Aborigines welcome memorial move Source: AAP | Published: Thursday January 6, 2:23 PM Brisbane: Aborigines would support a move by Young Liberals to build a national memorial in Canberra to commemorate indigenous communities destroyed since European settlement in Australia, an Aboriginal spokeswoman said today. But Council for Aboriginal Reconciliation executive Marjorie Thorpe said indigenous people would be alarmed at moves by the Young Liberals to reject a draft document for reconciliation. Ms Thorpe said she was also 'bemused' by the Young Liberals opposition to Aborigines' right to self-government. The Young Liberals national conference on the Gold Coast will debate the three proposals tomorrow. New South Wales delegates have called for a national memorial to include the names of tribes and other indigenous communities which no longer exist since colonisation. The motion calls for the memorial to be built after 'widespread consultation with indigenous communities' and that it be used as an education tool towards genuine national reconciliation. The NSW delegates said it should be built by the Centenary of Federation, 2001. Speaking from Victoria, Ms Thorpe said it was a great initiative and would provide an opportunity for all Australians to learn the true history of their country. 'The idea of listing the names of tribes no longer in existence is also a positive move,' she said. But a motion by West Australian delegates to reject the draft document for reconciliation because it 'was extreme and divisive' was of concern, Ms Thorpe said. 'They just don't understand,' she said. Since the Council for Aboriginal Reconciliation was set up by federal parliament in 1991, it had consulted widely with all sections of the community and in June this year released its draft document for a final six month consultation period. The Council was now collating feedback and a final reconciliation proposal will be launched in Sydney's Corroborree 2000, starting on May 27. Ms Thorpe also said a proposal by Victorian delegates to the Young Liberals convention to oppose the right to self government by indigenous people had not been thought through. 'Indigenous Australians have a right to self-determination and the right to self-government could follow on from that,' she said. ------------------------------------------------------- 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/recoznet2%40paradigm4.com.au/
