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House of Assembly - Fifty-First Parliament, Third Session (51-3)
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Parliamentary Committees

ABORIGINAL LANDS PARLIAMENTARY STANDING COMMITTEE

The Hon. J.W. WEATHERILL (Cheltenham—Minister for Environment and Conservation, Minister for Early Childhood Development, Minister for Aboriginal Affairs and Reconciliation, Minister Assisting the Premier in Cabinet Business and Public Sector Management) (11:01): I move:

That the sixth annual report of the committee be noted.

I am pleased to present the sixth annual report of the Aboriginal Lands Parliamentary Standing Committee. In presenting this report today, I would first like to respectfully pay tribute to the enduring strength and resilience of the Aboriginal people of this state and their culture. I now honour the memory of those who have passed away.

A vital part of this committee's work is its engagement with Aboriginal people in their home communities and with Aboriginal leaders and elected representatives from across the state. I acknowledge and thank all of the Aboriginal communities, organisations and representatives with whom the committee has met over the past year. We deeply appreciate their frankness, astute insights and generosity of spirit that enables the committee to continue to learn so much from Aboriginal people.

These contributions and insights assist the committee to have a clear understanding of the issues that are of importance to Aboriginal communities in South Australia. During the year, the committee's executive officer, Ms Sarah Alpers, left her position and was replaced by Mr Terry Sparrow. On behalf of the committee, I would like to thank Sarah for her tireless support for the committee. I would also like to take this opportunity to thank both Sarah and Terry for their contributions in producing this annual report. I would also like to thank all the committee members for their dedication and hard work over the past year: the member for Little Para, the Hon. Lea Stevens; the member for Giles, Ms Lyn Breuer; the member for Morphett, Dr Duncan McFetridge; and the Hons. John Gazzola, Robert Brokenshire and Terry Stephens.

Over this period, members of the committee visited Aboriginal communities in the northern Flinders Ranges and the Riverland. In both places the committee was impressed by the strength of leadership and resilience within the communities and the growth of community partnerships that will result in benefits to the people of these areas.

The reporting year has also seen the establishment of South Australia's first Commissioner for Aboriginal Engagement, Mr Klynton Wanganeen, and the South Australian Aboriginal Advisory Council. Both these initiatives have been supported by the committee. The Commissioner advocates and speaks for all Aboriginal people, and the council provides advice to ensure that our policies and decisions are informed by a knowledge and understanding of Aboriginal people and their communities.

During this reporting period the committee also conducted and reported on two specific inquiries: (1) an audit of information it had received concerning the Aboriginal Lands Trust Act 1966; and (2) the Australian government's changes to the Community Development Employment Projects (CDEP) program. However, perhaps the most significant event in the reporting year was one that was profoundly important to all Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people. That was, of course, the apology to the stolen generation made by the Prime Minister on behalf of the federal parliament on 13 February 2008. On this historic day the parliament of South Australia extended its original apology, which was delivered on 28 May 1997. The parliament, with the committee and others, hosted over 150 guests, who came to hear the apology in the House of Assembly and to share afternoon tea.

That day we celebrated not only the sincere apology that was made but also a new determination to close the gap between indigenous and non-indigenous Australians. We still face many challenges before we overcome the hardship and inequalities that mark life for too many Aboriginal South Australians, but the Aboriginal Lands Parliamentary Standing Committee will continue to develop partnerships and positive relationships with Aboriginal South Australians so that we can achieve and maintain equality of opportunity and prosperity for all.

Dr McFETRIDGE (Morphett) (11:05): I rise to speak on the report of the Aboriginal Lands Parliamentary Standing Committee 2007-08. I note that we are a little overdue in discussing the report in this place but, unfortunately, that is typical of a lot of Aboriginal affairs. During the Reconciliation Week celebrations recently, the Premier said that Aboriginal affairs is three steps forward and two steps back. Unfortunately, the progression is very slow, but at least it is forward. There are a lot of challenges. We hear lots of bad news and examples of things that are not going well in Aboriginal communities, but there are so many things that are going exceptionally well through a number of Aboriginal communities, both in the metropolitan area and in rural and regional areas. Just recently, I met with a grannies' group down at Port Adelaide, and there are some terrific things going on there and some great opportunities arising.

