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The Forum > Article Comments > Trapped in a genocidal history > Comments

Trapped in a genocidal history : Comments

By John Passant, published 24/1/2008

The myth of Australia Day reflects White Australia's amnesia about White settlement.

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Yes I can understand the under-staffed arguement, heard it hundreds of times before. It has "some" truth.

But the underlying causes of child abuse will not be addressed by throwing more DOCS staff at the problem.

and then this -

"an indictment on the communities and not of the government".

but hang on, whats this?

"ill advised activities of previous governments, don't let another generation be lost due to the inactivity of this one"

Go figure?
Posted by Rainier, Tuesday, 12 February 2008 6:11:12 PM
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I see a new study says one in four young girls and one in seven young boys are sexually abused.

I suspect, but I have to admit I don't know, that these rates are higher than occur in aboriginal communities.

Where is the clamour for dealing with what is clearly a dysfunctional society in the same way the Howard Government did when it invaded the Northern Territory?

Let's imagine a response along the following lines from Rudd: To save the children in the Eastern Suburbs of Sydney from abuse and neglect I am today announcing that we are sending in 3 thousand troops, ten thousand public servants and 500 doctors. We are imposing a curfew, mandating medical examinations for children, banning alcohol from the whole of the area and quarantining salaries so that only a small amount of money is available, and then only for food. Oh and by the way we are taking away all freehold land rights. We believe their is a clear link between home owenrship and child abuse in the Eastern suburbs.

Why doesn't this happen? Why does this sort of action only happen against aboriginal communities?
Posted by Passy, Tuesday, 12 February 2008 8:54:17 PM
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Passy,

Once again you are misrepresenting the facts. The report you are referring to included all threats or physical violence of a sexual nature. And if you are comparing that to the levels of child rape that are occurring in the aboriginal communities then you are either ignorant or being deliberately misleading.

If these levels of abuse were happening in the eastern suburbs, a very strong reaction would have occurred long ago with just about everyone's approval.

The counter side to your argument is that because they are aboriginal that the abuse is tolerable and should be accepted as "customary". I think not.
Posted by Democritus, Tuesday, 12 February 2008 9:36:05 PM
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Dear Democritus

I took the reports from commercial TV news. Be that as it may, where are your figures to show that child abuse is more prevalent in Aboriginal communities than say in poor white communities?

I think we jump in too easily to accept that such actions are more prevalent in Aboriginal communities because it suits our stereotypes.
Show me your figures, Democritus.

I don't accept that traditional culture condoned child abuse.

Leaving all that aside, why is it that neither WA or Qld have followed the Howard Government's invasion model? Perhaps because saving children was a cover for dispossession? Perhaps because a forced paternalistic model doesn't work?

Rudd saying sorry today marks a new beginning. Now the urgent task of not only recognising the stolen generations, but also addressing dispossession and the life expectancy gap must begin.

I suggest instead of $31 bn in tax cuts (most of which goes to the comfortable) that Rudd use that money (and the money from future tax cuts) to fund recompense for disposession, the stolen generations and to build better indigenus health, education and housing services for our indigenous brothers and sisters.

On top of that the tax system gives $60 bn per year in welfare to the middle class and business. Put that money too into a fund for the future for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islanders.

Now is the time Kevin.
Posted by Passy, Wednesday, 13 February 2008 7:25:04 PM
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As I can find no documentation on the topic, I would like to ask Saintfletcher or any other informed person if they know when the last aboriginals were poisoned in Werribee - and how many were poisoned?
Petie
Posted by petie, Monday, 18 February 2008 5:48:40 PM
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Passy,

The information I was relying on was the report by the ABC that levels of child abuse in aboriginal communities.

This is backed up by:

http://www.aifs.gov.au/nch/bib/aboriginal.html

And by reams of other data. Look and you will find, or in your case "none is so blind as those that will not see"

The main reason that nothing was done for years is that cultural abuse was considered customary.

This is a case of modern values catching up with those communities. It may well result in the average life span increasing as a consequence.
Posted by Democritus, Tuesday, 19 February 2008 6:08:46 PM
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