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Learning the lessons

By Jack de Groot - posted Thursday, 12 July 2007


Dealing with the urgent problem of child sexual abuse is certainly needed, but locking up perpetrators and sending Indigenous kids off to [boarding] schools will not solve the broader problems.

Suspicions of authority also remain strong. The fear of losing children to the authorities may not be real to some of our politicians and commentators, but it is for many Indigenous Australians. Similarly, land tenure is profoundly important to many Indigenous communities. Confusing the issues of abuse and neglect with altering the land tenure system has also caused great alarm.

Indigenous communities suffer from poor access to health, education, housing and employment - not just in the Northern Territory, but from Redfern to the Kimberley. Unless we take a long-term approach and tackle all these forces for marginalisation, there is a very real danger that we will end up with a situation like that in the Solomon Islands: communities left broken.

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Political will is the first step. Resources are required, certainly. But we also need partnership that comes from real consultation, participation and ownership by the local leaders and their communities. If people like the woman above are worried about the army coming for her child, we will do no good.

Most importantly, we need a long-term plan. It is in all our interests that we make this renewed commitment a success.

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About the Author

Jack de Groot is the Chief Executive Officer of Caritas Australia. www.caritas.org.au, the Catholic Agency for International Aid and Development.

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