This article first appeared in Quadrant, May 2003

The Failure of Aboriginal Segregation

Hon. Peter Howson

Since my retirement from active participation in political life, during which I was Minister for Aboriginal Affairs in 1971-72, I have continued my involvement with Aboriginal policy issues. Most recently, that has included several visits to Aboriginal communities in the Northern Territory, the close examination of various reports and books on Aboriginal issues, submissions to the Senate Legal and Constitutional References Committee on the Inquiry Into The Stolen Generation (May 2000) and on the Inquiry into the Progress Towards National Reconciliation (December 2002), and support for the Bennelong Society (of which I am a founding member and Vice President). That Society, whose current President is Senator Jeannie Ferris, was formed in May 2001 to promote the examination of government policy with respect to Aboriginal affairs and to seek to influence public opinion so that 'prospects for amelioration of the present appalling plight of many contemporary Aboriginal people are improved'.

A most encouraging development in the debate about appropriate policies for this purpose is the exposure by Keith Windschuttle in 'the Fabrication of Aboriginal History' of the seriously distorted picture painted by most orthodox historians of relations between indigenes and non-indigenes in colonial Tasmania in the early 19th century. His analysis suggests that, contrary to the orthodox pictures, only limited violence was perpetrated against Aborigines by white settlers at that time---and that mainly occurred in response to attacks on white settlers by Aborigines themselves. By the same token, however, the attacks by Aborigines on white settlers were relatively limited and did not reflect any concerted attempt to defend territory, let alone the mythical guerilla warfare some historians have sought to portray. Windschuttle clearly shows that, however defined, genocide was non-existent in colonial Tasmania.

Importantly also, an unbiased reading of this book indicates that Windschuttle's analysis derives from scrupulous attention to original sources as well as second hand accounts of events at the time. This extensive use of primary and secondary sources is a welcome change from the post modernist attempts at deconstructing history.

A striking illustration of such deconstruction occurred during a recent debate I attended at the Trades Hall in Melbourne between Windschuttle and Professor Grimshaw of Melbourne University's history department. Grimshaw sought to reject Windschuttle's analysis by posing questions that had nothing directly to do with the issues in dispute. She posed the questions, for example, as to why British imperialists had taken over in the first place and what the likely reaction of Aborigines would have been if they had been asked before 'the colonial invasion' whether they would have liked to become part of western civilization. Much of the largely student audience clearly judged the latter question pertinent and laughed derisively when a brave Asian student responded that he considers western civilization 'pretty good'! Professor Grimshaw, incidentally, lists first on her cv her authorship of Women's Suffrage in New Zealand (her home country) and Paths of Duty: American Missionary Women in Nineteenth Century Hawaii.

It is undeniable, of course, that white settlement in Colonial Tasmania was followed eventually by the death of all full blood Aborigines. But two important points as to the possible contributory causes of their demise, relevant to current policy issues, emerge from the analysis in the Windschuttle book. First, as noted, there was no extensive or concerted killing of Aborigines by white settlers. Second, a not unimportant contributory element may have been the attempts to segregate Aborigines such as by the establishment in the 1830s of a government-funded separate community of Aborigines on Flinders Island.

Lieutenant-Governor Arthur was persuaded to establish a community there by George Augustus Robinson, who was inspired by the evangelical fervour that prevailed at that time to protect and civilize the Aborigines. With official encouragement and support (and in pursuit of his own interests), Robinson spent considerable time and energy enticing numbers of them to move to the island. His glowing report of 1837 on the settlement, which claimed it was a great success in achieving the civilization objective, so impressed Lieutenant-Governor Franklin that he forwarded it to London and that led to Robinson becoming famous throughout the British Empire for having established the way for British colonists to deal with native populations.

Robinson then succeeded in obtaining the position of Chief Protector of Aborigines at Port Phillip and in 1841 he reported on his survey of the situation of Aborigines from Geelong to Portland. The segregationist policies Robinson advocated undoubtedly contributed to the decision by the Victorian Government in 1865 to hand over Framlingham near Warrnambool to the Anglican Church Missionary Society mission, which then sought to collect all Aborigines in the Western District with the idea of creating what was perceived as a similar Garden of Eden to Flinders Island. It is perhaps enough to note here that the present head of ATSIC, Geoff Clark, comes from Framlingham.

Significantly, the board Governor Franklin appointed in 1839 to inquire into conditions at the Flinders Island settlement rejected most of the claims made by Robinson and showed that the experiment of providing sanctuary for the natives was a failure it its own terms. However, that inquiry's report was never released and the myth created by Robinson continued to influence policy. Yet this attempt to civilize by separation was an utter failure, ending with the death of all the Aborigines within thirty years from disease and, in a context where they faced a limited future, a failure to reproduce.

Windschuttle argues that 'this concept of physically separating Aboriginal people from British colonists, in order to civilize them, provided a model that was followed by both colonial and state governments for the next one hundred and fifty years. Indeed, in some remote parts of Australia it is still practiced today'. From the 1970s it provided support for historians such as Henry Reynolds and other well-meaning academics who urged the same policies of segregation that, involving inactivity, were such an abject failure in the nineteenth and early twentieth centuries and condemned Aboriginal assimilation into the mainstream.