The Aboriginal Lands Parliamentary Standing Committee is a unique committee of this parliament, having its own act, with the minister as the presiding member. I have some issues with that, because I know how hard working ministers are, whether they are Liberal or Labor. I have seen their diaries; they work exceptionally hard. I know that minister Weatherill is a very hard working minister and, as a result, because of commitments to this portfolio and other portfolios, unfortunately, he cannot attend all meetings. I am not attributing any blame at all or being disparaging; this is just a fact of life.

If I have the opportunity to be minister, I would propose that the minister not be the presiding member, bearing in mind that it is difficult when the minister is unable to attend meetings because of other pressing issues. Also, on occasions, the minister has to write to himself about issues, and I think that is a ridiculous situation to be in. So, the way this committee is set up is something that I would love to see changed. Having said that, when Commissioner Mullighan gave evidence just recently, he commented that he was extremely impressed by the bipartisan way this committee—comprising upper and lower house members, Liberal, Labor and Independents—has worked. I have done my very best to be as bipartisan as possible. Committee members get on exceptionally well on both a personal and political level.

We are trying to advance the cause of Aboriginal affairs in South Australia. The members of the committee are dedicated to that cause but, unfortunately, another problem with this committee is that we actually have to travel quite widely on occasions. Organising members of parliament to go on a trip is a bit like herding cats; it is very difficult and, unfortunately, a number of members have not been able to travel for various reasons and, worse still, and more embarrassingly, members have had to leave trips early. I know of one occasion where there were very few representatives speaking to some of these groups.

The minister mentioned the committee secretaries: Sarah Alpers, who went on to another position earlier in the year, has been replaced by Terry Sparrow; and Jonathan Nichols, who was our first committee secretary, worked exceptionally hard to make this committee function. These people talk to Aboriginal groups across the state, liaise on our behalf and gather information from communities, government departments and ministers. Being the secretary of this particular committee is an exceptionally difficult job. I congratulate Jonathan Nichols on the job he did, followed by Sarah Alpers, who also did a terrific job. I know that Terry Sparrow has already started off on a fantastic footing, with the foundation established by those two previous secretaries.

We recently had a trip to the West Coast, to Oak Valley, Yalata and Maralinga, and Terry did an exceptional job organising that trip. We look forward to continuing working with Terry. He has a huge breadth of knowledge of Aboriginal affairs in South Australia.

The activities of the committee are not just confined to travelling to various communities, although that is a very important part of the work we do. Visiting those communities is a real eye opener in some cases, and there are a number of issues to be considered. However, there are lots and lots of opportunities, and the positive nature of many of the people we speak to is amazing. Some of these communities face significant challenges, yet the people out there are positive and want to go ahead and advance the cause for the sake of the community, themselves, their children and their children's children. We hope that progress is not always going to be three steps forward and two steps backwards.

We visited communities far and wide. We did not visit the AP lands during the 2007-08 year, but we did visit some of the Northern Flinders Ranges communities. We visited Marree and Iga Warta. I have visited Iga Warta on a number of occasions, and it is a good example of what can be done with Aboriginal enterprise. A terrific tourist venture is being developed there. Some of the issues we saw at the nearby Nepabunna community are very common issues for Aboriginal communities to do with their remoteness, and I refer to the Nepabunna Health Clinic and ambulance services. Proximity to more sophisticated care is an issue for them. However, once again, people working in those communities display a very positive outlook.

In the Riverland, the Gerard community has been involved in a number of farm and aquaculture issues. This concerned the people who were running the almond crop on behalf of the Gerard community, but those issues are progressing in a positive way, although, once again, slowly. We were shown some of the opportunities for tourist development in those communities. So, lots of positive things are happening in the communities we visited.

This committee needs to be supported by the whole parliament. Some members are leaving at the end of this parliamentary term, and I would encourage members of both this house and the upper house to look at this committee, see how it works and be prepared to become a member of it. This committee may not meet as often as other committees, but members are working all the time, talking to communities and making sure that the whole aim of the committee is being progressed. There is a real need, though, for the committee to be able to work in a more coordinated fashion. As I have said, as this committee does have a minister as the presiding member, it is important that committee members are able to put themselves in a position where they can travel to communities for a number of days. The communities we visit hold us in high regard, and they want to make sure that we are getting the information and are aware of the issues and the challenges they face.

