Aboriginal issues todayThe European invasion shattered the culture and traditional patterns of Aboriginal life. Those who survived were pushed inland and the rights to their land were taken from them. Today, Indigenous Australians (Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples) are one of the most disadvantaged groups in Australian society.
A disadvantaged group
These facts and statistics present some of the characteristics of Aboriginal society today.
- Aboriginal life expectancy is twenty years less than that of non-Aboriginal Australians.
- The proportion of Aboriginal children dying in infancy is nearly twice that of the non-Aboriginal population.
- Thirty-two per cent of Aboriginal children aged from birth to nine years suffer from trachoma (an eye disease leading to blindness) compared with only 1.6 per cent of the non-Aboriginal population.
- Aborigines are four times more likely to be unemployed than non-Aboriginal Australians.
- The rate of imprisonment for Aboriginal people is up to fifteen times that of the total Australian population.
Land rightsThe recognition of Indigenous land rights is regarded as crucial to the future wellbeing of Indigenous Australian communities. Where land rights have been granted, the independence and stability of these communities has increased. Access to land is seen as the means by which Indigenous Australians can determine their own future. The granting of land rights is also a recognition of their traditional ownership of Australia.
However, the granting of land rights is moving slowly. This is a cause of disappointment and frustration for many Indigenous and non-Indigenous Australians.
Sacred sites
Just as people of other religions have sacred sites, so do Indigenous Australians. According to Aboriginal mythology, the great spirit beings of the Dreaming crisscrossed the whole continent in a series of epic journeys. Wherever they went they left a sign of their passing in the landscape. These signs included rocks, mountains, rivers and waterholes.
These natural features are important to the mythology of Aboriginal tribes and central to their religious beliefs. For Aboriginal Australians the sacred sites represent a link with the past and contribute to a sense of belonging. Ceremonial grounds, burial sites, rock art, axe quarries and carved trees are also regarded as sites of traditional significance and are part of the rich cultural tradition of the Aboriginal peoples.
Because many non-Aboriginal people remain ignorant of Aboriginal religious beliefs they fail to recognise the importance of sacred sites. Conflicts arise when people wish to use land for their own profit without regard for Indigenous Australian beliefs.
An Aboriginal treatyIn 1987 the Australian government committed itself to implementing a form of treaty or ‘compact of understanding’ with Aboriginal Australians. This commitment did not meet the demands of Aboriginal leaders, who wanted a treaty included within the Australian constitution.
Aboriginal demands included:
- a recognition of Aboriginal people as owners of Australia
- guarantees of permanent rights to land
- a guarantee of access to lands and sites of Aboriginal significance on land that cannot be restored to Aboriginal ownership
- the preservation of the Aboriginal social and cultural heritage
- a policy of reconciliation between Aboriginal and non-Aboriginal people.
The Stolen Generation
In the 1930s to 1950s it was common practice for Australian government agencies to encourage Aboriginal women to give up their children for adoption or fostering if they found it difficult to support them. There were many white Australians who were willing to provide foster homes for Aboriginal children. At the time this policy was seen as a way of improving the lives of children whose parents were poor.
In the 2000s, however, the children of this stolen generation have learned more about their background. Australians have been appalled to learn of the actions of governments fifty years ago, and the effects that these policies have had on Aboriginal children growing up without their birth families.
|