Leaving aside Windschuttle's correction of history, what relevance does this have today?

It has recently been revealed that, in a community of Aborigines established deliberately five kilometres outside Dareton (20 kms across the Murray from Mildura), lawlessness and domestic violence are rampant. When established in the 1990s, ATSIC trumpeted the 20 modern homes replacing the shanties as a model for improving the living conditions of modern Aborigines. Today, however, the place is a ghetto where houses and infrastructure have been trashed and the respect for human life is so low that the death of an Aboriginal child was apparently covered up.

But Dareton is not alone: unfortunately, a similar story about living conditions in separate Aboriginal communities exists elsewhere. Few analysts acknowledge publicly the serious problems in the remoter communities scattered around Australia. But unless the truth about conditions in them is recognised their residents will suffer and governments will pursue the mistaken separatist policies of the past.

It is particularly worrying that, in remote communities where one might expect Aborigines readily to find employment, all too few are employed even in service provision, and that most residents of such communities, are relying excessively on welfare or (as it is commonly known) 'sit down' money. After spending 25 years living in these communities the Reverend Steve Etherington reached the disturbing conclusion in an important analysis of the situation that 'tribal aborigines are a kept people... The vast majority are never required to learn anything or do anything. Erosion of the capacity for initiative and self-help are virtually complete'.

This conclusion is contained in the Rev Etherington's detailed account of his experiences in the book edited by The Hon Gary Johns, Waking Up To Dreamtime, published last year. In my view this book should be essential reading for anyone hoping to understand the problem of how to improve the condition of Aborigines.

Why are so few indigenous or non-indigenous analysts prepared to acknowledge publicly the very serious problems that exist in these remoter communities as between Aborigines themselves? One is tempted to conclude that it reflects a fear that anyone who is publicly critical of the extent of the problems will be labelled as a racist or similar. To the extent that is the case, it is a sad reflection on Australian society and fails to give proper recognition to those who are genuinely concerned to help in overcoming the problems. It is important that the truth be exposed about conditions in these remoter communities and that an examination be made of whether they are any longer a viable approach for their residents.

The ABS report on Housing and Infrastructure in Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Communities, 2001 (Cat 4710.0) analyses infrastructure in those communities and provides an important starting point. It reveals that, of the 1216 remote communities having a total population of 121,600, nearly 900 have average populations of only 15 and another 327 have an average population of less than 300 people. And, as the report itself is limited to communities with an Indigenous Housing organization, there would be quite a few more separate communities as well as those identified. Allowing for non-indigenous residents of the communities, it seems that around 20 per cent of our 430,000 Aborigines continue to live largely apart from the rest of society.

Unsurprisingly, the remote communities identified in the report are heavily concentrated in the Northern Territory (632) and Western Australia (283), but Queensland (142) and South Australia (96) also have a significant number. About 700 are over an hour's travel away from the nearest town, with almost 140 requiring over five hours travel.

For present purposes three important conclusions can be drawn from this report and other evidence.

First, the report shows that the remote communities generally have public facilities not dissimilar in extent to those elsewhere. Almost all larger communities have organized water, sewerage, electricity supplies and even rubbish collections and, although public phones are not universally available, only very few of the larger communities do not receive radio or TV broadcasts. Primary schools are less than 10 kilometres away for 87 per cent of the residents of these communities and a high proportion have sporting facilities. The fact that some 85 per cent of the residents of such communities are within 10 kilometres of either a hospital or a community health centre suggests that health problems are not due to any major deficiency in the availability of health services. Further, while their permanent dwellings average around 6.4 residents---considerably higher than the 2.6 for the rest of society---that does not appear to suggest serious over-crowding overall. In short, notwithstanding the much higher costs of providing services on a small scale, these communities are relatively well catered for by government.

Second, as Prime Minister John Howard pointed out last year, many Aboriginal communities are in a disgraceful state and, regrettably, this is particularly relevant to the remote communities. The ABS report revealed that more than 30 per cent of dwellings managed by indigenous housing organisations are in need of major repair each year; that annual maintenance expenditure per dwelling is high; that over a third of communities experience water restrictions each year mostly due to equipment breakdowns; and that nearly half of the larger communities experience annual overflows or leakages from sewerage systems. In short, in circumstances where few privately owned dwellings exist and residents subsist largely on welfare, the publicly provided facilities are not well maintained by residents. Further, maintenance of dwellings and public facilities is heavily dependent on the use of non-indigenous labour and managers.

In comparing the experience of many indigenous people with the nation's success in absorbing migrants, the Prime Minister noted that, while many Aborigines are fully integrated, many are not and that part of the problem is their physical separation from the rest of society. His remarks left unanswered, however, the important questions of the on-going viability of communities where this separation occurs and of possible alternative policies.

