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Qld Stolen Wages Reparations Taskforce
supplied by DATSIP 12 September 2015
T
he Queensland Government has announced a $21 million fund to make reparations payments to Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples whose wages and savings were stolen by previous governments. The establishment of a Stolen Wages Reparations Taskforce and the development of a new Reparations Scheme fulfils a key election commitment for this Government. However, this is not about politics. Bipartisan support should be given to address the long standing issue of the stolen wages of Aboriginal and Torres Strait
Above and below: Stolen wages messages. Image: qldwagejustice.org.au
Islander Queenslanders. ABOUT THE REPARATIONS SCHEME Why is a new scheme needed? A previous scheme – the Indigenous Wages and Savings Reparations Scheme (the IWSR) – commenced in 2002 and sought to redress the damage done by the discriminatory control of wages and savings under the ‘Protection Acts’. The IWSR included a Parliamentary Acknowledgement about stolen wages, a government protocol to acknowledge Traditional Owners, and a formal apology made directly to claimants along with a reparation payment. As a package, these acts formed a gesture of reconciliation to right
these wrongs. There is community sentiment that the IWSR did not go far enough - including the belief there may be eligible people who did not apply and concern for those who did not qualify for payments under that scheme. As a genuine attempt to build upon the positive work of the previous scheme and make decisions about the distribution of this money in a consultative way, the Queensland Government has established an independent Taskforce to recommend the most appropriate way to allocate the funds to claimants under a new scheme. What is the scope of the
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Mick Gooda, Chair of Taskforce. Image: indigenousx.com.au
Reparations Scheme? This Reparations Scheme will cover people whose wages and savings were controlled in accordance with the provisions of the following legislation by the predecessors of the Department of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Partnerships (or its local agents, for example, missions, local protectors, local Police Officers): • Aboriginal Protection and Restriction of the Sale of Opium Act 1897 (as amended from time to time) • Aboriginals Preservation and ‘Protection Act’ 1939 • Torres Strait Islander Act 1939 • Aborigines and Torres Strait Islanders Affairs Act 1965 • Aborigines Act 1971 • Torres Strait Islander Act 1971 • Aborigines Act and Torres Strait Islanders Amendment Act 1974 • Community Services (Aborigines) Act 1984 • Community Services (Torres Strait) Act 1984. Will the administration of the Reparations Scheme and Taskforce come from the $21 million fund? No. Government will pay for the costs of administering the scheme separately and draw on skills and expertise in the Department of Aboriginal and Torres Strait
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Islander Partnerships and other departments. What is the Queensland Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Foundation and how was it established? The Queensland Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Fund (QATSIF) is an independent public trust established to provide direct financial support for young Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Queenslanders to assist with their senior years of education. Following the closure of the previous Reparations Scheme, the IWSR, the unspent balance of the reparations amount was transferred to the Public Trustee of Queensland, where it is still held in trust today. This unspent balance of the previous Reparations Scheme has been invested by QATSIF’s Trustee, the Public Trustee of Queensland, and the annual interest on these funds provides an income stream for scholarships and bursaries. The capital funds are preserved in perpetuity and only the interest is used for QATSIF scholarships. QATSIF is overseen by an independent Board of Advice with the majority of members being Aboriginal or Torres Strait Islander chaired by Ngugi Woman, Professor Cindy Shannon. The cost of administering the scholarships is kept to a minimum. QATSIF was established to
For workers like Sophie Mumming (pictured) not only their wages but also their child endowment and other payments went directly to government. Image: treatyrepublic.net
address the intergenerational impacts of past controls, by providing sustainable future benefits, principally through “closing the gap” to improve educational outcomes for young Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Queenslanders. Will the Queensland Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Foundation continue? Yes. Since its inception, QATSIF has supported approximately 3,700 Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander secondary school students, who attend more than 200 schools, across all areas of the State. It will continue to work with Queensland secondary schools to support students through its scholarship program, and contribute to closing the national gap between Indigenous and non-Indigenous Year 12 or equivalent attainment in Queensland. Will there be any change to the Queensland Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Foundation? No. QATSIF will continue to operate in its current form. Round 7 of the Scholarship Program is now open for applications from Queensland Secondary schools. The allocation of $21 million for the new Reparations Scheme
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Twins Paul and Arthur Wang were put to work as pearl divers as young men and had their wages confiscated. Image: The Courier Mail
is newly provided from the 2015 State Budget. The operation and administration of the Taskforce and Reparations Scheme will not impact on the funding, future or operations of QATSIF in any way. How will the Mayors of Indigenous Councils be included? As Indigenous leaders in Queensland the Mayors are valued partners. It is vital to ensure that they and the communities they represent are engaged by the Taskforce and receive an opportunity to contribute. On 9 July 2015, the Treasurer wrote to each of the 17 Indigenous Shire Councils asking them to nominate a contact person to provide information about the new Scheme, to ensure Council and remote community involvement. ABOUT THE TASKFORCE How were Taskforce members selected? Nominations for the Stolen Wages Reparations Taskforce were sought through the established network of Stolen Wages Working Groups. The network was supported by the Queensland Council of Unions. The Taskforce was announced on 17 August 2015. Taskforce members represent a balance of men and women, Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples and includes strong regional representation. This breadth of representation is important to
ensure that the Taskforce is as representative as possible of the stakeholder groups they represent. Who are the Taskforce members? The Stolen Wages Reparations Taskforce includes representatives from different areas of Queensland: South East Queensland, Central Queensland, North Queensland, Far North Queensland and the Torres Strait. Mr Mick Gooda, Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Social Justice Commissioner, Australian Human Rights Commission, will chair the Taskforce. Mr Gooda has a significant history in championing social justice for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples. As Chair of the Taskforce Commissioner Gooda will be supported by 11 Taskforce members drawn from the statewide nomination process. These taskforce members are: • Ms Pauline Ah Wang of Thursday Island • Mr John Anderson of Brisbane • Ms Gail Barry of Townsville • Ms Rosaline Bourne of Mackay • Mr Morris Cloudy of Townsville • Ms Pamela Hegarty of Rockhampton • Mr Raymond Sambo of Cairns
• Mr Marshall Saunders of Brisbane • Ms Vivienne Schwartz of Rockhampton • Mr Thomas Sebasio of Brisbane • Ms Viola Sheridan of Brisbane. What will the Taskforce do? The Taskforce is expected to meet three times between September and November 2015 and conduct consultations with the community including a written submission process. After consulting with the community, the Taskforce will make recommendations to government in November 2015 about who should be eligible for payments, how the payments should be allocated and how claims should be assessed. How can the public contribute? There are three ways in which the public can contribute to the recommendations put forward to the government, these include: • by participating in community consultations undertaken by the Taskforce • by contacting an Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Shire Council Mayor • by providing a written submission. The public written submission process will be supported by the Reparations Unit who will facilitate the analysis of public submissions for consideration by the Taskforce. The public submission process will occur from September to October 2015. When will the Reparations Scheme start? The Reparations Scheme is expected to start in late 2015 after the government has considered the Taskforce recommendations, and run until 2018. There will be widespread notification of the application process before it starts and plenty of time for potential claimants to apply.
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