Alice Springs Community Consultation Report
Racism and civil society: A community consultation held at the Red Centre Resort, Alice Springs NT on 27 June 2001
Speakers:·
- Tom Stodulka,
Commissioner, NT Anti Discrimination Commission (Chair)
- Dr William Jonas,
Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Social Justice Commissioner and
Acting Race Discrimination Commissioner, HREOC
- Steve Hodder, Rap Poet, Alice Springs
- Preliminary discussions
- Experiences of racism
- Sources and causes of racism
- Past experiences of racism
Theme 1: Sources, causes, forms and contemporary manifestations of racism, racial discrimination, xenophobia and related intolerance.
Racism is considered alive and well in Alice Springs. Indigenous people face discrimination across the board but especially in areas such as employment, health, accommodation, education and language.
While the levels of racism were high in Alice Springs, participants talked about the level of acceptance of racism, and that this acceptance allows racism to continue without ever being challenged.
There was an initial discussion in which some participants claimed that HREOC's consultation process had been racist in that the invitation process was selective and exclusive. It was claimed that the people and communities who are daily affected by racism were not at the meeting and were unlikely to come to such a meeting. Those participants wondered what kind of information the Commission was really seeking.
In response Commissioner Jonas acknowledged the limitations of the consultation process. He explained, however, that advertisements about the consultations had been placed in local papers and that groups and networks had been personally contacted by HREOC about the meeting. Those people had been encouraged to let others know about the consultation. The meeting was not invitation-only but open to everyone. Commissioner Jonas explained that HREOC had very limited time and funding to carry out these consultations and that while we would have liked to consult with many more people and communities it was just not possible. However HREOC had established an on-line bulletin board and is accepting submissions on-line and by post. This allows individuals and communities to contribute to the consultation process.
Some participants spoke of the frustration and sense of futility among young people. Young indigenous people are turned down for employment opportunities daily, even though their standard of education is the same as others applying for the job.
There was a broad discussion about the values of mainstream education and how it does not recognise the values of Aboriginal culture. One example is that the skills/intelligence testing given to students in schools is not culturally appropriate or sensitive, thereby not giving a true indication of the child's abilities.
One representative spoke about the limited access and opportunities Pitjantjatjara people have to education for young people. There seems to be a complete denial of their existence by the authorities.
Another participant spoke about attacks by bureaucrats on senior education staff at the Papunya School, purely because of the success of the bilingual program they were running and how people are replaced if seen to be successful. There is continual strategic blocking of initiatives which would give Indigenous people access to opportunities. This blocking is carried out by an infrastructure and network of individuals well entrenched in the systems and agencies that control the required resources. In addition to this, in many instances ill-equipped and inexperienced people are appointed to positions and rotated through to other positions so that no sustainable growth in experience occurs.
Despite going through the process of consultation and negotiation with community Elders, inappropriate policies are maintained by a network of people who influence policy and keep Indigenous people away from having any real power or meaningful influence. Whenever a group start to work successfully in partnerships of trust implementing community aspirations and making progress there is interference from the bureaucracy, and staff are moved on and programs are white-anted. This way of controlling peoples' lives and futures is demonstrated by the experiences of Watiyawanu and Haasts Bluff communities.
Other participants spoke of the institutionalised racism in the education system and the cuts to funding for bilingual programs. In 2000 the NT Department of Education decided to phase out Indigenous bilingual programs. This policy, to have an 'English only' curriculum, is purely driven by an economic rationalist agenda.
Participants agreed that racism in schools not only exists at the institutionalised level, but also on the personalised level, in fact, some participants claimed it is rampant. Aboriginal kids are being subjected to racial abuse from not only other students, but also at times teachers. When complaints are made nothing is ever done. The results of this are disastrous often kids won't go back to school.
There was consensus that the NT Mandatory Sentencing regime is quite clearly targeted at Aboriginal people.
The fact that there are only two prisons in the NT, one in Darwin and the other in Alice Springs, to which prisoners are transferred to either regardless of where their families are, is an injustice, a violation of human rights and a total disregard for the recommendations of the Royal Commission into Aboriginal Deaths in Custody.
Some participants were concerned about the proposed Prisons (Correctional Services) Amendment Act 2001, which recommends the taking away the right to appeal against any prison transfer. (This legislation was passed on 19 July 2001.)
One participant pointed out that Alice Springs prison is built on sacred men's land.
There was alarm at police allowing alcohol to re-enter dry communities. It was claimed that the rationale used by the police was that too many itinerants were leaving dry communities and going to the town to drink and becoming nuisances. If alcohol was readmitted to the communities it would keep residents of the communities "where they belong."