So, any member who is considering becoming a member of this committee in the new parliament next year should think about it very carefully. This committee is too important for members not to put their heart and soul into it. I know that every member of the Aboriginal Lands Parliamentary Standing Committee has put their heart and soul into it, particularly my two good friends on the other side, the member for Giles and the member for Little Para. I should not be separating members out, but those two ladies in particular are really dedicated—absolutely 100 per cent dedicated—to this committee and its aims. It has been my pleasure to work with them, and I will certainly miss the member for Little Para in this place and on the committee. As for the member for Giles, in some ways I hope she is there and in other ways I hope she is not. We have a cunning plan either way.

The thing that needs to be remembered about this committee, though, is that it has been around this place for a number of years. It has had various manifestations under various ministers, but the whole purpose of the committee has not changed. In fact, 37 years ago (which is a long time ago), when I was teaching in Port Augusta, I saw the issues concerning the Davenport Mission, the Umeewarra Children's Home and the community there. Some of those issues are still there today, and that is disappointing for me personally and as a member of parliament, and it is disappointing for the committee.

This is why this committee has an opportunity to make sure that those challenges that existed 37 years ago (and some still exist today) will continue to be progressed, to make sure that we eliminate the challenges and make sure we grasp all the opportunities. With those few words, I congratulate both Sarah Alpers and Terry Sparrow in what they have done to back us up over the past 18 months to two years and hope that the committee does continue to function well for the rest of this year and into the next parliament.

Ms BREUER (Giles) (11:15): I rise to speak to this report today. I was very pleased to see that we are able to release it today. It has been some time in coming but it is not from lack of caring; it has been from other issues. In the past few weeks in our time off parliament—and, contrary to popular opinion when people think we are on holidays, I was absolutely flat out and I am glad to be back here to settle down a bit and have a quieter time—I spent virtually the whole of our break visiting my electorate. Of course, many of the communities that we deal with on this committee are in my electorate so I have entered many Aboriginal communities and spent time with many Aboriginal people. In fact, I started to feel a bit like a minority group by the end of my time.

In talking to communities, individuals and leaders, I found that the biggest issue out there is and will be housing, and I touched on this yesterday in this place. Until we resolve this housing issue, we are never really going to get where we want to be. Housing just contributes so much to the problems out there in the communities. When you have three generations of people living in one house, when you have young couples trying to start out with young babies and they are living with grandparents, when there are 20 people in a house, how do you expect the toilets and the showers to work consistently? There is absolutely no privacy. There is nowhere for children to study, so you cannot do anything about literacy levels. You cannot do anything about health levels. It is just a major problem.

We have to resolve this, and I am pleased that we have now reached an MOU. The Minister for Housing has been able to reach an agreement with the APY Executive, but there is still a long way to go. It is not just communities like the APY lands or Oak Valley, because there are similar problems in Coober Pedy where there are real issues for Aboriginal people, and in so many other communities in this state. As a committee, I think we have to concentrate on this, and certainly as a government it has to be concentrated on at both federal and state levels. We will not get anywhere until we sort out the housing.

Another issue that I found in talking to various communities is that we still seem to have what they perceive as a lack of consultation about what is happening in their communities. This also involves very much what seems to be at ground level lack of information in these communities. I am sure that the departments know what is going on, and I am sure that some of the leaders know what is going on, but the people out there seem to have this real feeling that they are not being told.

They do not understand what is happening, and I think that is a major breakdown that we have to seriously look at. I felt quite concerned because I knew that things were happening, but the local people did not seem to understand that. We have to be able to get that information through to people and let them know what is being planned, what is being done and let them have some say in what is proposed as well. That is vitally important. If you take away people's power and make them feel powerless, all sorts of problems result from that.

Another issue that is surfacing a little bit is that there seems to be a perception out there that children are again being taken away from families. I am not too sure and I have not had an opportunity to go into detail on this, but I know that many people feel quite strongly that what is happening is that with the Mulligan report, with the emphasis on solving family problems, child abuse, neglect, etc., there is quite a strong concentration by the Department for Families and Communities of working with children and working with families, and Aboriginal communities believe that they are having their children taken away.

Again, I think we have to seriously look at this issue and work out what we are doing wrong or what they are doing wrong, because they are talking about the stolen generation again. I bring this up just to flag this point so that people are aware that this is an issue that is being talked about quite strongly in Aboriginal communities. They believe that young social workers come in, do not understand and are taking their children away. I do not know the depth of the problem; as I said, it was hearsay with me but I think we also need to seriously look at that.

