Melissa Parke (Fremantle, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I move:

That this House:

(1) notes that:

(a) the inaugural international parliamentary conference on ‘Parliaments, minorities and Indigenous peoples: effective participation in politics’ was held in Tuxtla Gutierrez, Chiapas, Mexico from 31 October to 3 November 2010;

(b) the conference was organised jointly by the Inter-Parliamentary Union (IPU), the Mexican Congress of the Union and Government of the State of Chiapas, in partnership with the United Nations Development Program, the United Nations Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights, the United Nations Independent Expert on minority issues and the Minority Rights Group International;

(c) the conference heard that many situations around the world demonstrate that an adequate representation of minorities and Indigenous peoples in policy and decision-making is instrumental in breaking the cycle of discrimination and exclusion suffered by members of these groups, and their ensuing disproportionate levels of poverty and related impediments to the full enjoyment of many civil, cultural, economic, political and social rights, and yet, minorities and Indigenous peoples often remain excluded from effective participation in decision-making, including at the level of the national parliament;

(d) the conference adopted the Chiapas Declaration, which urges every parliament, within the next two years, to inter alia, hold a special debate on the situation of minorities and Indigenous peoples in their country, recognise the diversity in society, and adopt a ‘plan of action’ to make the right to equal participation and non-discrimination a reality;

(e) the Chiapas Declaration recommended that at a minimum the following elements are contained in the ‘plans of action’:

  (i) ensure that the right to free, prior and informed consent is observed in every step leading to the adoption of legislative and administrative measures affecting minorities and Indigenous peoples, and hold government to account for the implementation of such measures;

  (ii) require of government that all submissions to parliament of draft legislation and the national budget include an assessment of their impact on minorities and Indigenous peoples;

  (iii) make regular use of plenary sessions in parliament and other parliamentary fora to discuss minority/Indigenous matters in order to raise awareness and combat prejudice in society, organise awareness-raising sessions for all parliamentarians so as to increase their knowledge of minorities and Indigenous peoples and the particular problems they face, and ensure that minority and Indigenous issues are mainstreamed into parliamentary work, especially at the committee level;

  (iv) allocate sufficient resources to the task of establishing dialogue between minority/Indigenous peoples and public institutions and to parliamentary committees to allow them to carry out effective outreach activities such as public hearings with minority and Indigenous peoples; and

  (v) increase parliaments’ familiarity with work being done within the United Nations system so as to equip them better to hold governments to account for their international commitments, including the achievement of the Millennium Development Goals, urge ratification of International Labour Organisation Convention 169 on Indigenous and Tribal Peoples, hold debates in parliament on the conclusions and recommendations made by the United Nations human rights treaty bodies and special mechanisms with regard to minority and Indigenous peoples' rights;

(f) the Chiapas Declaration also affirmed the responsibility of political parties to promote the effective participation of minorities and Indigenous peoples, and address their concerns in their party programs; and

(g) the IPU will facilitate networking among parliaments on this issue, monitor the implementation of the Chiapas Declaration and convene a follow-up meeting within two years to discuss progress and set targets for future action;

(2) urges the Government, parliamentarians, and political parties to familiarise themselves with the Chiapas Declaration; and

(3) calls upon the Government to facilitate a roundtable discussion with representatives of Australian Indigenous communities on issues arising from the Chiapas Declaration.

Kelvin Thomson (Wills, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Is the motion seconded?

Laurie Ferguson (Werriwa, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I second the motion and reserve my right to speak.

Melissa Parke (Fremantle, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I am very pleased to speak to this motion, the genesis of which was my participation, on behalf of the Australian parliament, in the inaugural Inter-Parliamentary Union conference on Parliaments, minorities and indigenous peoples: effective participation in politics, that was held in Chiapas, Mexico, in late 2010, and involved 93 parliamentary delegates from 34 countries.

