An intervention intervention: Rudd dobbed into the UN
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It took almost three years for the Howard government to get a “please explain” from the United Nations on its treatment of Aboriginal people. Kevin Rudd’s administration looks like achieving it less than two. Earlier this week, a group of human rights lawyers lodged a complaint against the Northern Territory intervention with the United Nations Committee for the Elimination of Racial Discrimination. It’s a comprehensive document. I dare say the members of the intervention cheer squad within the government, the opposition and the media will shrink with fright if they ever actually read the 63 page document, which we all know will never happen. You can read it on the National Indigenous Times website. It calls on the UN to recommend the Australian Government, among other things, reinstate the Racial Discriminate Act as part of the NT intervention. In other words, it calls for an “intervention intervention”. The authors of the report contend that the “Northern Territory Intervention legislation has constituted and continues to constitute serious, massive and persistent racial discrimination against Aboriginal people in the Northern Territory and has constituted and continues to constitute multiple violations of the Race Convention”. Them’s fighting words. The complaint calls for “Urgent Action” on the part of the CERD, which means if accepted it should all be sorted by about mid-year (no irony intended). One of the lead counsels on the complaint is none other than George Newhouse. Ring any bells? Newhouse is the guy who took on Malcolm Turnbull (and nearly won) in the seat of Wentworth at the last election. Newhouse is an influential figure in the ALP. Secondly, the complaint has the backing of some very well respected organisations, such as the Australian Indigenous Doctor’s Association (whose research on the harmful affects of the intervention is quoted throughout the document). Granted, the Rudd government is now in hot water over a policy that was created by the Liberals. But that’s hardly a defence. The enabling legislation for the intervention was unanimously supported by Labor in Opposition. And in case no-one’s noticed, Kevin Rudd has been in the Lodge for over a year now, yet he’s continued the intervention unaltered, despite funding a $3 million review which recommended it be changed. The CERD, as it’s known, is the committee within the UN that guards over the Convention for the Elimination of All Forms of Racial Discrimination, to which Australia is a signatory. The CERD’s directions are non-binding, but they have the potential to be enormously embarrassing, particularly for a Prime Minister who took his cue from his environment minister and spent the past year strutting the world stage in a pair of pants with the word “sorry” emblazoned on them. Figuratively speaking, of course. Broadly speaking, the CERD’s job is to whack member states who behave like racist pigs. And on that front, Australia has quite the history. We hold the distinction of being the first western nation on earth to be issued a ‘please explain’ before the CERD under the UN’s “urgent action” provisions. Indeed, in 1999, the CERD went to the extraordinary lengths of holding a running brief on the Australian Government over its attempts to wipe out the Native Title Act. The amendments, it’s worth noting, were created by the Liberals and supported by Labor (sound familiar). My favourite part about that shining chapter in our rights history is that we got a bollocking from a Chinese member of the committee. Since then, Australia has also been whacked by the UN for mandatory sentencing laws in the NT and WA (introduced by Labor and Liberal); humiliated for arguing for the right to retain a grandstand in Toowoomba entitled “Nigger Brown” (supported by Labor and Liberal); and walloped for the abolition of ATSIC (proposed by Labor and enacted by the Liberals) despite a $2 million government review recommending reform (also sound familiar?). And that’s just over our “dealings with the natives” (which was so bad that in 1999, Labor actually invited the CERD to visit Australia and investigate the Liberals — hilarious). Throw in our treatment of asylum seekers and we’ve got a human rights record unparalleled by any other western nation on Earth. Which is why when Australia arrives at the UN to start lecturing others about their human rights abuses, the response is a mixture of people politely clearing their throats, and others falling off their chairs laughing. Most interesting in all this will be the Rudd government’s response. For a start, its certain to argue the complaint is not urgent at all. Sure, some people in remote communities are starving, and the intervention is actually causing “physical harm”. But that doesn’t make it urgent. Right? When that fails, the government will go behind closed doors try to dismiss the complaint as the ravings of some tree-hugging hippies. But the team behind this complaint are far too credible. So the upshot is, the Rudd government will have to try and defend the NT intervention on its merits. Oh, the humanity. |
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15 Comments
So what really do these ‘credible’ human rights lawyers expect the UN to do? Shame Australia in the General Assembly? Institute economic sanctions? Send in the blue helmets? Give me a break. The UN is a collection of almost 200 countries, most of them squalid or undemocratic, but either way surely lacking the moral or practical authority to lecture Australia on the NT intervention. It’s not a perfect solution to the mess up there (as told to me by aboriginal and non-aboriginal people who have lived in some of these communities), but it’s better than the type of naval-gazing that human rights lawyers, self-described indigenous leaders and UN apparatchiks would no doubt recommend.
