'Being there and listening' could be Government policy

03 March 2008

Last week in Eureka Street, Brian McCoy wrote of a mind-set that uses coercion in an attempt to improve people's lives, on the basis that the end justifies the means. 'People enter Aboriginal communities with a set of ready-made answers around employment, health and education. I am reminded of a mind-set that seeks to change people's lives for the better, always 'for their own good'.' He was alluding to the Howard Government's Northern Territory Intervention. He was comparing the former Government's heavy-handedness with that of the missionaries of the past. The missionaries believed that the removal of children 'for education' was both the good and only thing to do. Often a particular course of action is good, not only for the intended beneficiaries, but also for those in charge. The motivation is mixed. The Howard Government was seeking to score political points ahead of last year's Federal Election, by using part of the budget surplus to attempt to eliminate the greatest blight on Australia's social landscape. For the church organisations, the desire to do good was mixed with their mission to convert the Aboriginal people to the Christian faith. Brian McCoy's breakthrough technique was to go into communities which welcomed him, not necessarily to do anything much at all, except to listen. To his mind, this was the most important task of all. As one of our readers said last week in response to Brian's article: 'Nothing beats being there and listening. I wonder who cares enough to live with the communities?' Brian would not be surprised that the Intervention has met with resistance, and its success is widely expected to be limited. Meanwhile in Eureka Street tomorrow, Perth welfare rights advocate Susie Byers analyses the Federal Government's use of welfare payments to 'socially engineer' the lives of indigenous Australians. She refers to the Howard Government's welfare-to-work policy, and its devastating impact on human dignity. 'The underlying assumptions of the social security system need to change, with the focus shifted to assistance and empowerment rather than coercion and punishment.' If the logic of last month's Parliamentary Apology to the Stolen Generations is translated into Government policy and action, there is every hope that this shift will take place, and that 'being there and listening' could be adopted as an official strategy. . LINK: • Brian McCoy: After apology, it's back to the future (Eureka Street 27/2/08) Michael Mullins is editor of Eureka Street. Image: Brian McCoy

AUSTRALIA

'Being there and listening' could be Government policy

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