu Women's Centre phone advising that I wanted to speak to them about their partnership with Outback Stores but have yet to receive a response.
One of the questions I would have asked them was about the cost of the renovations, fitout and on-going operations of the New Shop. This was a question I put to FaHCSIA, via Minister Macklin, and Outback Stores. The Minister has yet to respond. Outback Stores referred me to the Women's Centre.
It would be useful if the Women's Centre would provide details of how much the renovations, fitout and ongoing management of the New Store has cost and who has, or will meet those costs - or have these been a grant, gift or loan to the Women's Centre?
I would invite the Women's Centre to provide further details about the arrangements between Outback Stores, FaHCSIA and the Women's Centre - these might include the nature of the Agreement between Outback Stores & the Women's Centre - including management fees etc, and how, and where, profits from the store might be distributed.
Another outstanding issue, and this has been raised elsewhere in relation to similar arrangements, is the nature of the Women's Centre's obligations for employment, human resources, insurance etc and the contingent liabilities arising from those matters.
And if the Women's Centre can clarify the involvement of the local Government Business Manager, FaHCSIA staff generally and the NTNER Taskforce (who I understand were involved in the broader Yuendumu stores issues at the highest level), this may help to ease the very real concerns that many people have about the patent lack of transparency surrounding these arrangements in Yuendumu and elsewhere.
And, I have no issue with the Women's Centre owning the new store - congratulations to them for being one of the few organisations in Yuendumu that has been able to force a favourable deal from the NT Intervention.

By: Pam Malden

Pam Malden — Thu, 01 Jan 1970 10:00:00 +0000

As the manager of the Yuendumu Women's Centre I would like to clarify the ownership questions surrounding the "Third shop" in Yuendumu.

The Nguru-Walalja shop is not owned, managed or controlled by the government.
Outback Stores do not own any part of this shop.
This shop is 100% community owned.
The Yuenudmu Women's Centre is the overseeing body, there is a management committee comprising of community members and Outback Stores have been engaged by the Women's Centre to manage this store.
The Women's Centre pays Outback Stores a management fee to manage the store on our behalf. This guarantees the community many things, including fresh food, competitive prices, a good range of product and management staff that adhere to a strict code of conduct and ethics.
FaHCSIA placed no pressure on the Women's Centre committee to engage Outback Stores, this decision was made by the committee based on their personal knowledge and opinions.
FaHCSIA did not spend hundreds of thousands of dollars renovating the shop. In fact, it was only a drop in the ocean compared to the amount of funding organisations in Yuenudmu receive from the government.
A community benefit fund has been established by the Nguru-Walalja committee for profit distribution. Profits from our first quarter of trading have been deposited into this fund which is administered by this same committee.

By: Sally

Sally — Thu, 01 Jan 1970 10:00:00 +0000

Sounds like the store refused to participate in income management in an attempt to thwart it and then when the government bypassed them to set up another shop to push on with income management, they now want in. I can well imagine that the government, after spending what must be a small fortune on a new shop would be hesitant to accept the turnaround from the big store.

By: Catullus

Catullus — Thu, 01 Jan 1970 10:00:00 +0000

Thanks for the facts, Pam, & for shedding some light on this vexed issue. Maybe Eva Cox should dig a bit more deeply before she launches forth in future.

By: Frank Baarda

Frank Baarda — Thu, 01 Jan 1970 10:00:00 +0000

Sally,
I’m the manager of the second store (the idiosyncratic one- thank you Bob!) at Yuendumu.
Yes you are quite right, both stores refused to apply for a licence under the NTER legislation in an attempt to thwart income quarantining. From memory the wording on the letter to Major General Dave Chalmers from the Social Club’s lawyers was: “… we are getting mixed messages about Income quarantining and wish to wait for the proposed review before deciding on whether to embrace it….”. [This review subsequently came out strongly against COMPULSORY Income Management, but for all practical purposes was ignored and burried].
The Intervention then proceeded to push on with setting up what I dubbed “the third store from the fifth column” in a fit of pique. And yes, I believe this cost hundreds of thousands of dollars.
And yes, “they now want in”, but I’d like to point out that (again from memory) in the ‘letter of capitulation’ from the lawyers to Major General Dave Chalmers, in which the Social Club said they now wanted to apply for the licence, it was clearly stated that: “…this is in no way to be construed in that the Social Club and it’s committee are in favour of the Intervention and its methods or of Income Management…” The decision to apply for the licence was made under changed circumstances “…in the interests of the Social Club’s survival and to offer the Yuendumu community choice…”.
There is a sharp contrast between the speed at which the third shop was fitted out and with which the Social Club’s application for a licence is being handled. Yes indeed: “….would be hesitant to accept the turnaround from the big store…..” but that doesn’t make it right.
Incidentally large numbers of Yuendumu people have drifted into Alice Springs, and I believe the Intervention and Income quarantining have played no small part in this accelerated phenomenon.
Perhaps I’m being paranoid- are they trying to turn Yuendumu into a ‘terra nullius’?