Many situations around the world demonstrate that an adequate representation of minorities and indigenous peoples in policy and decision-making is instrumental in breaking the cycle of discrimination, exclusion and poverty suffered by members of these groups. Yet minorities and indigenous peoples often remain excluded from effective participation in decision-making, including at the level of the national parliament.

The conference considered various examples of inadequate participation across different national political and electoral systems. It considered the consequences of poor participation of minorities and indigenous peoples, particularly with respect to decision-making and policy development, and it discussed and examined a range of programs designed to achieve higher levels of minority and indigenous engagement.

The IPU Chiapas conference applauded Australia's national apology to Indigenous Australians in 2008, our endorsement of the UN Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples and the government's implementation of the Indigenous Electoral Participation Program, which was specifically highlighted in the concluding remarks of that conference. However, the conference also recognised the vast over-representation of Aboriginal Australians in the criminal justice system and their significantly poorer health, education and employment outcomes.

There could be little doubt that the under-representation of Indigenous Australians in our ballot booths, in our parliaments and in other decision-making roles has been a significant factor in allowing the adverse situation experienced by so many to persist. It was only four years ago that a WA Indigenous elder Mr Ward died an entirely unnecessary and avoidable death while he was being transported 360 kilometres on a very hot day in the back of a prison van with no ventilation or air-conditioning. That terrible event occurred 107 years after the then Labor member for Coolgardie, Hugh Mahon, moved a motion in the first year of the federal parliament calling for a royal commission into the conditions for Aboriginal people in northern Western Australia and the administration of justice. That motion was never debated.

It was not until the 1960s that Indigenous Australians gained the right to vote and stand for election to the federal parliament. Since that time, while there have been a number of Aboriginal people elected to state and territory parliaments, there have only been three elected to this place—Senator Neville Bonner, Senator Aiden Ridgeway and Ken Wyatt, the member for Hasluck. In an interview with About the House magazine earlier this year, Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Social Justice Commissioner Mick Gooda said that, while politicians are getting better at communicating with diverse groups, there is no substitute for direct representation. He noted:

When ATSIC was finally abolished, there wasn’t one Aboriginal person in parliament.

Pino Migliorino, Chair of the Federation of Ethnic Communities Councils of Australia, said in the same article, which was entitled 'Of the people', that it is clear the Australian parliament is also failing when it comes to representing people from other culturally and linguistically diverse backgrounds. He noted that the dominance of the political landscape by the major parties means they themselves need to take direct responsibility for improving diversity in the parliament.

In that article, I noted that all members have a role to play in improving diversity in both political parties and the parliament. I said:

I don't think indigenous or minority issues should be just a matter for indigenous or minority groups.

They concern us all, they affect the quality of our democracy, the inclusiveness of our democracy …

The IPU conference adopted the Chiapas Declaration, which urged every parliament, within two years, to adopt a plan of action to make the right to equal participation and non-discrimination a reality. One key initiative is to require that all submissions to parliament of draft legislation and the national budget include an assessment of their impact on minorities and indigenous peoples. Considering that Australia now has in place an assessment mechanism when it comes to our human rights obligations, I believe it would be possible, and not administratively burdensome, for an aspect of that process to be dedicated specifically to considering the impact on minorities and indigenous peoples.

The Chiapas Declaration also affirmed the responsibility of political parties to promote the effective participation of minorities and indigenous peoples and address their concerns in their party programs. This is a matter I intend to take up within my own party and I hope other members will consider doing the same.

Finally, I note that the Chiapas Declaration urged national parliaments to hold a special debate on the situation of minorities and indigenous citizens within two years. This motion is part of that debate and it also moves matters forward by calling upon the government to facilitate a roundtable discussion with representatives of Australian Indigenous communities on issues arising from the Chiapas Declaration. I thank those members taking part in this debate tonight, I thank the IPU for holding this important conference with the support of the United Nations and Minority Rights Group, and I thank the government of Chiapas in Mexico for being wonderful hosts. I look forward to the next IPU conference on this important matter. (Time expired)

Bert Van Manen (Forde, Liberal Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I thank the member for Fremantle for her motion. I concur with the sentiment of the member for Fremantle that it is a very important issue that minorities and our Indigenous communities are well represented in this House and in the broader community.

