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Abstract
In this article, a particular event which occurred in the Northern Territory in Australia in 2007 is used to examine and constructively critique a government strategy that prioritised an invasive and non-participatory form of intervention. The justification for this course of action was the protection of Aboriginal children from sexual abuse. In order to examine both the action taken and the ongoing implications, a case study approach is adopted and despite the recent apology to the ‘stolen generation’, it is argued that links between current events and those of the past can still be made. These include Aboriginal communities continuing to be viewed in a negative, homogenising and pathologising manner and the recurrence of the pervading belief that complex and entrenched structural problems, endemic oppression and poverty can be solved by simple and straightforward solutions. It is contended that events in Australia's Northern Territory have implications for social workers internationally and that these can be seen to challenge the value base of social work and the integrity of the profession.
Notes
1. The term Aboriginal has been used to refer to the Indigenous people of Australia within this article as this is the term of choice for the majority (Menzies and McNamara Citation2008).
2. In the context of this article the term case study is being used to refer to a specific policy and practice intervention.
3. The terminology ‘mobilised’, ‘law and order crackdown’ were used by the Howard Government in ABC News reports on 22 June 2007.
4. It is notable that more reference is made to child abuse in the title of the media release than in the content, where child abuse is mentioned only once in relation to the measure outlining the introduction of compulsory health checks.
5. The outgoing Foreign Minister of the Howard Government, Alexander Downer, said in an ABC News report the day after the election (25 November 2007) that the Howard Government intervened in the Northern Territory to save itself from defeat.
6. The Rudd Government disbanded the National Indigenous Council in January 2008.
7. From this point on, the ‘Ampe Akelyernermane Meke Mekarle’/‘Little Children are Sacred’ Report will be referred to as ‘The Report’.
8. Kevin Rudd's Government, on winning the election on 24 November 2007, pledged to re-instate the CDEPs. These projects provided a major source of employment in Aboriginal communities.
9. The National/Liberal Coalition also abolished the ‘Permit’ system which gave Aboriginal communities the right to decide who could enter their land. However, the Rudd-led Government which gained power on 24 November 2007 pledged to reinstate this provision.
10. The italics mark a change of tense.
11. These aspects were included in the media release issued by Mal Brough, the Federal Minister for Families, Community Services and Indigenous Affairs on 21 June 2007.
12. The Australian spelling has been used here.
13. Other commentators include: Donald and Rattansi (Citation1992), Lang (Citation2000) and Penketh (Citation2000).
14. This refers to a generation of Aboriginal children who were forcibly removed from their parents in the period from the 1920s to the 1960s in the interests of assimilation.
15. Featured in ABC News reports, 5 April 2008.
16. The Howard Government abolished Community Development Action Projects in September 2007. However the Rudd-led Labor Government which obtained power on 24 November 2007 agreed to reinstate this scheme which has been viewed as constructive and inclusive (Fogarty and Paterson Citation2007).
17. This project was also mentioned in the Anderson and Wild (Citation2007) report.
18. ‘Empowerment’ can be seen to be an overused and contested term, yet in the context of these reports it retains a powerful message.
19. A general point is being made here and it is acknowledged that ‘Aboriginal men’ and ‘Aboriginal women’ do not form homogeneous groups or operate in the same or similar ways.