PRESS RELEASE 29 July 1999 from: UNWGIP Palais de Nations Geneva Australian Government Report to UN Offends Human Rights Principles The Australian Government is offending the Charter of the United Nations, the UN Charter of Human Rights and the various human rights treaties of the United Nations, said Les Malezer, spokesperson for the National Indigenous Working Group on Native Title (NIWG). �The government�s paper is critical of the human rights principles relating to the self determination of peoples, the concept of elimination of racial discrimination, and the exercise of the civil and political rights of the individual� he said. �The government continues its contempt for the legitimate role of indigenous organisations and leaders, and the fundamental role of non-government organisations in maintaining a free and democratic society. �The government still attempts to use misleading information about the extent of recognition of Aboriginal land ownership, which is a means to support the government�s concept that Aboriginal people are getting too much. �This ignores information such as the the facts: - that over 80% of the indigenous population are denied their land rights, - that the areas where land ownership by indigenous peoples are restricted to the Northern Territory, mostly regarded as wastelands by the government and developers; and - that the current government has sanctioned the wrongful extinguishment of native title over areas larger than the country of Belgium just in one of the States alone. �The government is continuing to attack the Committee on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination (CERD) which is responsible for the implementation of the United Nations International Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Racial Discrimination. �This is a dangerous move, which will only anger the United Nations and other governments. �If the government is so concerned the CERD Committee does not understand its policies on Indigenous Peoples, why doesn�t the government give a clear statement of its policies, and why has the government failed to provide the two outstanding periodic reports due to the Committee for the period since 1994. �The government is in denial of its responsibilities, and is attacking the body responsible to the UN rather than facing its own racist views and actions� Les Malezer said. The indigenous representatives at the UN meeting are yet to formalise an official response to the government�s papers. ___________________________________ Les Malezer General Manager FAIRA Aboriginal Corporation Deputy Chairperson National Indigenous Working Group on Native Title NIWG Attending: Working Group on Indigenous Peoples United Nations Geneva Mobile: 0419 710720 Email: [EMAIL PROTECTED] URL: http//www.faira.org.au ------------------------------------------------------- RecOzNet2 has a page @ http://www.green.net.au/recoznet2 and is archived at http://www.mail-archive.com/ To unsubscribe from this list, mail [EMAIL PROTECTED], and in the body of the message, include the words: unsubscribe announce or click here mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED]?Body=unsubscribe%20announce This posting is provided to the individual members of this group without permission from the copyright owner for purposes of criticism, comment, scholarship and research under the "fair use" provisions of the Federal copyright laws and it may not be distributed further without permission of the copyright owner, except for "fair use." RecOzNet2 is archived for members @ http://www.mail-archive.com/