As the member for Fremantle has pointed out, the Chiapas Declaration relates to a conference held in Mexico back in 2010 on Parliaments, minorities and indigenous peoples: effective participation in politics. The outcome of this conference saw the adoption of the Chiapas Declaration, which urges every parliament, within the next two years, to adopt a plan of action to provide the right to equal participation and non-discrimination a reality for minorities and indigenous people.

I would like to make the point at the outset that here in Australia I think we do a very good job of this already. It amazes me that a lot of these declarations talk about people's rights but never talk about people's responsibilities.

I would challenge the member for Fremantle's contribution to this debate. She draws a long bow to suggest that over-representation of our Indigenous peoples in prison, which is a terrible situation, is directly related to the level of Indigenous representation in the various parliaments around this country.

We do not need further regulation or bureaucracies. They will do little to change the situation. Change is driven by the desire of individuals through their behaviours, attitudes and beliefs. I am fortunate in being able to share some local examples where action is being taken by people in our community who represent minorities or Indigenous groups. In particular, one of our younger Indigenous people, a 16-year-old constituent living in my electorate, was the Queensland leader of the National Indigenous Youth Parliament. Letisha Jarden has written about this experience for the ABC online. In her article she says:

For a shared future of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people in Australia all aspects of life are to be considered equally. It is important that we focus on parliamentary representation as every culture has a background and beliefs that should be appreciated on a federal level.

Indigenous Australians bring unique and valuable perspective to parliament and political debates. This culture should have opportunities to work side by side with other Australian political leaders to shape our future together.

Here in Australia we have done a great job in that regard, but we can always do better. By way of example, we have Indigenous leaders such as Warren Mundine, who was the national president of the Labor Party. We have my colleague Ken Wyatt here in the parliament and we had Neville Bonner. They are terrific examples of the opportunities available for people from this country's Indigenous communities. Equally, if I look at some of the candidates for the forthcoming federal election, one of our candidates—in a seat next to mine—is from a Taiwanese background. So there are those opportunities for people who wish to become involved in the political process.

Letisha Jarden went on to explain in her article that the program is a vital initiative introduced by the Australian Electoral Commission in partnership with the YMCA. The program consists of some 50 young Indigenous people aged 16 to 25. It is the first time in Australian history that young Indigenous people like Letisha have been given the opportunity for their generation to be heard. I am very proud of Letisha's involvement in the National Youth Parliament and I believe that on-the-ground practical initiatives such as these will help encourage future participation in politics by Indigenous Australians.

I am sure that we need to allocate additional resources, but spending time doing impact assessments and making sure every piece of legislation has an impact statement or having public hearings—talkfests—I do not think achieves the outcomes we are seeking. (Time expired)

Laurie Ferguson (Werriwa, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

There has been much emphasis on parliamentary representation but this Chiapas Declaration encompassed other plenary sessions to discuss the matter—situation impact studies, the need for free, prior and informed consent et cetera. I commend the nature of this resolution.

I want to refer to another UN related area on Indigenous people. I was pleased to recently attend the Nepalese Indigenous Nationalities Forum's annual event at Campsie, with about 300 in attendance. Since 2006 this organisation has been about demonstrating the rights of Indigenous people in Nepal. It has been about making sure there is language preservation through the holding of conferences. I want to commend Ganesh Tamang and others for making sure that these issues are raised on behalf of indigenous Nepalese in Australia.

Where we do not have consent around the world we see realities such as the San people being thrown off their land in Botswana on behalf of De Beers and its diamond interests. We see the deforestation of Brazil and Peru and the throwing of people out of their villages and off their land without any consultation in regard to mining in those countries. We see the movement of large numbers of people into the Jumma people's lands in Bangladesh. I want to stress the work of Kabita Chakma in Australia. For a group that has only about 100 or 150 people in this nation, it has very much punched above its weight in raising these issues with the federal government. We see the situation of Uighurs and Tibetans in China, where there is not any consideration of their rights—no role in their nation's representation, no consideration of their needs.

