Hi again Joe,

You didn't answer my basic question, why was there a need for Aboriginal Protectors? What were they being protected from, after all reading from all those "letters" the European colonisers were overflowing with the milk of human kindness towards Aboriginal people.

"Sorry if they didn't stay down, so that you could shower your pity on their helpless state. But they didn't. So slag away."

Wrong, according to you they were never down, that's all a unsubstantiated fabrication of the inner city 'Latte Set' and the rest of the Commo block. The remarkable achievement of Aboriginal people is they are still recognisable today as a distinct race of people with a definable culture, despite 200 years of that Europeans milk of human kindness being showered upon them. Some say they are an ungrateful bunch!

I'm not slagging anyone off! Indigenous people have a remarkable ability to forgive, I see it in my wife, I see it in many Aboriginal people as well. The tomorrow is what is of most impotence, but we should not forget yesterday, or sanitise the past so some people wont have to feel any sense of guilt.

Dear Paul,

Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people
continue to be one of the most vulnerable groups
in Australia.

They live in major cities, in regional areas, in
remote areas and in very remote areas.

Their life expectancy although improved is still
less than that of non-Indigenous Australians.
Causes of death include heart disease, diabetes,
respiratory diseases, and cancer. And of course
alcoholism and drugs are also a problem.

A high percentage are unemployed. Women and children
suffer physical violence and abuse. There's a high rate
of disability. And the national imprisonment rate is higher
than that for non-Indigenous.

Of course there has been positive improvements. Especially
in the attainment of education levels. And health services
are the biggest employer of Indigenous people.

But overall there still needs to be a focus on
human rights and social justice issues. Reviews need to
be made on the impact of laws, policies, and programs.
On what does or does not work. The government needs to
be provided with policy advice and research on a range of
issues. That is why having a voice to Parliament would help.
What form this would take and how it would be done - can
be worked out that will be suitable to all.

All that is being asked by the Uluru Statement is to be heard.

No one is denigating the current achievements of our Indigenous
people - or attempting to do so. But only focusing on the
achievments does not help solve the other problems that
do indeed exist

Foxy, you are in no position to discuss what is or isn’t needed in healthcare for indigenous people.you have no lived experience in this area, you are totally dependent on what officials, Black and White say. There are good reasons why aboriginal people fall behind in Health stats and lack of money isn’t one of them. If you are actually interested in the reasons why, I’ll tell you why, if you ask.
As for land councils, what are you complaining about!? They are totally managed by elected aboriginal people. Isn’t this what you want? Self management?

Paul, if you really want to know why a protector was needed then you need to read this Royal Commission report, especially the witness testimonies at the end.
Of course some individuals took terrible advantage of some aboriginal people, especially the women and girls. After all, you will never stamp out human vice, it will always exist in every race. And the terrible acts committed were done by both black and white, many aboriginal men sold their women for alcohol, tobacco, metal tools and weapons etc.
read the report and understand that a protector was necessary but didn’t work as efficiently as was needed, due to the vast distances involved and lack of manpower.
I have read this several times now. As I said, the problems arose from individual acts, not government policy.

http://www.parliament.wa.gov.au/intranet/libpages.nsf/WebFiles/Royal+Commissions+-+Report+of+the+Royal+Commission+on+the+condition+of+the+natives/$FILE/Report+of+the+Royal+Commission+on+the+condition+of+the+natives.pdf

Big Nana,

I've done enough research on the topics by people
who have lived in the areas around this country
and I've also read the stats from official sources like
the ABS. My knowledge is not limited to just one
region - it covers the big picture of the entire country.
By people who actually know what they're talking about.

As for your references to "self management"and land councils.
Well they can only manage what the government gives them.
And that's very little.

Has WA passes land right legislation?
NSW allows Aboriginal people to claim land that is" not
needed for any essential purposes". Queensland introduced
a limited land rights scheme. And so it goes. The government
gives, and it controls. And it also cuts.
Sure it has its "token" Indigenous reps - who have to answer
to their white controllers. But appearances - is what it's all
about.

Anyway, I don't want to continue this conversation with you.
Enjoy your day.

Paul,

Aboriginal society and the superstructure based on it, i.e. the culture, were fundamentally different from European society and culture (which was maybe one-to-five-thousand years distant from it). The Europeans had the upper hand early on, but of course Aboriginal people saw this new environment through their own eyes, through their own culture, if you like - their own cultural ethos and principles. Those were radically different from Europeans'. They didn't necessarily see the world as a good Marxist should, as class-based and threatened by capitalist imperialism.

But, as in all societies, food was paramount within Aboriginal culture. In a hunting/gathering society, food had to be a daily pursuit and was gained with more difficulty. Now, maybe the Europeans, with their all-powerful knowledge, knew this and offered daily rations as a ploy to get them off the land. Maybe, even though Indigenous foraging land-use was recognised from the beginning, and still is, at least in civilized but insignificant states like South Australia. And not just rations, but also boats. And guns. For their own nefarious reasons, of course.

Whatever their reasons - and it's not for me to presume - when I was typing up the Protector's letters, of course I was weighing up each and every letter for bias, possible bullsh!t, fabrication, and whether the Protector was a total bastard because I would have done so much better in 2019, being Virtuous. I didn't really find any evidence of that. If you read the nine thousand letters, you may indeed find such evidence. Each letter took around half an hour to type up on average, but you may indeed be able to read them faster than that :)

Otherwise, I suggest that you try to learn instead of easy-peasy sniping.

Nah.

Just to throw the cat amongst the pigeons, I do believe that invasion/settlement/being dragged into the modern world was inevitable for Indigenous people here, by the way. i.e. it was bound to happen, sooner or later, and the sooner, perhaps the easier in the long run. Go for it, show us your Virtuousness.

Joe