Paths to Peace

The state apologized to its First Peoples for past injustices. Constitutional recognition is the next step.

The treatment of Australia’s First Peoples is once again in the international spotlight. A report by the United Nations Committee on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination (CERD) (Aug. 27, 2010) highlights that Australian federal policy directly and specifically restricts First Peoples' access and rights to health care, adequate living standards, economic security and wellbeing, cultural activities and responsibilities, suitable employment, and legal services.

The direct, structural, and cultural violence that this latest UN report identifies are part of a broader history of Australian exceptionalism. While history cannot, of course, be altered, the trajectory of this history can. The symbolism of Prime Minister Kevin Rudd’s long-awaited national apology to Australia’s First Peoples in 2008, with his specific emphasis on mistreatment and paternalistic policies of forced removal, provided an important first step in the process of positive change.

In seeking to turn a page in Australia’s history, this public admission of past and present injustices provides a foundation to build upon. The symbolism and genuine expression of saying sorry enables a necessary process of healing. Acknowledgment of injustice allows a dialogue based on respect and responsibility to begin. This is of immense benefit to all Australians, present and future.

It’s time to take another important step forward – a step equally symbolic, and yet much, much more. Through genuinely embracing respect and recognition of First Peoples, the potential of the Australian lexicon of a “fair go for all” will come much closer to being realised. All Australians can and must play a major role.

Central to respect and recognition is a fair and just relationship: a seeking out of justice. This is the unfinished business Prime Minister Rudd hinted at in his national apology. In reconciling with past and present injustices and embracing a future that such a relationship holds, this essential step is contained within one word, one act. What is required is an unqualified and honest process of developing a treaty with Australia’s First Peoples. Formal and legal recognition, enshrined in the Australian Constitution, is one essential aspect of this.

At a state level, New South Wales Premier Kristina Kineally introduced an act to amend the state constitution on Sept. 9, 2010. The Constitution Amendment (Recognition of Aboriginal People) Bill was presented as a means to “acknowledge the first communities, the first nations, of what is now our State” as a principle. Victoria and Queensland have passed amendments with similar intent. These are also symbolic acts that must be built on.

Federal recognition of First Peoples' sovereignty will provide another defining moment for all people in Australia. This act of acknowledgment, with legal recognition, is a necessary next step in seeking to build a fair and just relationship. A treaty is essential in moving beyond the important symbolic acts of acknowledgment circumscribed in the national apology and amendments to state constitutions.

The cooperation and dialogue central to reconciliation and a treaty process enables spaces for growth and parity of participation. Structural and cultural violence – persistent in many everyday assumptions, actions, and practices – become much more visible in open, respectful, and honest dialogue. The process of sustained dialogue enables self-reflection and awareness, and exposure to different perspectives and ideas. First Peoples will be enabled to express their desires, in and on their own terms. This is a cornerstone of a fair and just relationship.

In Australian’s coming together, in fostering and building a process of sustained dialogue, means for the development of respect and recognition will emerge. The symbolism of the National Apology, combined with an acknowledgement of the implications of structural violence, provides a roadmap for change. As we move along this path, what will emerge is togetherness in difference. This is the peace building Australia requires.