Whilst the previous member who spoke in this debate said that we do things pretty well in Australia, I am not sure it is all that brilliant, quite frankly. We have a situation where life expectancy of Indigenous males is 11.5 years lower, and females 9.7 years lower, than non-Indigenous Australians. We know the Closing the gap report showed that Indigenous Australians are four times more likely than non-Indigenous Australians to die when they are 35 to 44. The member for Fremantle referred to only one of the many deaths of Indigenous people in incarceration. It is just a bit too common seeing Taser attacks in police stations that have a disproportionate representation of Indigenous people. Reading rates for Indigenous people in years 3 to 9 are 18.6 per cent to 21.6 per cent of non-Indigenous people. Writing rates are between 16.3 and 31.4 per cent of non-Indigenous people.

The government has moved ahead in regard to the Healing Foundation and the apology to Indigenous Australians. It has talked about concepts of closing this life-expectancy gap within a generation, halving the gap in the mortality rate and halving the gap for Indigenous students in year 12, or equivalent attainment rates, by 2020. These are noble sentiments. I appreciate that the government has also devoted money to increasing the understanding of Australians and the need to recognise Indigenous people in our Constitution. But we cannot pretend that things are pretty in Australia with regard to Indigenous Australians.

I certainly commend this resolution. I agree with the previous member insofar as whether you have seven Indigenous people in this parliament or four might not be, by itself, that crucial to Indigenous people's rights but it is a part of a broader agenda, as this resolution indicates. This declaration was adopted by a large variety of countries at an international conference. The organisations that were involved in it included the Inter-Parliamentary Union, the Mexican congress, the government of the state of Chiapas—Chiapas historically had major conflicts in the nineties regarding Indigenous rights—and the United Nations. It covers the gamut of things that can be done.

If we can make sure we do consider Indigenous rights when legislation comes before this parliament, if we can have sessions that do raise the awareness of these issues, then these are valuable things. To decry them as over-regulation or over-bureaucratisation is to run away from facing very significant problems in this country. As I said earlier, we can go around the world and see a wide variety of nations where Indigenous people are deprived of their rights, where their languages are disappearing because of lack of government support and where their culture is disappearing. I very much believe this resolution coming out of this conference is well and truly overdue.

Teresa Gambaro (Brisbane, Liberal Party, Shadow Parliamentary Secretary for Citizenship and Settlement) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I rise to speak on the motion moved by the honourable member for Fremantle. This motion acknowledges the inaugural international conference entitled 'Parliaments, minorities and indigenous peoples: effective participation in politics', held in Chiapas, Mexico in October 2010.

It also adopted the Chiapas Declaration, which urges every parliament, within the next two years, to, inter alia, hold a special debate on the situation of minorities and indigenous peoples in their country, recognise the diversity in society, and adopt a plan of action to make the right to equal participation and nondiscrimination a reality. The motion also calls upon the government to facilitate a roundtable discussion with representatives of Australian Indigenous communities on issues arising from the Chiapas Declaration.

I respectfully acknowledge the intent of the motion and the motivation behind it by the member for Fremantle; however, when it comes to dealing with Indigenous issues and participation in this country the time for talk is surely over. I think every single member of this parliament condemns discrimination, particularly Indigenous discrimination. And whilst small elements of discrimination may still remain acceptable to some people in our community, the way to eradicate it is to send strong messages from community leaders and politicians that it is not acceptable. How we achieve Indigenous reconciliation and increased Indigenous participation is through increased action on the ground and actual results, not through talks and roundtables.