Having attended the NT Intervention Forum in Canberra just last week, and with the rebuff from the High Court, this seems to be the only way forward for the Aboriginal people, save a revolution! The list of abuses against Indigenous people is a mile long and shameful, putting Australia internationally into the top echelon on the planet. Still, we are not racist bacause there are racists about in influential positions, on the contrary, racism is used as a means of control of those whose land contains the riches we want to exploit. It is and has been used for over 200 years to grab land so it can be expropriated by Capital. This is why there is such a bipartisan support for the NT Intervention, now being extended to other States, is that both Labour and Liberal parties serve the same boss, embodied in BCA and similar organisations. Governing circles have lost all capacity for shame, however international approbrium might just do it, as Rudd is apparently angling for the job as the next Secretary Genera, and in any case, the political damage might be too much, especially after the `sorry` stunt..
This is tricky.
It’s hard being a Indigenous Australia supporter in Tasmania for several reasons. But this is the sort of stuff Rudd invokes in the less “intellectually competent” person…
“TOGETHER DAY
We are Australian,
We’re black & we’re white.
We have back our unity
The future looks bright.
For now we’re together,
United as one.
We stand - brother & sister
In the Land of the Sun.
We go forward together,
Understand and respect.
We close the gap slowly,
As fast can’t expect.
Now Australia is one,
Our people are whole
Thank everyone always,
Australia has soul!”
It’ld be great if it were true, but it’s a dream of a city living/public service job idiot.
Mick Dodson…I wonder is he involved in this?
Whatever the merits of this document, my feeling is that the totally corrupt and ineffectual UN is trying to usurp the sovereign rights of Australia. I am no globalist as you may gather and once dictates start coming from Brussells or NY, its time to get outta Dodge.
Once the UN cleans up their own corrupt act maybe they can tell to the rest of the world what it should be doing in an even handed way. That corrupt clique makes me ill! If that is the best we can do we are in a lot of trouble people.
The UN should be focusing on the Palestinian and Iraqi genocide - or the rape of the Amazon, the Congo or Sumatran rainforests by the World Bank’s cronies - now that is happening as we speak.
What a joke!
Its all so terribly predictable and seamless the Howard and Rudd partnership to secure and formalise the great corridor of power north through the center - Australia’s not so quiet stage entry to the next theatre of geopolitical risk and drama, incredibly unfolding before our eyes.
Look at the items assembling themselves to make good Dr Evils plan:
1/ The Haliburton funded extension of the great line - Alice to Darwin
2/ The re-shuffling of military hardware in Adelaide and Palmerston
3/ The prompt construction on LNG offloading facilities in Darwin - Greenhouse friendly - Oh yeah!!!
4/ Fresh uranium mining south of Alice
5/ Prospects of a Nuclear Dump site in the NT
6/ ….and Obama and his crusades on the way to Indonesia and then a little chat with Rudd
I am learning now to appreciate Howard more now because he was overt with his evil plans, but for a politician to schedule a ‘Sorry Day’ while simultaneously working behind the scenes on the one of the most racist acts of Australian history, puts Rudd in the box seat as one of the most sick and evil PM’s in the nations history and thankfully so many Australians are rallying to the support of the indigenous people of Australia, who should no longer be treated with such contempt in Rudd’s misguided and morally bent geo-political plans.
I live on a prescribed area under the NTER legislation. I despair at the poor media exposure given to us that are firmly opposed to the Intervention. Whilst Government (Federal and NT) policies are tearing at the social fabric of places like Yuendumu, the authorities are winning the propaganda war with their lies distortions and dis-information.