Another issue that seems to be arising is that, while we are doing lots of things in communities, there still seems to be some lack of cohesion between departments; one department is doing something and another department is doing something similar, while another department is doing something similar again. That has to be addressed fairly carefully, from the top level down, to make sure that people are working together and that issues are being resolved.

Another area that the old tjilpis, in particular, talked to me about was that they believed there was a lack of respect for their culture and their law in their communities—and it is not just from the white people's government, etc., going in there: it is a problem with their young people as well. I think all of us—particularly those of us in the mature age group—feel that young people no longer respect us, but this is particularly important in Aboriginal communities. It is also absolutely essential that people coming into or working in their communities—whether they be government workers, tradespeople, contract workers, or whatever—have that fundamental respect for the culture of those communities, taking into account all the difficulties, problems and mess in some areas and understanding that there is a deep culture within those communities.

I think we are doing okay but I think we can do much better, and I believe the role of this committee is to make sure that we are keeping a consistent eye on this matter. I agree with the member for Morphett and am not sure that the minister should be chairing this committee; I think it puts him in a very difficult position. I have great respect for minister Weatherill. I worked with the late Terry Roberts when he was minister, and was very concerned after he passed away and wondered if anyone would be able to manage the job as he did. However, I am very comfortable with minister Weatherill; I think he does an excellent job—and it is an extremely difficult job. I pay tribute to him, because he has done extremely well. In fact, I asked him yesterday if he intended to be minister after the next election, because I am very concerned about who would be able to fill his shoes. I will not tell you his response. However, I agree that the minister is not quite appropriate for that position, and I think that after the next election we should look at that and have someone else chair the committee.

The committee membership is absolutely vital. It is not about the money, and people should not be looking for the extra money they get from this committee; that should be the last thing on their agenda. I do not even know how much extra money I get for being on that committee; I have never checked it out. It is certainly not a status committee, and it should not be something you put on your CV; it is a hard working committee. I have been involved now for eight years and I have seen good and bad members on the committee. We must have people who are committed, who understand Aboriginal communities and who understand Aboriginal culture. There is no point being on the committee because you think it would be fun to work with the natives or whatever. You have to be absolutely committed and, after the next election, I would beg that we do get very committed people on that committee. We will not achieve anything unless we have people there who really care about what they are doing and who really want to make some changes.

This committee is seen by Aboriginal communities as something of a conduit to government. It is certainly seen as a sounding board, and we are seen as mediators, so we play a vital role for them. We are their only contact with parliament, and are often what they see as their only contact with government, with the Premier, with the minister, etc. So we must have good people on that committee. If you are just going on it because it would be good to have on your CV then do not bother; we do not want you there!

I have been very happy to work with the member for Morphett; I believe he has done an extremely good job. Being in opposition must be difficult, but he has managed to retain his integrity in all this and be very fair. He has been very committed to our committee. I will not mention anyone else; I mentioned the member for Morphett because he has been on the committee for as long as I have, but I do not think it would be fair to anyone if I started singling out other favourites.

I see the committee as being vital, and of course our committee secretaries have been absolutely vital as well. Jonathan Nicholls, the first secretary, did a brilliant job; I have just spent a week away with him visiting the APY lands and we managed to still be talking to each other at the end of it. He is very committed in his new role by UnitingCare Wesley, but he did an excellent job with our committee. We then had Sarah Alpers, who was like a breath of fresh air, and I was very sorry to see her go. We did not have much opportunity to get to know each other, but she certainly did an excellent job and put together this report we have today. Now we have Terry Sparrow, and we are still learning about each other and feeling our way. However, I believe that Terry, himself being an indigenous person, brings that little bit extra to the position, and I am very confident that he will steer us through the next few years, so we are very pleased about that.

The committee is vital, and its reports are very important. We have to get information out to people, we have to let them know what we are doing, and we have to let Aboriginal communities know that we are there and available for them to talk to. I am thankful for the opportunity to talk about this today, and I certainly hope, despite what the member for Morphett says, that I am on the committee for the next four years.

Time expired.

The Hon. L. STEVENS (Little Para) (11:25): I am very pleased to speak on this report from the Aboriginal Lands Parliamentary Standing Committee. It will be also the last time I have an opportunity to speak on this committee's work because the next report will be tabled after I have left the parliament.

