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Start Koompartoo Fresh Koompartoo - Fresh Start stumbling block or challenge for people. In fact make a treaty, If the Queen would like to come and visit me at ~ pr for 1689 is toloot at the whnle my leisure and pleasure at Stonehenge, there we can exchange ACunHIGn ‘chan cartenticition aroma AGsealin our crown jewels; shecan give me her jewels, and I can give her my crown of gumnuts in return. with the view to them making a ‘book gesture’; handing 4 The hs | would do it that way would be for the WwW e have to get over 1988, which is a very major hundred years of occupation of the island of Britain we will their land over to the local Aboriginal land councils with absurdity factor as it relates to the whole dispossession process, a lease-back arrangement for the next 200 years, where because most Aboriginal people like me see the theft of Austra- occupancy is never threatened. lia as the greatest theft in the history of mankind. From that 1 think one of the missing links in the land rights question perspective we can start thinking about what we have in is that the churches, who have been so vocal in support of land common, rather than highlight our differences - and step into rights, should have the opportunity to give their land back, the the next double century in a position where we work it out, so whole lot of it - for all churches and religious organisations to that at the end of it we're going to be able to say, ‘Well, the do what Malcolm Fraser did with Kakadu and what Bob second double century was better than the first.’ Hawke did with Uluru - a ‘book gesture’ where Aboriginals come back to becoming the ‘landlords’ and the white people the the celebration of 1988 is a kind of hanging ‘tenants’. And looking at the idea of sacred space in churches, Aboriginal sacred sites and white man’s sacred spaces - there’s out of the trophies of dispossession no difference. Once you go inside them, or in the vicinity, there’s a reverence which somehow comes. Idon’t see myself as a spokesperson for the Aboriginal race. So I want to give them an opportunity to think about land I just exercise my free will as a person coming from the Aborigi- rights over church property and there are many ways of doing nal people, coming from the Earth, of the continent of Australia that, such as Housing Commission dwellings occupied by - being very individualistic. One thing that's going to happen is Aboriginals; the little piece of land that they’re on can be an an expression of a great deal of anger, justifiably, by Aboriginal expression of land rights to the Aboriginal family and in fact the people. Thousands of Aboriginal people will be marching on Minister for Housing is very partial to the suggestion. Sydney. » La If you link them up with National Parks, wilderness areas Unless there are positive reasons behind it and unless other and State Forests and do exactly the same ona State basis, then things happen, Aboriginal people will continue in the frame- a hell of a lot of land is going to come back to Aboriginal people. work of being victims as a race, and of course that comes from In fact it can bean expression of land rights to urban Aboriginal the bad decision governments made when they placed all of us people and that can give a lot of satisfaction. Now if this can be for five succeeding generations on the dole. In other words, a embedded in a general agreement or koompartoo then the idea handout mentality for Aboriginals has been not only soul of having a fresh start becomes very meaningful. destroying, but it has destroyed our bodies. The Aboriginal For me, the celebration of 1988is a kind of hanging out of the Reserves turned out to be nothing morethan places for walking trophies of the dispossession and acquisition by Europeans. corpses, people who were destined to a meaningless existence The planting of a flag at Botany Bay by Captain James Cook in from the moment they were born - with the major agents for 1770 is as absurd as me going to England on the 26th of January genocide, alcohol and drugs, cigarettes and other stuff-and the 1988 and planting the Aboriginal flag on the sand below the self esteem factor. : ; White Cliffs of Dover, declaring the wholeof theisland of Great The possibilities for rebirthing, the idea of personal devel- Britain as belonging to the Aboriginal Crown of Australia -and opment courses for Aboriginal people should now be entering telling the natives there that we're bringing them good man- into the minds of the vision-makers, the Aboriginal policy ners and refinement. For some of the more advanced we'll makers, so that anger and negativity can be channelled into a bring them the complicated language of the Pitjantjara or way which may help us achieve our ultimate goal; recognition another Aboriginal language. on the basis of prior occupation of Australia by the first Austra- Then we'll give an absolute guarantee that at the end of two lians, so that we can - in harmony - move off into a much better NEXUS New Times Four - Autumn 1988 ee