Howards Indigenous power and land grab must not go ahead without parliamentary and Aboriginal consultation
The Democrats say the Prime Minister should immediately establish a parliamentary Committee to examine his proposals regarding child sexual assault in the Northern Territory to allow the details to be properly examined and Aboriginal people to be properly consulted.
"If the Prime Minister wants the parliament to pass laws to let him take control of the land and lives of Aboriginal people in the Northern Territory, he must allow Aboriginal people and the Parliament adequate time to examine the detail," Democrats' Indigenous Affairs spokesperson Senator Andrew Bartlett said."
"I am not convinced that the government's analogy of emergencies like cyclones and tsunamis is suitable. People want a lot of support to rebuild their lives in times of emergency; but they don't want all control of their lives taken away."
Democrats' Leader Senator Lyn Allison said that "Indigenous people simply must be consulted before their rights are run roughshod over not just because it is the right thing to do, but because without it, these changes have little hope of succeeding in reducing child sexual abuse."
"No doubt anyone who criticises Mr Howard will be smeared with the allegation that we don't care about sexual abuse of children, but we will not let such attacks stop us from raising proper concerns about the government's authoritarian approach."
"There are real questions about whether these measures breach long-standing protections such as the racial Discrimination Act. These are not just 'niceties' that can be cast aside, they are protections that came about due to the lessons of history."
The Democrats call on State and Territory governments to take time to give measured consideration to the Prime Minister's plans, and not let a gun-to-the-head approach dictate their decisions on this issue.
