IKC101 Assessment Task 3

Annotation
This task explores contemporary Indigenous Australian circumstances, how they
came to be and how international human rights frameworks can inform change in
the future and promote reconciliation.

This assessment has made me aware of proactive strategies for change that
addresses Indigenous Australian disadvantage, such as ‘Closing the Gap’. Through
this subject I have developed a deep understanding and empathy for Indigenous
histories and cultures (2.4).

Contemporary Rights and Realities

Indigenous Health
Article 25.1 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights states that “everyone has
the right to a standard of living adequate for the health of well-being of himself and
his family”(United Nations, 1948). Furthermore, Article 24.2 of the Indigenous Rights
decrees that “Indigenous individuals have an equal right to the enjoyment of the
highest attainable standard of physical and mental health” (United Nations, 2007).
However, a gap of almost ten years in mortality rates between Indigenous and non-
Indigenous Australians (Australian Indigenous HealthInfoNet, 2015) casts doubt on
whether Indigenous individuals are receiving their “equal right” to the highest
standard of health.
Inequalities in Indigenous health arise from inequalities in society (Marmot, 2011, p.
21). The premature mortality of Indigenous Australians is closely linked to social
causes, as poor health can be attributed to the circumstances in which people are
born, grow, live, work and age (Marmot, 2011, p. 21). “If a person feels safe, has a
job that earns enough money, and feels connected to their family and friends, they
will generally be healthier” (Australian Indigenous HealthInfoNet, 2015). Leading
causes for Indigenous deaths in 2012 were cardiovascular disease, cancer, and
injury-related deaths (Australian Indigenous HealthInfoNet, 2015). These causes can
be directly related to social determinants. For example, cardiovascular disease can
be caused by smoking, high cholesterol, not eating well, and being physically inactive
(Australian Indigenous HealthInfoNet, 2015). Indigenous people are more likely to
die from cancer because it may be more advanced at the point of discovery, as most
health services are not accessible outside of cities (Australian Indigenous
HealthInfoNet, 2015). Disruption to culture can attribute to the increased risk of
injury-related deaths such as suicide, with Indigenous people twice as likely to die
from suicide than non-Indigenous people (Australian Indigenous HealthInfoNet,
2015).
From the outset of colonisation in 1788, “edicts on paper which required humane
treatment of Aboriginal people were not carried out by frontiersmen” (Johnston,
National Report Volume 2- 10.4 Frontier Period: DIsease and Violence, 1991).
Indigenous people lost their economic resources, and were subjected to foreign laws
and policies. Introduced diseases played a major role in Indigenous deaths as well as
the trauma of dispossession (Johnston, 1991). Indigenous Australians were
considered a dying race, thus issues of health and well-being were not a national
priority (Johnston, 1991). Over the next 200 years policies stemming from
institutional racism such as segregation, protection, and assimilation were
implemented, preventing acceptance from dominant society (Hampton & Toombs,
2013, p. 37). From the 1970s, self-determination and reconciliation policies were
instigated in an effort to promote the recognition of Indigenous rights(Hampton &
Toombs, 2013, p. 43). However the legacy of colonisation has proved detrimental to
Indigenous social and emotional well-being, with factors such as connection to land,
family and community permanently lost (Australian Indigenous HealthInfoNet,
2015).
Indigenous health continues to improve slowly “although they are still not as healthy
as non-Indigenous people overall”(Australian Indigenous HealthInfoNet, 2015). In
2008 the Australian Government pledged to ‘close the gap’ between the life
expectancy of Indigenous and non-Indigenous Australians (Healey, 2014, p. 41). The
2016 Report, “Closing the Gap”, recognizes the need to implement more rural health
services with $85 million pledged to improve access to culturally-sensitive mental
health services for Indigenous people (Commonwealth of Australia, 2016). The
second part of Article 24.2 of the Indigenous Rights rules that “states shall take the
necessary steps with a view to achieving progressively the full realization of this
right”(United Nations, 2007). By introducing more culturally-appropriate, community
based health services, Indigenous Australians will have the opportunity to enjoy “the
highest attainable standard of physical and mental health”(United Nations, 2007).

