The Aboriginal Tent embassy has existed intermittently on the lawns of Old Parliament house since Australia Day 1972, and permanently since Australia Day 1992. It began as response to the then Coalition Governments refusal to recognise land rights and holds historical significance as part of the long history of Aboriginal protest over this issue.
The Tent Embassy remains a potent symbol of the continuing political struggle of Aboriginal people in Australia. Labor recognises that the presence of an Aboriginal Tent Embassy will remain until reconciliation has been achieved.
The failure of the Howard Government to issue a formal apology to the stolen generations on behalf of the Parliament, the discriminatory native title amendments of 1998, and refusal to discuss a lasting agreement between Indigenous and non-Indigenous Australians show that this time is still to come.
We urge the Canberra community to understand that these issues are at the core of the Tent Embassy’s presence.
Labor supports ATSIC in its efforts to reach a negotiated solution acceptable to all stakeholders and encourages ATSIC to take the lead in establishing a management strategy for the site and a code of conduct to activities by those residing at the Tent Embassy. We urge Minister Tuckey to negotiate in good faith with ATSIC to achieve a negotiated solution.
We are dismayed that the behaviour of some activists has brought the Tent Embassy into disrepute, however the behaviour of a few should not override the need for its symbolic presence.
It is our hope that with co-operation between the authorities and the occupants of the tent embassy the situation will improve.
A Labor Government will work to address continuing Indigenous disadvantage. Dr Carmen Lawrence yesterday recommitted a future Labor Government to the process of negotiating a national framework for lasting agreements between Indigenous and non-Indigenous Australians. This is a first step in achieving lasting reconciliation and rendering the requirement for the Aboriginal Tent Embassy unnecessary.
Media contacts: Jo Fox 0419 963 486 or Simon Tatz on 0418 488 295
