Stolen Generations (Compensation) Bill
03/12/2014
The Hon. K.L. VINCENT: I am going to speak very briefly to this bill this evening, and I hope that that brevity does not suggest a lack of interest or a lack of passion for the issues to which it pertains. I am going to speak briefly for a few reasons: firstly, the hour; secondly, this parliament, as has been mentioned, is about to prorogue and therefore we will need to have this debate again; and, thirdly, the stories that I could tell, that I could relay, which illustrate the need for a bill such as this, are harrowing, touching—
Members interjecting:
The PRESIDENT: If you want a conversation there is a little passageway out there.
An honourable member: Thank you, Mr President.
The Hon. K.L. VINCENT: Hear, hear! They are harrowing stories and they are touching stories, but I am also mindful that they are not my stories to tell, and it is difficult for me as a white, Australian, childless woman to sit here in this chamber and try to relay the pain, suffering and anguish that have so obviously been inflicted upon those members of the stolen generations and their families. I do not want to taint those stories, some of which have already been relayed, with any tokenism. They are not mine to tell, but I sincerely and humbly thank those who do own them who have come forward to tell them to us through the committee that has led to this bill.
I want to acknowledge the work and passion of the Hon. Tammy Franks in this area and the Hon. Terry Stephens for bringing to us the bill we now have. This is an excellent example of the kind of collaboration that we need in this chamber and in this parliament more broadly, particularly on issues like this, because we cannot truly talk about reconciliation between Aboriginal and non-Aboriginal Australians if we in this chamber are still fighting over whose name goes on a bill, whose version of which amendment is better for egotistical reasons.
On issues like this, in particular, we need to collaborate and lead by example. We need to reconcile our differences and work for the greater good, I suppose you could say. From my reading of the Aboriginal Lands Parliamentary Standing Committee’s report into these issues, I acknowledge that very careful consideration has been given to the model suggested in that report, and I think that model is very workable. In fact, I understand that it is based on a model already working quite well in Tasmania, so again we have the evidence there that there is a possible way forward with this.
I also acknowledge that the report makes mention of the fact that for some Aboriginal people compensation is not necessarily something that interests them directly, but knowing that the option is there for them to pursue should they wish goes some way to providing some healing for the wrongs that have been done. Having said that, it is vital that we allow people to access this reparation, should they wish. I also note that accessing this compensation would not extinguish the rights of Aboriginal to seek further litigation but simply seeks to offer a simpler, more streamlined process to accessing those funds.
After everything that we have heard in this chamber tonight, and throughout Australian history, I think we at least owe it to the first people of this nation to make seeking some form of compensation as easy as we can. I note that the bill also suggests that the minister responsible may determine eligibility for ex gratia payments, and I understand from my conversations with the Hon. Terry Stephens that he envisages that this is to be done alongside an Aboriginal elder, this conversation as to who is eligible for these payments.
I think that is absolutely vital, because we cannot be truly reconciliatory if we have a minister who is usually a non-Aboriginal minister sitting in their ivory tower, so to speak, making these decisions. We need to involve Aboriginal Australians as much as we can in this process. Particularly given the high turnover of Aboriginal affairs ministers in this parliament, it is important that we begin to work in a more collaborative way and put pressure on the minister to show more collaborative methods in working with Aboriginal peoples.
With those few words, I do agree that there is perhaps some tweaking of this bill—some minor amendments—that may make it a little clearer in terms of its intent. I am very much looking forward to considering those in the new session of parliament. I very much look forward to being able to look back on this debate in the future and saying that we as a parliament had the sensitivity, the economic sense and the heart to move a bill such as this. I commend the bill to the chamber.
To this day, at the age of 26 years old, having used a wheelchair for 15 years of my life, I still find myself occasionally subconsciously apologising when I see people walking down the mall towards me and stepping out of my way, pulling their children out of my way, as if I present some danger to their children or as if I am going to veer my wheelchair and present some major barrier to their right to their space. I still find myself apologising for that, because that is how prevalent this is.
So, as I say, culture goes beyond the colour of our skin. It goes beyond the country that we live in. It has to speak to the body and the mind that we live in as well. While I support the measures specifically outlined in this motion as a very passionate advocate for multiculturalism and yet another ambassador in this chamber for the wonderful organisation Welcome to Australia, we do need to go beyond this very ‘undiverse’ definition of diversity.
Being welcoming and being embracing means our hospitality sector, our government offices and our public spaces being accessible to all, in both the physical infrastructure and the attitude of the people who inhabit those places. As the examples I have given this evening illustrate (and I assure you they are only a few), we have a long way to go in achieving this goal. Nevertheless, Dignity for Disability supports the motion and looks forward to working with all members to ensure a truly diverse and welcoming South Australia for people.