A big issue for young people in Alice Springs is the racial harassment and verbal abuse received in shopping centres by security staff. Aboriginal, especially young people are stopped and asked to show they have money before entering certain stores. Others are searched after leaving the store. Some people are not allowed in the store if they are not wearing shoes or if deemed not be dressed properly.
Young Aboriginal people get into trouble for riding their bikes in public spaces and are often asked to show proof that the bike belongs to them. It is often assumed that you have stolen the bike. Police often question young people about where they live and what they are doing, where are they going.
Some of the younger participants related how they and their friends, especially adolescent boys, are sometimes handcuffed by the police for no apparent reason. They are not subsequently charged with any crime. Sometimes they are placed into the backs of paddy wagons and driven out of town and left by the roadside, made to walk back into town.
One youth told how he was almost strangled by a policeman.
Several reports were relayed by participants about the racially abusive treatment received by Aboriginal people at the hands of taxi drivers:
- Meters were ignored
and Aboriginal people were charged at different (and higher rate) than
the rest of the population.
- The charge was
different at night when taking people back to camps.
- Assaults were
perpetrated by taxi drivers.
- Sexual assaults and sexual harassment of young Aboriginal girls by taxi drivers. Some of the younger female participants told the forum that one taxi driver took photos of young girls.
While it was acknowledged that not all the taxi drivers in Alice Springs behaved in this manner there was total lack of support to eradicate the behaviour of the ones who do behave in a racist and abusive manner. When complaints have been made in the past about taxi drivers there is no support given to Aboriginal people.
There is a private taxi hire company operating in Alice Spring with no taxi company markings. These taxis are called to pick up non-Aboriginal hotel guests exclusively. One driver explained to a passenger the reason for unmarked private cars is that Aborigines get into the regular taxis and make them smell and that the private taxis are always clean because they do not pick up Aborigines.
The group agreed there is massive need for interpreters at all levels in criminal justice, health, education, and government services like Centrelink.
Participants discussed the paradox that while Aborigines are considered the first Australians in many contexts, Aborigines are not considered Australians first. Indigenous Australians seen as Aboriginals only (exotic almost foreign), then perhaps as Australians. This mentality contributes to Aboriginal Australians being treated as second-class citizens.
Some participants claimed that the tourism industry, while relying on Aboriginal culture for its prosperity, also requires over policing of Aboriginal people to retain the image promoted. A further claim was that this is supposedly to keep the streets clean and safe for visitors. There is no accountability of the relationship between police and tourism industry.
At the Lightning Cup Carnival there is a breathalyser at the turnstiles. Participants noted that not everyone is breathalysed, only those suspected of being under the influence of alcohol. It is almost exclusively Aboriginal people who fall under suspicion and are therefore breathalysed.
Once again the participants spoke of the [former] Northern Territory Chief Minister's recent remarks concerning the temporary closure of Uluru, due to the death of an Elder from the Mutijulu community. All agreed the remarks were blatantly racist and showed a clear lack of understanding of and respect for the cultural practices of the Pitjantjatjara and Yankuntjatjara peoples who are the traditional owners of Uluru.
In the Public Housing sector a $5000.00 bill is issued if after assessment it is deemed that damage has been done to the property. It was argued that these assessments are inadequately carried out and that a $5000.00 bill is arbitrarily issued regardless of what damage has been done to the property.
Not a lot of support is given to Aboriginal Public Housing tenants. This means that tenancies are often not maintained and regularly results in the loss of accommodation. No consideration is given to the extended families of Aboriginal communities - this can often lead to very overcrowded houses and in turn may lead to eviction. The attitude of tenancy managers is often seen as a barrier, which Aboriginal people must contend with. This behaviour is often racist and ignorant of tenants' needs and lifestyle.
There was a discussion about private rental and the barriers which exist such as having to provide a bond and birth certificates. The requirements often make obtaining private rental impossible. The attitude of real estate agents is often extremely racist. Private landlords and their agents are often in breach of the Residential Tenancies Act. However the legal system and the complaints procedure does not make making a complaint about a landlord or an agent easy. In the NT there is no Tribunal as in other states, but a conciliation process, which often favours the landlord. If you want the case to go to court, a lawyer is required and this process is often too expensive or difficult for many Aboriginal people.
The issue of political insensitivity to Indigenous cultural beliefs was raised by a number of people at the consultation. An example of this concern was the [former] NT's Chief Minister, Denis Burke's criticism of the traditional owners of Uluru for closing the Rock to tourism while they entered a traditional mourning period after the death of one of their Elders. By doing so he displayed a complete lack of understanding and insensitivity by placing tourism before traditional owners cultural/religious traditions.
