The Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Commission (ATSIC) is one step closer to being abolished, with amended legislation to dissolve the
Indigenous body passing the Senate last night.
However, the Government is expected to reject Labor's amendments to the
Bill when they are considered in the House of Representatives.
Under the amended legislation, ATSIC would be abolished as soon as the
Bill becomes law.
But its regional councils would be dissolved in December, six months
later than the Government had planned.
Labor's Kim Carr hopes the Government will now support the Opposition's
amendments in the House of Representatives.
"It is important for the regional councils to conclude their work to
establish the regional agreements, which the Government said were so
important," he said.
But the Indigenous Affairs Minister, Amanda Vanstone, says that is unlikely.
"Unfortunately the amendments leave the regional councils in place for
another six months, there doesn't seem any real value in that," she said.
"They were given 12 months notice, what difference will another six
months make?
"We should simply get on with the job of creating the new arrangements,
let the Indigenous specific arrangements develop, and I'm sorry that the
bill has therefore been amended in this way."
Ms Vanstone says Labor should drop its amendments, so the Bill can pass
the Parliament before it rises on Thursday.
"Labor announced months and months and months ago under the leadership
of Mark Latham it would get rid of ATSIC, and that's what they should be
doing," she said.
ATSIC replacement
Indigenous communities are now trying to find a replacement for ATSIC.
A series of consultative meetings are under way in New South Wales
between ATSIC leaders, Indigenous coordination centres and the State
Department of Aboriginal Affairs.
The chairman of the Many Rivers Regional Council, Steven Blunden, says
Indigenous people want a representative body.
"If we haven't got a voice there, we all become the lone rangers," he said.
"We become the lone rangers and individual organisations and individual
people have to deal directly with those individual government agencies.
"And if we haven't got the expert or the support when you go along, well
that's going to put you right back. That's going to put our people right
back." |
