Aboriginal people will seek an early meeting with Premier-elect Will Hodgman to determine his government’s attitude towards the Aboriginal people, long-time campaigner Michael Mansell said today.
Mr Mansell said ‘it is important for Tasmania as a community to know its leaders are conscious of Tasmania’s troubled history on land-theft and domination of Aborigines, and that the new government will address the issues’.
This was a major failing of the Labour governments in recent times, he said.
‘On election night, Lara Giddings extensively listed Labour’s achievements over 16 years in office. Significantly, she omitted to mention land returns under Jim Bacon and Paul Lennon, and that Tasmania to this day remains the only State to have compensated the stolen generations (Paul Lennon). The deliberate omission reflects the ALP shift in social justice policy from the progressive first 8 years of Bacon/Lennon to the regressive last 8 years of Bartlett/Giddings. And Brian Wightman lost his seat due to his poor handling of Aboriginal heritage.
Will Hodgman will do well to heed the failings of the period of the Giddings government where Aboriginal interests were sidelined. Electoral patterns show Tasmanian governments can soften their otherwise hard-nosed image within the electorate by advancing the cause of reconciliation and therefore retain or lose office. Both Jim Bacon and Paul Lennon went to elections based on their up-front intentions towards Aboriginal people and were rewarded.
Lara Giddings did the opposite and failed.
Mr Hodgman should consider replacing Parks and Wildlife as managers of the West Coast Aboriginal Landscape with Aboriginal people and encourage an Aboriginal authentication stamp on resources such as timber being sold overseas’.
Michael Mansell Spokesman Aboriginal Community Council