Increasingly, we are seeing more Indigenous members of parliament in many of the state parliaments of Australia and in the federal parliament. The honourable member for Hasluck became the first ever Indigenous member of the House of Representatives in 2010. When you have incredible role models such as the member for Hasluck, thousands of young Indigenous Australians become inspired to take leadership roles in our communities just as they are inspired by many of the members here from different ethnic backgrounds. We are the leaders of our community and we do inspire many from non-English-speaking backgrounds as well. One day, we will hopefully see equal participation in this nation. We recently had the National Indigenous Youth Parliament, which, from all reports, was a huge success.

We have seen some fantastic work being done by the private sector in Indigenous employment. We all know the high rate of Indigenous unemployment and the lack of employment opportunity amongst Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander communities. The way to truly empower Indigenous people is for them to have employment with regular income. It is interesting to note that this government and Treasurer come out and bag people like Twiggy Forrest on an almost daily basis, yet the work he really does with the Australian Employment Covenant, finding 10,000 jobs for Aboriginal people, is absolutely inspiring, and he never falters from his goal. In my home state of Queensland there is a bill before the parliament to repeal the Wild Rivers laws that were introduced by the Bligh government. These laws make land within one kilometre of a prescribed watercourse pristine and unable to be used or developed. This has had a massive impact on the ability of Indigenous Australians in Cape York to create their own opportunities.

There are many examples of practical things that can be achieved to inspire and empower Indigenous participation and achieve the goals set by the Chiapas Declaration. As a former employer, I have had many opportunities to work with Indigenous people and have tried to mentor and support them in the workplace. But I believe more needs to be done. More employers need to work in this space and work on initiatives to ensure that Indigenous people have every opportunity for success in the workplace.

In conclusion, I support the sentiment behind the motion. I commend the member for Fremantle, as she often brings very meaningful motions to this parliament and they are well thought out. She brings her many years of past experience in the United Nations to this parliament. We should be working for real results, we should be working on the ground with real employers and we should be providing much more action to help Indigenous participation in this nation through real and practical role models and through working with the business sector.

Harry Jenkins (Scullin, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I join with other members of this debate in thanking the member for Fremantle for bringing this motion before us and I thank the member for Brisbane for her very gracious remarks about the member for Fremantle. This Chiapas Declaration arose from a meeting held in Chiapas, Mexico, in October and November 2010. The meeting was organised by the Inter-Parliamentary Union, the Mexican congress and the government of the state of Chiapas. This is an example of the good work that the Inter-Parliamentary Union can do. Too often the IPU is seen as a talkfest of parliaments, a reason for parliamentarians to travel the world. That has not actually been my experience of the IPU. The IPU has been focused on outcomes, focused on influencing the way that parliaments throughout the world can have an impact. Whether it be gender inequality in our membership or whether it be the way that parliaments can oversee aid work, there has definitely been a move to ensure that the member parliaments of the IPU do good work, and this is an example of it.

I have been asked over the last few weeks, since announcing my retirement, what was the most significant moment of my parliamentary career. It most definitely was the apology that took place in this chamber the day after I was elected Speaker. The leadership that was shown by this chamber on that day was very important. But I put a very important caveat on that: it was only a commencement; there is much to be done. It has to be acknowledged that this government took on board, right from its early months, that it had a responsibility to ensure that we looked at ways in which we could close the gap in outcomes, across a whole host of areas, between Indigenous and non-Indigenous people.

The important thing that I have looked for is that we include Indigenous people in the political processes that lead to decisions that will decrease the gap, because if we do not involve Indigenous people we will not achieve things. I remember how, throughout the inquiry into Indigenous health by the House of Representatives Standing Committee on Family and Community Affairs which led to the Health is life report, I was so impressed that Indigenous people, when offered the opportunity to outline what they would do if they were the decision makers, actually knew strongly what was required. That meant to me that they should be listened to. One of our recommendations was that we should increase community control of health services for Indigenous communities. We said in that recommendation:

The community—

the Indigenous community—

has a responsibility to determine the nature of that control. There needs to be flexibility in arrangements to ensure that each community is able to have the services which best meet their needs within a broader accreditation process.

