The surest way to foster learned helplessness, dependence and earn a rod for your back forever is to rush in building roads and other facilities in undeveloped countries.

The cost is horrendous where where the tools and technology of the First World are used and the locals do not have the means, money and the motivation to maintain the new facilities. The solutions of the First World are often too permanent, environmentally harmful and not sustainable.

There is a lot of basic truth in the parable to teach them how to fish rather than supply the fish. That assumes that the teaching is relevant to what they have available locally.

Similar reasoning can be applied to Australian Aborigines, where well-meaning but naive governments have spilled millions of taxpayers' money for decades achieving only limited successes, but ensuring at the same time that the Aborigines see all solutions as external to themselves and intrusive, 'Whitey' fixes that don't work. Of course the solutions don't work, the solutions must come from within the aboriginal community. That doesn't mean an open chequebook either.

At this stage it is pertinent to ask where all of that compensation, royalties, indigenous consultancy fees and so on from mining end up? From what I have seen, heaps of consumer goods, taxi fares and booze. - What if the recipients of those windfalls were to put it into the what they see as suitable, properly located housing and facilities?

Dear Hassie,

You're right if we are going to help Aboriginal
and Torres Straight Islander peoples to freely
determine their own political, economic, social
and cultural development we need to do that in
a practical sense. They should not settle on
being a victim or blaming others. Neither
attitude is healthy for self-determination.
They need our help in achieving success but handing
over control to them eventually increases chances
of success. Inappropriate solutions where we've
maintained total control have wasted millions.
They need to get involved.

A body to represent them is needed in government.
They should be able to make decisions about policies
and programs that directly affect their lives and
they need to take responsibility and support of the
decisions.

I don't see anything succeeding - if we keep dictating
to them. Their involvement is crucial to success.
They should be allowed to eventually manage their own
affairs. We can provide the necessary training programs
but it should eventually be up to them to get involved
and make things succeed.

cont'd ...

In the US and Canada some Indigenous tribes
have made the effort and have succeeded
in farming, casinos, tourism, handicrafts,
and they manage to support their people
from their incomes. Some have even achieved
high positions in local, state, and federal
politics.

So it can be done here with consultation and
the right training programs.

Fox,

If those are weasel words slyly suggesting a return to the autonomy, open chequebook, lack of scrutiny, waste and fraud that was the inheritance of the 'Progressive' Whitlam government, you are sentencing thousands more young indigenous mothers and children to more horrendous violence and molestation.

The dense black curtain would descend again to shield monstrous cruelty, waste and fraud from the prying eyes of the media and ensuring that public accountability is impossible.

As for education and training programs overcoming any of those abuses, yeah we now know what actually went on behind that black curtain and as a result there are hundreds of indigenous older youth and adults who are functionally illiterate in English and mathematics.

What is it with leftist 'Progressives' that they cannot learn from their own failed social experimentation and interfering and are destined to repeat the same mistakes?

otb,

I'm not interested in your opinion on any
issue.

Go talk to someone who cares what you think.

Hasbeen how long since you have had anything to do with PNG? The people of Fiji are not dumb, they are rather intelligent in many ways. I get on well with Fijians both indigenous and Indian. I will be returning there in October.
As I understand it, and have seen first hand. The Fijian road building and improvement program is Chinese funded, been undertaken by 'Higgins' a leading NZ road construction mod, using both their own expertise and local labour. What is wrong with the particular road I am talking about is, it needs widening in many place, it needs improvements to the hair pin bends (been undertaken now) surface needs consolidation and run-off to stand up better to the wet, in places the road edge is breaking away and making it to narrow and dangerous. the scale of work I have seen I do not believe could be undertaken simply by locals. Its not a 6 lane tar sealed highway, but a one-two lane gravel road.
With the on the job skills locals (people presently employed in road building) are learning from the contractor, later they will use those skills to maintain roads.

Foxy, this site is interesting and does a terrific job.

http://www.fijikids.org/

Also 'Kiva' is a great way in which people in third world countries can access small loans which otherwise would not be available to them. A practical way of helping many with a small outlay.

http://www.kiva.org/

p/s Beach has his spiritual adviser in the form of Jim Saleam, not that Beach is political in any way, as he is always telling us, he is some kind of center moderate. LOL.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jim_Saleam

Beach why don't you instigate an aid program in Tempe Sydney, that party HQ of yours could do with a lick of paint, and you guys would learning a new skill, painting!