In light of the Public Order and Anti-Social Conduct Act 2001, recently passed in the NT, any gathering of people, even in their own homes, could be potentially deemed anti-social conduct. This new law provided police with certain powers relating to public order and antisocial behaviour. This new law is of great concern to Indigenous people as it was believed to be specifically designed to target them.
When discussing issues concerning mainstream health services participants spoke about how only 2-3 people were allowed to visit patient in hospital at any one time and this is only for half an hour at most. No consideration given to large extended families and those families that have travelled a long distance to visit people in hospital.
Another concern was that Aboriginal people, especially younger people, often experience a lengthy wait, of up to 3 to 4 hours in Accident and Emergency, often with non-Indigenous people going ahead of them even though they had arrived after them.
The group agreed that oppression, both external and internal, is a major cause of racism. However, one of the participants posed the question, "How do you address internalised racism?"
As considered in one of the questions above, the group again raised the concern that entire education policy/system is racist by not considering cultural differences within the curricula.
Some participants spoke about the frustrations arising from a perception that the NT is separate from the rest of Australia and therefore can behave differently and is therefore treated differently. This notion provides a fundamental barrier in getting many things achieved in the Territory. It is seen as a special case when it comes to compliance with certain obligations, especially in regards to the Racial Discrimination Act 1975.
There was general frustration about how in the Northern Territory the Country Liberal Party is never challenged and has retained power in government for many years. There is no political threat and therefore there is no impetus for the government to consider political reform. This lack of political debate means that the conservative view wins every time, regardless of the problem, regardless of any lobbying by the community about possible effects of the decisions. [1]
One participant spoke how the political and business sector are more interested in economic issues that will line the pockets of a minority of Territorians. The Timor Gap Treaty was given as an example of how the Territory and Federal governments are more interested in the development of a profit-making venture, than developing good relationship and policy with Indigenous people. If the amount of time and energy spent on negotiating these development proposals was spent on negotiating with Indigenous people things might not be as bad as they are.
It was acknowledged by all attending the consultation that Alice Springs has some excellent community organisations which provide high quality services. In the past by speaking with each other and working together, these community organisations have been able to develop projects and provide better services for the community. The main youth agency in Alice Springs, while admitting that there is much work to do in combating racism, spoke optimistically about past achievements and combining efforts with other groups to discuss and raise awareness of specific issues.
Information about Aboriginal culture needs to be made available to visitors to the region. While visitors are exposed to the some aspects of arts and traditional cultural practices (like corroboree and painting), they rarely have exposure to other information (like statistics and history of the colonization Indigenous people) information that the tourism industry may claim to be irrelevant. The tourist industry has a lot to answer for in terms of what image visitors to Alice leave with - and it is this image that dictates the way Aboriginal people are treated.
All participants were in agreement that the experiences of the Stolen Generation have provided Australia with an opportunity to reflect upon the greatest error in its relation with the Indigenous people, the original inhabitants of this country.
Consideration needs to be given to past and current political leaders as well as heads of agencies, which have had the opportunity to show moral leadership with issues such as racism, but have failed time and time again.
While it was agreed that a lot had been achieved by community agencies, more should be learnt from what has not been achieved through people not speaking with each other. There is a greater need for individual and agencies to meet and speak with each other, to share information, to build partnerships and develop more successful projects together.
The young people attending the consultation expressed that they experience racism in different ways than older people. They are not only targeted because they young, but if they are black and young they can expect to be treated differently by the police, shopkeepers and adults generally. They told how they would get frisked walking into shops, how taxi drivers would not pick them up. They explained how they experienced police harassment on a regular basis.
It was acknowledged that Aboriginal women experience racism differently as well.
Theme 2: Measures of prevention, education and protection aimed at the eradication of racism, racial discrimination, xenophobia and related intolerance at the national, regional and international levels.
There was a consensus that there must be education on racism and human rights generally within the school system. There was a huge emphasis on racism as learnt and that effective education programs in schools, introduced at the beginning of a child's schooling, would be an effective way to combating racism.
It was also recognised that a much broader education campaign must be developed to address racism within the community. The campaign should consider different types of learning models, including various languages and visual concepts.
The campaign should also include some educational tools for parents. It was acknowledged that most children learn racism through their parents' attitudes and beliefs and that these value systems need to be challenged if an education campaign is to be successful.
