RELIGIOUS and Church organisations have unleashed a damning wave of criticism of the Federal Government for its lack of leadership on Aboriginal reconciliation.
The criticism was repeated in several submissions to the Senate’s Legal and Constitutional References Committee on the inquiry into the progress towards national reconciliation.
Part of the inquiry’s role is to consider the adequacy of the Government’s response on the issue.
The National Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Ecumenical Commission of the National Council of Churches of Australia, Australian Catholic Social Justice Council, Caritas Australia, Congregational Leaders of Religious Institutes (NSW), Josephite Sisters, Mercy Sisters, the Edmund Rice Centre for Justice and Community Education, and Toowoomba diocese’s Social Justice Commission were among the Church bodies who made submissions.
The Josephites and Mercies were also invited to make presentations to a hearing of the inquiry in Sydney on April 4.
Josephite Sister Annette Arnold, who made a presentation with Srs Kate O’Connor and Jan Barnett, said the two religious orders were probably asked to make presentations because of their grassroots involvement in Aboriginal communities.
The content of the presentations could not be divulged because they were subject to parliamentary privilege but the formal submissions were available.
Most of the Church submissions claimed the momentum for reconciliation had stalled, and pointed to a lack of leadership from the Government as one of the main reasons.
The Josephites’ submission said: ‘Government inaction, tardiness and negativity have undermined reconciliation and the enormous energy that had been generated prior to 2001.’
The Australian Catholic Social Justice Council and the Congregational Leaders of Religious Institutes (NSW) called on the Government to expand its current policy ‘to include political, cultural and spiritual dimensions as well as the practical or economic dimensions’.
The Mercy Sisters called for programs to address the lack of educational opportunities for Aboriginal people by transferring the responsibility to the local communities, and for examples of successful models to be adapted to other communities.
The inquiry is due to present a report by the end of June.
