Listen to us: we know what we need
The Social Justice and Native Title Report 2016, tabled today in Federal Parliament, includes an agenda for reform based on solutions proposed by Indigenous Australians.
Australian Human Rights Commission President, Gillian Triggs, said governments must genuinely engage with Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Peoples to address issues such as property rights, justice targets and escalating incarceration rates.
The recent death of a 10-year-old in the Kimberley is a tragedy and I pass on my condolences to her family at this particularly distressing time.
This tragedy has heightened my conviction that the lives of all of our children in Australia are precious and should be protected at all costs.
Nearly 20 years after the Bringing Them Home Report documented the experiences of the Stolen Generations, the removal of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children continues to be a source of great pain for our people.
I am delighted to present my sixth Social Justice and Native Title Report 2015 as Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Social Justice Commissioner.
I am required to report every year to Parliament on the exercise and enjoyment of the human rights of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples. This also includes reporting on the operation of the Native Title Act 1993 (Cth) and its effect on the exercise and enjoyment of our rights to land, territories and resources.
One of my primary responsibilities is to report annually on the enjoyment and exercise of human rights by Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples. I also report annually on the operation of the Native Title Act 1993 (Cth) (the Native Title Act) and the effect of the Act on the exercise and enjoyment of human rights of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples. In 2014, I have again combined the reporting requirements into the Social Justice and Native Title Report, which covers the period from 1 July 2013 to 30 June 2014.
In this Report, I focus on planning for the future based on the approach of our communities meaningfully participating in decisions that affect them. I also outline a continuing agenda for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples, with a focus on a human rights approach using the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples (the Declaration) as the guide.
The theme of governance in the Social Justice and Native Title Reports for 2012 relates directly to my priorities concerning relationships and giving full effect to the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples.
Please be aware that this publication may contain the names or images of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people who may now be deceased. Reports Social Justice Report 2012 Native Title Report 2012
Keynote address by Geoff Scott, Chief Executive Officer, New South Wales Aboriginal Land Council