Indigenous Australian People and the Criminal Justice System

Article 7 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights states that “all are equal
before the law”(United Nations, 1948). If all persons are equal before the law, this
brings into question why in Australia, there is currently an over-representation of
Indigenous persons at every stage of the criminal justice system (AIC, 2013). In 2012
there were 1,914 Indigenous prisoners for every 100,00 persons of the adult
Indigenous population, whereas the equivalent rate for non-Indigenous prisoners
was 129 prisoners per 100,000 adult persons of the non-Indigenous population (ABS,
2013).
This issue was initially highlighted by the findings of the Royal Commission Inquiry
into Aboriginal Deaths in Custody (RCIADIC). The RCIADIC was commissioned to
examine the circumstances surrounding the deaths of 99 Indigenous people in
custody between 1980 and 1989 (AIC, 2013). Although no custodial foul play such as
neglect or abuse was uncovered, an examination into the lives of the 99 Indigenous
persons showed that in every case “their Aboriginality played a significant and in
most cases dominant role in their being in custody and dying in custody” (Johnston,
1991). Of the 99 individuals, 83 were unemployed, 43 experienced childhood
separation through State intervention, and 22 deaths were by hanging (Johnston,
1991). By examining the life circumstances of the individuals, the RCIADIC unearthed
“a range of societal and historical factors which impact Aboriginal lives” (Johnston,
1991).
“Aboriginal people have a unique history of being ordered, controlled and monitored
by the State” (Johnston, 1991). Historical experiences of disempowerment are
central to the issue of Indigenous over-representation in custody. The
disempowerment of Indigenous people began with the dispossession of their land by
British colonists. Dispossession isolated Indigenous communities from their
connection to ‘country’, both spiritually and economically (Hampton & Toombs,
2013, p. 38). Almost half of the Indigenous individuals examined by the RCIADIC
experienced childhood separation (Johnston, 1991). In the late 19th century the
Indigenous mixed-descent population was increasing, and in social Darwinist terms
the Indigenous population was not regarded as near extinction (Australian Human
Rights Commission, 1997). Government officials believed they could solve this
‘problem’ by forcibly removing Indigenous children of mixed-descent from their
families and sending them away to be placed in institutions (AHRC, 1997). Although
such policies were abandoned in the 1970s, these practices have had ongoing
impacts on Indigenous families.
In 2013 the Australian Institute of Criminology released a report on the national
deaths in custody between 1980 and 2011. Twenty years after the findings of the
RCIADIC, Indigenous over-representation in the criminal justice system still remains
an issue (AIC, 2013). To reduce the number of Indigenous prisoners, government
authorities must work alongside Indigenous communities to eliminate the
disadvantages of Indigenous people in social situation (AHRC, 1997). Issues of
violence and substance abuse must be priorities, but it is also important to support
the “strength, leadership and resilience” of Indigenous people (Commonwealth of
Australia, 2016). Indigenous Australians have a right to empowerment, as it is a UN
Indigenous Right that “Indigenous peoples have the right to self-determination”
(United Nations, 2007). The right to self-determination requires a constitutional
reform to recognise Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples as Australia’s first
people. On 6 July 2015, a commitment was made to progress the process in
recognising Indigenous peoples in the Australian Constitution (Commonwealth of
Australia, 2016). Furthermore, Article 6 of the Human Rights states that “everyone
has the right to recognition everywhere as a person before the law”(United Nations,
1948). This is an opportunity to address the lack of recognition and the exclusion of
Indigenous peoples in the Constitution (AHRC, n.d.).
References
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Australian Human Rights Commission. (1997). Bringing them Home- Chapter 2. Retrieved
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