It is a simple thing, allowing the communities to be involved. I have one great example of that currently occurring in the electorate of Scullin. Scullin is not known for a large Indigenous community, but that community is growing, because Indigenous peoples living in the outer northern suburbs of Melbourne have been allowed the opportunity to be involved in decision making for themselves. We have had the opening of Bubup Wilam for Early Learning. 'Bubup Wilam' means 'children's place' in the Wuywurrung language, so it is the children's place for early learning. The important thing here is that the Indigenous community itself has made decisions about how Bubup Wilam operates. They see that one of their purposes is to promote, encourage, support and assist local Aboriginal communities to develop independent and sustainable responses to the needs of Aboriginal children and families. That is encouraging them to be involved in the political processes.

Of course, down the track we must ensure that there is a greater representation of our Indigenous people and other minorities in this parliament, in both houses, but along the way we must encourage Indigenous people to be involved in those things that most affect them. What impresses me about the motion that has been put before us by the member for Fremantle is the final point. It urges us as parliamentarians and political parties and as the Australian government to familiarise ourselves with the Chiapas Declaration and to implement the recommended measures to the extent possible. Some of the kind of contention we have had in the last few months might be prevented if we could sit down and work ways through that Indigenous people can be involved in their own outcomes. (Time expired)

Ken Wyatt (Hasluck, Liberal Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I thank the member for Fremantle for her motion on the Chiapas Declaration. I acknowledge the comments of the member for Scullin. One of the things that we have to seriously think about is that statements like the Chiapas Declaration are the culmination of people coming together to look at righting wrongs and making changes that are more far-reaching than just their own circumstances. One of the challenges that we often face when we consider international conventions is our capacity to take elements of them and use them within a domestic context. If we bring about change, then change has to be influenced. When I listen to colleagues speak on this motion, the points they raise are extremely valid, but there is also a divergence of viewpoints. There is nothing wrong with that in the debates that you have around a statement that has come from a forum of like-minded people seeking to find a way forward and a resolution to the complex issues that impact in terms of socioeconomic determinants. But it is more important that we take the intent and the spirit of statements such as this one and collectively, with a tripartisan approach, look at how we use that framework to bring about the changes.

We have within Australia a bilateral commitment in respect of closing the gap. One of the critical elements that is missing but that is reflected well in this statement is the one of partnership, the way in which we allow people to sit as equals to plan their destiny. I agree with an earlier speaker that it does not matter how many Indigenous or minority members we have in this chamber—although it is good when we have a number of such members both in the Senate and here—but rather it is the capacity to have people involved in the policymaking within the bureaucracy, to have people not at the lower echelons of government agencies but at the senior levels. When you sit as a member of the senior executive service, you impart a perspective that influences people's thinking and the way in which an agency will implement programs, policies and services. I think that is the crux of this statement from Mexico. It is about the equal positioning in those plans and in setting future directions.

All of us at different times have given a commitment with regard to Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander affairs. To some extent, it has been there but not in a way that is changing.

I think the previous Prime Minister in his apology made the comment quite succinctly that if it has not worked and that if change has not occurred then we should change the way we do business. The statement said that participation as equal partners will bring about the reforms that we need. Everybody in this chamber has an electorate, and if we consider everyone's roles within their electorates then I would certainly challenge each and every one of us, including myself, to get out there and make sure we know what the issues are that Aboriginal people and communities and organisations and communities face. It is by that process that we can effect and influence change.

Whilst I acknowledge the statement, I think that sometimes we do not need a statement of that ilk in order for us to better represent those within our electorates who are disadvantaged. Certainly there is nothing preventing any member from making a difference and personally working towards the closing of the gap that prevails for Aboriginal and Torres Straight Islander communities.

Kelvin Thomson (Wills, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Order! The time allotted for the debate has expired.

Debate adjourned.