SPEECH BY NSWALC CHAIRPERSON BEV MANTON
ABORIGINAL COMMUNITY LIASION OFFICERS CONFERENCE

24 MARCH 2009, GOULBURN POLICE ACADEMY

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Reconciliation - Moving Forward As One People 

First, let me acknowledge the traditional owners of the land on whom we stand today, the Gundungurra people of the Wiradjuri Nation.

Thank you for the opportunity to speak to you today. 

I note, as this is International Year of Reconciliation, that the theme for the conference is "Reconciling Our Past Through Crime Prevention".

The past, the future.

In the very recent past - in fact not much more than a year ago - I went to Canberra to hear the Prime Minister deliver Australia's National Apology to the Stolen Generation at Parliament House.

It was an extraordinary day.

I mention the national apology for one reason. 

With one simple word Prime Minister Rudd changed the mood of this country.

To me it captured the spirit and movement of the People's Walk for Reconciliation across Sydney Harbour Bridge in 2000.

The National Apology on behalf of all Australians showed a genuine desire to move forward together towards the future.

It also represented a clear statement of his desire that as a nation we must move forward as one people.

That is what Reconciliation is - moving forward as one people.

I firmly believe, despite the massacres of the past, despite the often appalling relationships between Aboriginal people and Police, there has already been a considerable reconciliation of attitudes on both sides.

As the Chairperson of the NSW Aboriginal Land Council, I have welcomed the fact, that the State's Police Force is embracing a blueprint for change.

A blueprint  which includes a stronger focus on Aboriginal family violence, child sex abuse and substance abuse issues.

A blueprint which gives our people a say in the policing of their own communities, is also an important initiative.

A blueprint which includes enhanced cultural awareness training and youth diversionary programs.

The blueprint also rightly identifies the reduction of offending and over-representation of Aboriginal people, in the criminal justice system as a key objective.

It is a blueprint which offers a coordinated and comprehensive response to Aboriginal issues and holds police officers accountable at all levels.

The direction that the Police Force is now heading in offers hope for real progress being made.

But progress can only be made through the dedication and determination of individuals within the Police Force.

The former Commissioner, Commissioner Moroney, played a significant role as a driving force for positive action.

The Commissioner listened to the concerns of our people there, and gave a personal commitment, to put Aboriginal issues, at the forefront of his concerns in his new role.

While wheels have moved slowly, and there is still much to be done, there can be no doubt that he has provided the impetus for real change.

I have also started to work with Commissioner Scipione on further improving relationships, between Aboriginal people and the justice system.

I am encouraged, that he has highlighted the improvement of communication and understanding between police and Aboriginal people as a real priority. 

And our thanks also go to the State Government for funding additional police positions to assist in making this policy switch a reality.

A courageous move - one that stands in stark contrast to the ill considered, punitive and top down Northern Territory approach endorsed by the Australian parliament -- which I and many others consider to be ill-conceived.

I think the way the NSW Police with its Aboriginal Strategic Directions Plan with its stated strong focus on Aboriginal family violence, child sex abuse and substance abuse issues is a much more effective way to proceed. 

So too, of course, is the emphasis  to consult with Aboriginal communities on local crime prevention issues.

It empowers, it breaks down barriers.  It reconciles.

In short, it is a significant step forward.

So, too, of course were the Federal Government's firm commitment in its Closing the Gap policy to improving everyday outcomes for Aboriginal people.

They are many and I'm sure you all know them.

NSWALC has made its position clear in a detailed submission to the Closing the Gap inquiry

One of the recommendations we agreed with was the need for Aboriginal people to have their own National Representative body.

While we criticized the initial process of consultations as too little and too hasty, at least the Government listened and  widened that process by allowing a widely representative group of Aboriginal people to make their views known to Government.

We are part of that process. 

NSWALC's Local Aboriginal Land Councils have also made their views clear on this issue.

Overwhelmingly they want an elected National Representative body, one able to provide unfettered advise on the key issues that affect all of our lives.

Clearing, if Closing the Gap is to meet its outcome targets we will finally see initiatives in place that ease the burden of unemployment, inadequate education and dreadful health statistics and an end to the appalling rate of imprisonment for Aboriginal people finally start to drop. 

Unfortunately, at the present time the opposite is true.

And that saddens me. 

Over 20 years ago the Royal Commission into Aboriginal Deaths in Custody brought forward countless well reasoned recommendations not only stop the appalling rate of Aboriginal Deaths in Custody but also to lessen the reasons why Aboriginal people in such alarmingly high numbers were being incarcerated.

Unfortunately, many of these recommendations were either watered down or inadequately addressed.

The tragic result is -   

Today an Aboriginal adult is 11 times more likely to be jailed than any other Australian adult, while the youth rate is 20 times more likely to be imprisoned than any other Australian youth.

Disturbingly, the imprisonment rate of Aboriginal women has increased 25 per cent between 2000 and 2004.

Many reports have directly linked these rates, to overall Aboriginal disadvantage, such as poor education, bad housing, unemployment, financial stress, welfare dependency, substance abuse and removal from families.

NSWALC repeats its call on government and non-government agencies to do more to help.

