The seven biggest Aboriginal organisations in New South Wales have demanded that the state parliament commit to a “new agenda” for Aboriginal rights, including a makarrata process.
In an unprecedented show of unity, the coalition of land councils, medical services, legal services, child and family services and education advocates – representing thousands of Aboriginal people across the state – will march on parliament on Thursday to demand “self-determination and a better deal” for Aboriginal people.
“We want to send a clear message to parliament,” the chairman of the NSW Aboriginal Land Council and the newly appointed chair of the prime minister’s Indigenous Advisory Council, Roy Ah See, told Guardian Australia.
“Walk with us. Talk with us. Sit with us. Cannot get any simpler than that.”
“These seven major organisations representing Aboriginal people in NSW have between us more than 200 years of experience, and the solutions are within our communities,” Ah See said. “But we’re not being listened to. In fact, we’re being used as political footballs.”
Thursday’s march is also an endorsement of the Uluru statement from the heart. It is still very much on the agenda, Ah See said, despite its rejection by Malcolm Turnbull.
“We are marching under banner of makaratta, which means coming together after a struggle,” Ah See said. “We understand makarrata is a Yolngu word, and we respect that.
“Blackfellas are no different to any other people, we disagree all the time, but the collective wisdom of our people never gets it wrong.
“That’s why the Uluru statement from the heart is so important. It was a process that had collective endorsement of everybody who attended.”
Ah See said a treaty process in NSW was a possibility but it was not his call to make. Makarrata – sitting, talking, listening – would be a start.
“I can’t speak for everybody,” he said. “It’s going to take people power to come up with a positive message for change.”
Also part of the coalition is the Aboriginal Child, Family and Community Care State Secretariat, which represents more than 240 organisations working on behalf of Aboriginal children and families. AbSec’s chief executive, Tim Ireland, said it was being excluded from crucial decision making.
“At AbSec we want to see an end to current policies harming our children, particularly the push to adopt children from out-of-home care,” he said. “We’ve been clear and consistent in our opposition to this.
“The NSW government and FACS [Family and Community Services] need to sit down with us to develop child protection and family support policies that are proven to work for our kids and families.
“We want to redesign the system as it applies to Aboriginal communities, so that our families are empowered to access support and the services are tailored to their needs.”
Thursday is the International Day of the World’s Indigenous Peoples.