Third, there is a considerable basis for concluding that not more than a handful of remote communities are viable, either economically or socially, on a sustainable basis. The fact that 30 per cent of houses in these communities need major repair each year, together with the extensive domestic violence and the existence of only a very limited private sector job market in these areas, suggests there are serious underlying economic and social problems within them---and with them.

The limited extent of the job market is particularly relevant to the situation of the many young males whose traditional role as hunter-gatherers has largely disappeared. As noted above, at the Bennelong conference the former health worker who experienced the aftermaths of horrific incidents of violence in Cape York communities during his year's research there highlighted the 'loss of the role of the male in these remoter communities'. His research added weight to the conclusion reached by Richard Trudgen in his book Why Warriors lie down and die, concerning the Yolngu Clans in Arnhem land: he suggested there that 'unless current policies among these communities is changed, the great warriors of Arnhem Land will just lie down and die.' And to the anthropologist researching conditions in the West Musgrave Ranges, who reported that in one clan he found 'No males between the age of 20 and 40'.

The limited opportunities in these communities for expressing personality and obtaining work means that many are likely to continue largely as welfare havens and as sources of domestic violence. At the Bennelong conference governments came under particular fire on the domestic violence issue, with the Queensland Government a target for failing to respond adequately to the 1999 report of the Women's task force exposing the extent of such violence. The principal author of that report, academic Boni Robertson, received the Society's inaugural medal and was elected to the board. Certificates were also presented to Aboriginal women who were brave members of the working group in a ceremony that prompted emotional reactions from many who had had traumatic experiences. Dr Stephanie Jarrett, who had spent 3 years researching in a country town in South Australia, presented an analysis suggesting that in an urban environment the extent of violence may be less while the extent of Aboriginal employment may be higher.

Of course, the Federal Government does provide basic employment on community projects under the Community Development Employment Program public works scheme. In accordance with the March 2002 agreement of the Council of Australian Governments the Government also adopted a trial whole-of-government approach in up to 10 communities or regions 'to improve the way governments interact with each other and with communities to deliver more effective responses to the needs of indigenous Australians'.[1] Under this scheme the Government recently moved to a more holistic approach to the problems of communities in Cape York, including an attempt to develop greater employment opportunities through business hubs, an outback digital network and fishing activities. However, if those employed on CDEP projects are excluded from those who are counted as employed, a total of only about 30 per cent of Aborigines is actually employed outside capital cities despite the availability of Commonwealth wage subsidies to employers of up to $4,400 for six months employment.

Moreover, such policies are being pursued within existing communities where the comparative 'shortage' of the wide range of employment provided by the private sector, combined with the apparent reluctance of Aborigines to pursue such employment in circumstances where unemployment benefits appear to be made available without necessarily meeting the work test, leaves these areas both relatively stagnant economically and exposed to disruption socially. There is a very real prospect that, unless urgent remedial action is taken to encourage integration outside the communities, these policies will leave most of them as depressed areas. That, in turn, will be viewed as a failure of the reconciliation process---and will likely slow that process.

There is a particular need to consider whether the Government should continue to provide extensive services, including housing, that encourage Aborigines to stay in communities where limited employment opportunities are available. The more that facilities and welfare are provided to these communities, the less inclined the residents will be to make the integrationist moves that provide the basis for an improved life style and for securing real employment. The road to improvement is most likely to be found through measures that encourage what is now a desperate need for increased integration.

Accordingly, a better alternative might be to examine ways of helping the residents of these communities to move to areas where employment is more likely to be obtained and small businesses established. Possibilities might include the provision of larger housing and employment subsidies in more populated areas and of higher subsidies for educating children outside such areas. The cost of providing such assistance with employment, housing, health and education would be at least partly offset by savings from the reduction in costs of servicing and generally assisting existing remote communities.

It is important also in this regard that the economic activities of Aborigines should not be confined to communal land. While since 1976 Aboriginal communities have held a large proportion of land in the Northern Territory, the 10th anniversary of Mabo has at least produced some recognition that holdings of such land have done little or nothing to advance Aboriginal progress---and may indeed have retarded it. The time has surely come to institute a major reform of the legal basis on which land can be used for economic purposes by providing greater opportunities for individual Aborigines to hold land at least under leasehold.

It is ironic indeed that the Council for Aboriginal Reconciliation has spent about ten years arguing for policies that would encourage greater segregation despite the overwhelming evidence of the utter failure of such policies. In fact, during that period Census and other data show that there has been greater integration, a process that is likely to continue. However, it is a process that needs urgently to be speeded up in the interests of Aborigines and on the basis that better (and happier) living conditions will best be achieved through major changes to the existing social structure and the adoption of policies that encourage greater integration. For many Aborigines, particularly those in remote communities, this will require a move to places in which employment is more readily available and it will involve a change in life style and participation in new activities. But this need not mean the loss of indigenous identity and it should help restore the role of the male. It will mean, though, a closer association between indigenous and non-indigenous Australians, a situation in which such concepts as treaties and customary law become redundant but where the high degree of domestic violence in remote communities is much reduced.

Note

[1] Council of Australian Governments---Communique, 5 April 2002.