While commitments to meaningful consultation are welcome, it has to be recognised that our communities need capacity building, to engage with police and other agencies on their own terms.

We also need to increase restorative justice, and alternative sentencing programs.

We need more diversionary programs such as the Police and Community Youth Club at Walgett -- which briefly reduced high youth crime levels to almost zero before it was shutdown for want of funding. 

The good news is that funding was restored and not only did the original diversionary program continue but was expanded to include the creation of a boxing gym and regular community dances with an emphasis on hip hop music.

It is estimated that the annual cost of jailing Aboriginal people was $400 million - and obviously any reduction would be in everyone's interests.  

I believe the power of individuals to make positive changes should not be underestimated.

Your assistant Commissioner, Catherine Burn -- who was Redfern's Local Area Commander in the wake of the February 2004 riot - is a good example.

Assistant Commissioner Burn, named NSW Woman of the Year 2007, took a hands-on approach to her job.

She walked the Redfern community daily, developed family violence programs and promoted improved relations between Aborigines and police.

She played a pivotal key role in bringing Redfern's stakeholders, including Aboriginal organisations, together.

Her efforts paved the way for Redfern's transformation from urban battlefield, to a revitalised and vibrant community.

In my local area, I also know the efforts of Assistant Commissioner Lee Shearer played in resisting moves to relocate the establishment the Port Stephens Local Area Command.

It is the people who live in Port Stephens who every day see the benefit of that decision.

It is also a Command that has a much higher than normal percentage of Aboriginal police officers.

There is no doubt that seeing their faces helps localized Aboriginal Action Plans to succeed.

There is no doubt that every step a police force takes to better communicate and understand Aboriginal residents will pay dividends.

That is why I have been impressed with the efforts of some senior police and frontline officers to implement practical initiatives with positive outcomes for Aboriginal communities.

Also, in our communities, at least in a growing number of them, many people have shown real courage and leadership by making a very genuine effort to work constructively with local police.

After all, Aboriginal people and police officers live in the same community.

It therefore comes as no surprise that officers who make a genuine effort to participate in and find out about the community become trusted by Aboriginal people.

Aboriginal communities, like every other community, want to tackle serious crime head on.

Aboriginal families do not want their children locked up.

Aboriginal women do not want to be victims of domestic violence.

While policing is only part of the response to criminal conduct, most Aboriginal people do not want police to be hands off.

Good policing-Aboriginal relations, appropriate use of diversionary options for young Aboriginal people, and targeting families where there is significant domestic violence are essential if there is any chance of improving community safety and reducing crime.

As a member of the Worimi nation, as a founding member of the Karuah Local Aboriginal Land Council, as Chairperson of the New South Wales Aboriginal Land Council, as a resident of Karuah and as a mother, I say to you all - let's continue to work together for real and meaningful change.

You, as Aboriginal Community Police Liaison Officers, play a very real and vital role in helping to make that change.

The very fact that the force has an effective Aboriginal Community Police Liaison Officer program is in itself evidence that Aboriginal people and police can work together to see positive change achieved.

As an Aboriginal person I hope and pray that some day in the future parents will be able to say that their children may never see the inside of a courtroom.

This can be achieved if policing involves both a commitment from and involvement by community.

And the powers that be also utilize your skills to the maximum possible extend.

You, after all, know best what is happening in your communities and are in the best position to suggest the most effective solutions to localized issues.

No doubt you would probably like to see many more of you employed with the New South Wales Police Force.

I hope one day that will be the case.

You can - and probably already do - play a vital role in enhancing local police accountability and to help create partnerships aimed at bringing local solutions to local problems and to raise awareness of the complexities of crime prevention and crime reduction within our communities.

As an Aboriginal person, a community person, I realize better than most just how difficult and demanding a task this is.

But for the sake of all of our people it is a task worth pursuing.

It is task that can save lives.

For this very reason I believe no one should underestimate the importance and value of having Aboriginal people working with the Police Force.

Your presence is not symbolic.

It is encouraging.

It is the best possible way to break down barriers between black and white Australians, between our people and the police.

In this regard we can all play a part.

Recently NSWALC showed its commitment to help our people when it became evident that some truck drivers were praying on our young people and exploiting them to gain sexual favours.

As a Land Council we contacted the NSW Police and suggested a substantial reward for anyone who would come forward and provide police with evidence of those who were involved in this type of behaviour.

We thought it was a positive initiative. 

The New South Wales Police Force thought so to and joined with this to formally launch a campaign to cry and catch those responsible.

Today, I think we can all be encouraged by the fact that reconciliation is an unstoppable force.

Hundreds of thousands of Australians support it.

In essence it is Australia's unique "fair go" in practice.

Thankfully, most Australians live by that.

Unfortunately some still don't.

They seek to divide rather than unite.

They practice racism, not reconciliation.

They trade in fear and in ignorance.

Those who want genuine reconciliation are the exception.  They want a united and reconciled Australia.

In a very positive and productive way your role in hopefully lessening the chance of Aboriginal people coming into contact with the justice system is very much delivering what the theme of today's conference seeks:

"To reconcile our past through crime prevention".

Keep up the good work.

My people thank you.