I have been on the committee for just this term, and I have been very pleased to be part of it. Today, I would like to make a few comments on the 2007-08 report before us. As the minister mentioned, the first priority of the committee is to consult with Aboriginal people in their home communities and to engage with their elected representatives and leaders.

As the minister mentioned, in the time covered by the report, we visited the Northern Flinders Ranges communities of Marree, Nepabunna and Iga Warta and the Riverland area, including the Gerard community. I would particularly like to talk about Marree because it impressed me in many ways. The report states:

Marree is run by the Arabunna Progress Association which is a unique situation with Aboriginal people at the forefront of town leadership. The town provides a relaxing lifestyle and a very safe environment for children free from negative city influences such as alcohol and other drugs. Community people are independent, all working, and have great connection and pride for their community with the community elders setting very good role models.

That was evident, and it was also evident to me that the community was going well. I pay tribute to Mr Reg Dodd, who is Chair of the Marree Arabunna People's Committee, his committee members and all those people who work together to make this the community it is. I think it is worth thinking about that quotation, about what it is in Marree that is working and about what we can learn from its example that may be applied to other communities.

We had some time at the school, and I have to say that the Aboriginal students at the school were all engaged, and that was what really struck me—they were all engaged. I have not seen that anywhere else, but I certainly saw it at Marree.

I know that a number of innovative things have happened there, including the special relationship with Pembroke School and the work done by Campbell Whalley, and I am sure that that has had a great influence on the educational aspirations of the students. I think that there are things to learn from the example of Marree that we could translate to other situations.

In spite of the fact that I have said that things are working well in terms of the Progress Association, that is not to say that they do not have issues; they certainly do, and we recorded them, listened to them and took them up. However, it was clear that their governance was right. It was working for them, and I believe there are lessons here that could be applied in other communities.

I would also like to say that there are some good things happening in all communities, but I would say too that there are still intractable issues—serious issues—that need to be addressed by us all. I think the issue of 'doing with' rather than 'doing to' is a really important principle that we need to come to terms with, that is, how we work alongside remote communities, many of whom are in a fairly passive state in terms of their future and their feeling of having some control over that future. So, there are big issues ahead, and I think this committee has a very important role in, first, learning about the issues and also publicising that learning for other members of the parliament and also the community.

I thank members of the committee for their work. It has been good going on the trips with groups of members. I thank Sarah Alpers for her work. I am sorry that her time with us was short, because she was a very conscientious and skilful person in the position that she held. She came with great experience herself in Aboriginal communities and was an asset to the committee. Certainly, she was there when we were visiting those communities and doing the work that this report focuses on.

We now have Terry Sparrow join us, as the other members have mentioned, and he is proving to be very conscientious and keen to move the committee on through a whole range of issues. I also compliment Jonathan Nicholls, a previous secretary of the committee, for the Anangu Lands Paper Tracker online newsletter he continues to put out. In his forensic way he has been able to really follow issues, and I certainly read each edition with interest. I congratulate UnitingCare Wesley on having that position.

I would like to make a comment about the committee itself; it will be my last opportunity to do so. I believe very strongly that the committee has a very important role for this parliament. I agree with the other members who have spoken: I think the minister should not be the presiding member of the committee, for all the reasons that have already been said. I think the committee needs its full complement of people attending its meetings and prepared to make the necessary commitment to visit the communities. It has been a difficulty at times to get enough people to actually make those visits, and sometimes we have had to postpone things because the usual subgroup of members who have made this commitment consistently have had things come up for them in their electorates and not be able to attend. So, we really need the seven members on board and ready to be able to do all the work together, otherwise we really cannot do justice to the job that we have been given to do.

Also, the committee is restricted in some ways. It is different from other standing committees in terms of its reporting arrangements and other things. I think that needs to be changed and that we have that opportunity in the future so that this becomes a standing committee of the parliament, as the other ones are.

I think that is about all I can add, except to say again that I have enjoyed my time on the committee. I look forward to the remaining months that I have. I know that we have a number of tasks ahead of us.

I recommend that people have a look at the report. It contains some interesting transcripts of witnesses. The evidence of Kaisu Värttö of SHine SA is in the report, and people might like to read that; she made some very good submissions to the committee. The report includes a number of interesting things that I am sure people would be interested to read. With those words, I again thank the other committee members, and I look forward to my remaining months on the committee.

Motion carried.

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