Friday 17th of May 2024
Home » Blogs » Gus Leonisky's blog

the importance of appearances .....

the importance of appearances .....

The Federal Opposition says Prime Minister Kevin Rudd is putting the bipartisan approach to Indigenous affairs at risk by making his first visit to an Aboriginal community today without Brendan Nelson. 

Mr Rudd and Indigenous Affairs Minister Jenny Macklin are looking at Aboriginal housing in Walgett in western New South Wales. 

The Opposition says they are skipping Parliament on the first day of Friday sittings and have made it impossible for Dr Nelson to join them because he will be in Canberra.

Opposition spokesman Tony Abbott says it is a bad start for the bipartisan approach to Aboriginal affairs. Ms Macklin says the Government wants to work with the Coalition. 

---------

Gus: Would it not be up to the opposition to front up to the bipartisanship at the government's desire, not their own travel and accommodation arrangements?

The headline should be 'Nelson under fire for not fronting up to where he's supposed to be...'?  Definitely a bad start for the coalition... 

Rudd Under Fire Over Indigenous Visit

blackmail from the "white" Government...

A group of prominent Australians, including swimming champion Ian Thorpe and Aboriginal leader Pat Dodson, has taken out advertisements in a national newspaper calling on the Federal Government [Rudd's Government] to stop moves to acquire control of town camps in Alice Springs.

The Government has urged the Tangentyere Council, which manages 16 of the town camps, to sign a lease in exchange for $100 million in funding for housing and infrastructure.

The council yesterday agreed to sign the lease, just days before the Government's deadline for compulsory acquisition.

Today's advertisement, headlined "Stop the Blackmail - Keep Aboriginal Housing in Aboriginal Hands", is published in the The Australian newspaper.

"We, concerned citizens, call on the federal Indigenous Affairs Minister, Jenny Macklin, to immediately end moves to compulsorily acquire the Alice Springs town camps, represented by Tangentyere Council," it states.

"Tangentyere Council is a democratic organisation that has been the only service provider to the town camps since their inception."

It concludes: "We stand behind Tangentyere Council's refusal to capitulate in the face of racial discrimination.

"All Australians will be diminished if the compulsory acquisition proceeds."

--------------

see toon above...