Many attempts at alerting the general public about what is happening out here have been made and dismissed by authorities and media before we went “whingeing to the UN”.
A case in point is Mr.Tom Calma who has made several wise and diplomatic speeches that have been ignored and/or belittled.
Mr Tom Calma is the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Social Justice
Commissioner and acting Race Discrimination Commissioner.
Tom has been the subject of several media attacks. He’s been accused of amongst other things: having a real well paid job, being erudite and having an excellent command of English and of owning a house. These are seen as disqualifying him to speak up about Indigenous matters.
The cake however is taken when he is accused of (heaven forbid) having a
“human rights agenda” or of “putting too much emphasis on human rights”.
It doesn’t seem to occur to the critics that that happens to be his job!
I’m a geologist. Never ever have I been accused of having a “rocks agenda”.
The $2M Review Board Report also comes to mind. Its an excellent report, but didn’t tell the Government what they wanted to hear so they ignored it.
I can assure those that are so put out by the appeal to the UN that all “proper channels” have been tried.
This was a last resort.
For those of you who object to people taking their case to the United Nations, do you understand that the Northern Territory intervention legislation took away the right to appeal to the Australian Human Rights Commission and the Northern Territory Anti-Discrimination Commissioner? It is a bit rich to deny domestic rights of complaint to people who at least should have the right to have their grievances heard and then bitch that they decide to go to the United Nations to raise their concerns.
Chris Graham finishes his excellent piece: ” So the upshot is, the Rudd government will have to try and defend the NT intervention on its merits.”
They can hardly do so on its economics…
The cost of the intervention in 2007/2008 was nearly $587 million.
The estimated number of children found to be at risk of serious neglect or abuse is 39. Assuming that none of these would have been picked up otherwise the cost for each child found is over $15 million and for 7433 health checks the cost per health check is over $80,000. The number of children for whom abuse stopped or was prevented which is the real ‘output’ is simply not known. It is clear however that it cannot be a large number.
If the Rudd government had consulted the Aboriginal people of the NT and said: “The last government spent nearly $600 million in one year on the intervention. Do you want us to do continue to do the same or can you think of better ways to reduce these problems at that cost?” How many votes would the intervention have got?
At the moment I’m reading a book called, The Struggle for Aboriginal Rights, A Documentary History - it covers 161 years of aboriginal struggles. I thought I was an aware person, but I’m now overwhelmed by what I didn’t know - the difference being, that I want to know more! I’ve always been supportive of justice for aboriginal people, and I’m constantly in awe of why there’s still so much discrimination, racism, fear and hatred. I’d hoped that the beginning of a new era would commence on Feb 13 last, but sadly, the shameful saga continues. If I feel this frustrated and angry, I can only try to imagine how aboriginal people feel. I agree with those who support the action re the UN. Our system of justice has let them down - the police, the judiciary and the parliament/s!
I’m staggered by the gibberish uttered by the Rudd government over the intervention. Rather than admit that they made a mistake too, and restore the Racial Discrimination Act, and start communicating with people instead of the same old patronising ways of over 200 years, they spent money on a fruitless exercise, and have now traumatized people, caused even worse hardship and poverty, and then stopped talking themselves. People having to spend hundreds of dollars to go by taxi to designated stores to buy essentials is just plain stupid! They can buy food close to home, or better still, under CDEP many communities were growing it themselves! Stopped that, gardens died, fresh fruit and veg aren’t plentiful, and are expensive in the NT. Less than a handful of men have been arrested for child abuse offences, all men feel depressed and defamed! Who can blame them? How many new homes have even been started? How many now have running water or other essentials, like enough rooms for families to all sleep at the same time?How many kids with serious ear problems have seen a specialist?How many are still in terrible pain? That’s not conducive to attending school or paying attention. Pain does that to people!
The simple proposition is as follows:
If there are paedophiles or rapists in Aboriginal communities - get the evidence, charge and convict them, in the same way, and with the same degree of sensitivity and difficulty that it would take in any other community in Australia.