Some young people told us about what their ideal school would be like; it would have Aboriginal teachers as well as white teachers, their friends would attend the same school, the education received would help in finding work. The young people also emphasised that they would be able to use and learn their own language, as well as learn English. Schools should provide childcare, as many Aboriginal people of school age may have or are responsible for the care of young children and babies. Meals would be provided and transport be provided to pick up students for school. Alongside lessons like traditional language and English, other subjects like painting and cooking would be taught. Activities like excursions to cities would be organised. One of the most important things the young people expressed about what their perfect school would be like was that the schools need to be aware of what is going on in the community, the school has to be part of the community.
The Papunya School, although experiencing problems with the education bureaucracy (see above) is a model for a successful school, as it has built up significant networks with local, national and international educators and incorporates Indigenous perspectives in to every aspect of its teaching. It is recognised for its excellence in dramatically improving literacy and numeracy outcomes of its students; attendance and enrolment numbers and community and parental involvement in their children's education.
All participants agreed on the development and introduction of a constitutional Bill of Rights and a Treaty with Indigenous Australians. These should be the priority of the Australian government.
There was a call to encourage HREOC to establish umbrella organisations or forums regionally to discuss issues of concern and to keep HREOC informed of regional issues as they emerge.
There needs to be more acknowledgement of the coexistence of racism and history before Australia is ever able to embrace Aboriginal, and consequently white, history. The broader community needs to consult with Indigenous people and listen to their stories and give the proper respect to the oral histories of Aboriginal Australians.
There was discussion about how the Internet benefited rural and remote students as it allowed them to communicate with other students and services outside of their communities.
It was suggested that mentoring programs, between rural and remote students and leaders in the fields of technology and the business sector, might provide young people with the information and support if considering a career in a particular field. This program could be developed specifically for use over the Internet.
Theme 3: Provision of effective remedies, recourse, redress, [compensatory] [2] and other measures at the national, regional and international levels.
Concern arose about how anti-discrimination laws dealing with racism are bureaucratic and are difficult for most people to access. A few people spoke about how it is difficult to follow up on an issue or complain without being pushed from one organisation to another. No-one is able to give a direct answer.
However it is not only the anti-discrimination laws that are problematic and complicated. Regular laws like the Building Standards code does not seem to apply to remote communities and dwellings that Aboriginal people are expected to live in. The same could also be said for Health Standards.
While the laws may be adequate there is a question of implementation or interpretation, for example, some decisions by the Liquor Commissioner did not reflect the needs and wishes of the communities the decisions will affect.
There was general agreement that a Constitutional Bill of Rights would entrench rights and that rights are not the domain of politicians.
One participant suggested that racial abuse should be recognised as an aggravating factor in assault cases.
Another proposal was that the Racial Discrimination Act 1975 needs to be strengthened to included indirect racism. In this respect it is weaker than the Disability Discrimination Act 1992 provisions.
Workshop participants canvassed other measures which they believed could be adopted to ensure effective remedies for victims of racism, including a treaty with Indigenous people and a Bill of Rights.
1. Bill of Rights.
2. Treaty with Indigenous people.
3. Government fully acknowledge past injustices and recognise Aboriginal history.
4. Repeal Mandatory Sentencing laws.
5. Implement the recommendations of the Collins Report.
6. Implement recommendations of the Royal Commission Into Aboriginal Deaths in Custody.
7. Introduction of a tender requirement for government contracts to include an Indigenous employment quota.
8. Ongoing, regular cultural diversity training and monitoring of racism in the public sector (including Police, Corrections and Defence).
9. Government accountability including:
a. regular involvement of community in reviewing government policy and procedure;
b. suitable selection criteria for public service positions appropriately recognise skills;
c. Freedom of Information legislation.10. Judicial review for tribunals and decision-making bodies i.e. Corrections, Liquor Tribunal, Housing.
11. Media Code of Conduct.
12. Reduced police presence in Todd Street Mall.
13. Increased Aboriginal female police liaison.
14. That the tourism industry have quotas for the employment of Indigenous people and to develop and monitor cultural awareness programs.
15. Introduction of Affirmative Action policy for service industry.
16. Ongoing funding for innovative programs (e.g. block funding).
17. Public education campaign promoting good examples of racial harmony, cultural diversity.
18. Public education campaign informing people of their human rights.
19. Mentoring programs for rural and remote Indigenous youth about new technologies.
20. Policy of bi-lingual education introduced.
21. Adequate funding for Indigenous schools.
22. Adequate and meaningful consultation with Indigenous people on all policy issues that will impact upon Aboriginal people and their communities.
23. Codify powers of Security guards.
1.
The Consultation took place prior to the August 2001 election in which
the Australian Labor Party won office.
2. Note: The word compensatory was in brackets as there
was no consensus among governments to include it under this theme.
