Legislative Council
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17953 LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL Thursday 25 October 2001 ______ The President (The Hon. Dr Meredith Burgmann) took the chair at 11.00 a.m. The President offered the Prayers. OFFICE OF THE OMBUDSMAN Report The President tabled, in accordance with the Ombudsman Act 1974, the annual report of the Ombudsman for the year ended 30 June 2001. The President announced that she had authorised that the report be made public. TABLING OF PAPERS The Hon. Carmel Tebbutt tabled the following paper: Annual Reports (Departments) Act 1985—Report of the New South Wales Local Government Grants Commission for the year ended 30 June 2001 Ordered to be printed. PETITIONS Morisset Policing Petition praying that a permanent police presence be returned to Morisset, received from the Hon. Michael Gallacher. Children in Institutions Petition praying that the House undertake an inquiry into the treatment of all children in institutional care in New South Wales as recommended by the Federal Parliament's August 2001 report into child migration, entitled "Lost Innocents: Righting the Record", received from the Hon. Richard Jones. Woy Woy Policing Petition expressing concern about the proposed loss of general duties police officers from Woy Woy Police Station and praying that the House seeks the assistance of the Minister for Police to reinstate those police officers, received from the Hon. Michael Gallacher. Council Pounds Animal Protection Petition praying that the House introduce legislation to ensure that high standards of care are provided for all animals held in council pounds, received from the Hon. Richard Jones. Circus Animals Petition praying for opposition to the suffering of wild animals and their use in circuses, received from the Hon. Richard Jones. Wildlife as Pets Petition praying that the House rejects any proposal to legalise the keeping of native wildlife as pets, received from the Hon. Richard Jones. 17954 LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL 25 October 2001 CRIMES (SENTENCING PROCEDURE) AMENDMENT (ASSAULTS ON AGED PERSONS) BILL Second Reading Debate called on, and adjourned on motion by the Hon. Peter Primrose. COUNCIL FOR ABORIGINAL RECONCILIATION FINAL REPORT Debate resumed from 26 September. Reverend the Hon. FRED NILE [11.09 a.m.]: I conclude my contribution to this debate by making some additional comments. I note that an amendment has been moved to the motion moved by the Hon. Helen Sham-Ho. It seeks to omit the word "supports" in the first line and substitute the word "notes". The motion would read, "That this House notes the final report of the Council for Aboriginal Reconciliation ...". The Christian Democratic Party supports that amendment. The comprehensive report comprises almost 200 pages. Therefore, it is difficult to say that the House supports everything in it. I would suggest that all honourable members probably support the majority of it, but there are questions about strategies, how to achieve reconciliation and how to know, if it is possible, that reconciliation has been achieved and that the process has concluded. One of the uncertainties in this debate is whether reconciliation will ever be concluded. How does one measure the conclusion of the reconciliation process? How does one say that we have achieved reconciliation and that we can now move on to other matters as a truly united Australia? The report contains references along those lines by a number of participants in the process. Page IX in the introduction section of the report states: The Council believes that if the document and strategies outlined in this report are acted upon, Australia will have a solid claim to asserting itself as a reconciled nation. We would be getting close to the council's vision of: A united Australia which respects this land of ours; values the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander heritage; and provides justice and equity for all. That seems to be a very fitting description. We support that. Mr Kerry Blackman, one of the members of the council, is a very good friend of mine. We have nominated him as the Christian Democratic Party Senate candidate for Queensland. He is a fine, outstanding Aboriginal Christian leader. His name, Blackman, certainly describes him. He is about six feet six inches tall and he is a very impressive man. He is quoted in the report as saying: Reconciliation is overcoming racism. To me it is about change—change in thinking, change in attitude and change in behaviour. It's about equity, fairness, justice and peace. It's trying to build a bridge across a sea of hate from the pain of the past on both sides to build a better future for all Australians to enjoy. It will be a challenge for the voters of Queensland to put aside any prejudices and elect another Aborigine to the Senate at the forthcoming election. Some fine and outstanding members of the Federal Parliament have come from the Aboriginal community. It would be a very good thing for the Queensland people to elect an Aborigine to represent them in the Senate. We support the principle of the report and the amendment. The Hon. DAVID OLDFIELD [11.12 a.m.]: One would be especially hard pressed to find a person in this Parliament or, for that matter, any Parliament in this country, who is more in favour of Australians truly being one people—I feel especially strongly about this issue. The Hon. Helen Sham-Ho often suggests things that I would nicely describe as being feel good, and in general I have supported in principle much of what she has said. This motion relating to Aboriginal reconciliation calls upon us to support—but the amendment suggests that we simply "note"—the final report of the Council for Aboriginal Reconciliation to the Prime Minister entitled "Reconciliation—Australia's challenge". Unfortunately, much of the detail of the report is not consistent with what I represent or believe, so I would not have been able to support the motion. However, as it has been amended by the Hon. Don Harwin, I am happy to note the report. I believe the motives behind the Hon. Helen Sham-Ho's moving the original motion were well intended. It is simply that I disagree with the path the original motion lays out before us. I have serious misgivings about the implications of adopting things such as treaties between people who are all of the same citizenship, as well as the acceptance of any statements that claim one group of Australians has a special place over everyone else. As previously stated, I could not be more in favour of all Australians living together 25 October 2001 LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL 17955 peacefully and productively as one people under one flag, hence the name of the party of which I was a founding member—One Nation. However, I find much of the report the motion calls for us to support to be divisive and separatist rather than cohesive and unifying. The whole process of what is being described as reconciliation is flawed firstly in its title, for one cannot reunite, hence reconcile, people who have never been united in the first place. Much more importantly, the process is flawed by virtue of there being no objectives that once seen to have been achieved will signal reconciliation having occurred. In this House on 4 April last year I described the nonsense of this process, which completely lacks any recognisable objectives that will allow us all to know when this so-called reconciliation has been reached. I will not repeat the content of the speech I gave on that day. Suffice it to say, it is unfortunately clear that very few people, if anyone, supposedly battling for so-called reconciliation have any idea of the objectives that must be reached. One cannot have a plan without first comprehensively articulating the outcome one wishes to achieve. An objective or series of objectives must be understood before a plan of how the desired outcome is to be reached can be commenced. This process is missing from the approach to reconciliation. Is it any wonder that the reconciliation process has been so unsuccessful, even in the eyes of its proponents, when one comes to the realisation that those same people wanting to action what they call "The roadmap for reconciliation" do not even know where they are going? What possible chance do they have of getting there? In June I asked the Minister for Aboriginal Affairs a question on this issue: Could I get an impression from you as to your understanding of what it is that will occur socially to signal that reconciliation has been reached? In other words, what are those objectives that will be seen to be achieved when one can say reconciliation has now been achieved? The Minister said: I think when all people black and white in Australia, and other colours, have the same opportunities as each other and the same outcomes coming from those opportunities, there is no racism, and that there is in that sense no need for special programs. I thank the Minister for his eminently appropriate and intelligent answer. It was concise and essentially to the point. Of course, the answer given by the Minister fairly describes a much better situation than we have currently, and it rightfully includes all Australians as appearing to benefit from the outcome. His answer, while only a few words, goes beyond so-called reconciliation and the professed plight of Aboriginal Australians and, quite frankly, is descriptive of an outcome all decent, fair-minded people would desire. Many of the problems relate to an unrealistic expectation that has been given to Aboriginal people and an unrealistic understanding of their history, so-called uniqueness and place in the scheme of things.