What is being said through this UN submission is, in effect, as follows: if Australian jurisdictions have the means to investigate similar crimes in other Australian communities without excising them from the racial discrimination act, then why shouldn’t it be so for aboriginal communities?
The point is not that the UN is this or that as others spend time claiming here - it is that Australia is once again failing by world standards to deal failry and effectively with the aboriginal community.
Some people have no idea how to persuade others. (It isn’t a matter of IQ, just look at Michale Kirby’s record as law reformer and judge). The Rudd government knows very well that it can’t be seen to be giving in to one of the UN’s most despicable satellites. Australians generally will resent the attempt to get the United Nations Committee for the Elimination of Racial Discrimination to interfere. Try and do something Australians will respect would be my advice instead of just talking to yourselves and the likes of George Newhouse before you head off to your unwise adventure. Unfortunately no resurrection of ATSIC will work as Australians now understand that there never was an Aboriginal people and the attempts to provide a platform for a crew of Aboriginal and part Aboriginal politicians by letting them pretend they represent and can usefully serve all the urban and different outback Aborigines would only be a way of putting off appalling problems yet again.
Well - the UN may be far from blemishless but this is good news and I do believe the Rudd goverment will fall on this particular sword, the ‘Sorry Day’ was a deft political manouveur but it does not clear the decks or remove the issues which can still be cited as evidence of systematic racism on behalf of the government - but perhaps racism has become so institutionalised in policy that from the inside it is viewed as business as usual - why these reports are timely as a reality check for Rudd and the other parties.
John Pilger recently commented on the racism inherent in the emergence and details of the intervention. Please consider as well that this form of policy to pave way for ‘Rudds’ economic interests is not confined to the NT - the same can be seen in the town of Mintabie in SA - where the housing minister dangles housing funding - while lease amendments are attempted - and of course - all the same scandalous mischief and misinformation - alcoholism - child abuse - petrol sniffing. When all this is looked at objectively its a terrible indictment of not just the Rudd government but any politician who chooses not to speak out in defence of indigenous people who have probably experienced enough racism over the past 200 years.
http://www.guardian.co.uk/commentisfree/2008/oct/24/australia-aborigine-howard-rudd
“…Smear by media as a precursor to the latest round of repression is long familiar to black Australians. In 2006, the flagship current affairs programme of the Australian Broadcasting Corporation, Lateline, broadcast lurid allegations of “sex slavery” among the Mutitjulu people in the Northern Territory. The programme’s source, described as an “anonymous youth worker”, was later exposed as a federal government official whose “evidence” was discredited by the Northern Territory chief minister and the police…..”
Good work Crikey, a racist government like ours is just waiting to be undone…
The UN? Spare me.This is the organisation that regularly sits on its collective hands while people are slaughtered in their literal millions (shall I start with Rwanda as an example?) but delights in sending committees to safe destinations and criticising those countries pouring literal millions of dollars into indigenous welfare.
Chris, I want to hear what you would have done, right there and then, or even right here and now, while babies were/are being raped and wives were/are being attacked.
The intervention may be misguided, and I can’t disagree that it was motivated by the most base politics. But I want you to stop whinging about government this and that - tell us what you and your aboriginal colleagues will do to fix it. Now!
Johna neatly summarises the problem - “Australia is once again failing by world standards to deal fairly and effectively with the aboriginal community.” It is certainly true that remote aboriginal communities live in conditions most of us would find disgusting and destructive. But why is the onus entirely on “Australia” and not on the “aboriginal community”? Why, in any of this debate, is there never the expectation that aboriginal people who care about the future of their children might simply get them the hell out!?
The UN? Spare me.This is the organisation that regularly sits on its collective hands while people are slaughtered in their literal millions (shall I start with Rwanda as an example?) but delights in sending committees to safe destinations and criticising those countries pouring literal millions of dollars into indigenous welfare.
Chris, I want to hear what you would have done, right there and then, or even right here and now, while babies were/are being raped and wives were/are being attacked.
The intervention may be misguided, and I can’t disagree that it was motivated by the most base politics. But I want you to stop whinging about government this and that - tell us what you and your aboriginal colleagues will do to fix it. Now!