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Labor remains firmly committed to reconciliation and is encouraged by the initiative of the community and corporate sector in driving reconciliation.
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Labor values the symbolic importance of a national apology and commits to reconciliation as a vehicle for healing and justice in Australian society.
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Labor believes reconciliation is also essential for improving unacceptable health, education and economic disadvantage faced by Indigenous Australians.
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Labor will implement the recommendations made in 2000 by the Council for Aboriginal Reconciliation and will use the Council's Australian Declaration towards Reconciliation as a basis for action.
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Labor will work towards a lasting settlement with Indigenous Australians. Labor will build public support to meet the goal of providing constitutional recognition of the First Nations status of Indigenous Australians and their custodianship of land and waters.
National Representative Body
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Labor remains committed to establishing a national representative body and regional representative structures for Indigenous Australians.
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Labor will empower Indigenous Australians to hold all levels of government to account through this national body and regional structures.
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Labor will finalise this structure and its functions in partnership with Indigenous Australians.
Good Governance, Capacity Development and Indigenous Service Delivery
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Labor will target the structural deficiencies within the federal system to ensure that the funding distribution is efficient and equitable according to need.
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Labor recognises that all Indigenous Australians should have access to equitable standards of services, amenities and infrastructure and will address the current neglect of service provision that exists in many remote communities. Under Labor, all levels of government will be held accountable for service provision to Indigenous Australians.
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Labor will revitalise and reform the culture of government agencies to balance compliance with community outcomes and capacity development.
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Labor supports preferential tendering for service delivery contracts where an Indigenous organisation can deliver a higher quality and competitive service and promote local employment and greater community benefits.
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Labor will invest in developing the capacity and governance of Indigenous community organisations.
Early Childhood Developement and intervention
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Labor believes early childhood intervention is one of the best means of providing a pathway out of disadvantage for many Indigenous children.
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In cooperation with the States and Territories, and in consultation with Indigenous communities, Labor will implement a comprehensive early childhood strategy for Indigenous children including initiatives that start well before pre-school.
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Indigenous communities—urban, regional and remote—will be priority areas for the expansion of early childhood services, particularly in regard to Labor's commitment to universal access for four year olds to early learning programs.
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Labor acknowledges the over-representation of Indigenous children in the child protection system. Preventative and proactive measures focused on early childhood development and family strengthening are most effective in reducing this over-representation. Labor strongly supports the principle that where a child has to be removed that every effort is made to place that child with relatives, kin or another Indigenous family. The paramount priority of child placement is the safety and well-being of the child.
Health
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Labor believes that the disparity in health status between Indigenous and non-Indigenous Australians is unacceptable.
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Closing the life expectancy gap will be a key objective of a federal Labor Government. International experience shows that this is achievable, with the right resources and political will.
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In consultation with the Indigenous health sector, Labor will set targets for health improvements and ensure programs and services are adequately resourced to meet those targets. Labor will take particular care to adequately resource the primary health care sector.
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Labor will provide funding certainty and continuity to Indigenous health care providers.
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Labor will make investment in the Indigenous health workforce a key priority.
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Labor remains committed to community-controlled and culturally-sensitive health services because they are proven to deliver higher quality service and superior health outcomes for Indigenous Australians.
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Labor will also work to address the social determinants of Indigenous people's poor health, such as material poverty and poor education.
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Labor recognises the gravity and extent of substance and alcohol abuse, family violence, child abuse, and sexual assault in some Indigenous communities. Labor believes that these issues should be seen as health issues as well as law and order issues. Labor will provide ongoing support to community initiatives to ensure strong interventions are put in place that break the cycles of abuse, rehabilitate individuals and families and strengthen social norms.
Housing
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Labor acknowledges that the housing crisis in many Indigenous communities has profound consequences for educational and health outcomes.
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Labor believes that the crisis should be addressed through evidence-based strategies and adequate investment. Labor recognises that meeting the bulk of this need will require additional investment in public housing in urban, regional and remote areas.
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Labor will explore options to leverage private sector finance and to more effectively utilise public finance to respond to the chronic housing needs of Indigenous Australians.
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Labor supports Indigenous home ownership measures. Labor believes that initiatives encouraging home ownership on Indigenous land must not undermine the property rights of traditional owners.
Education
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Labor believes that the Commonwealth Government has a particular responsibility for working with State and Territory governments to provide high quality and relevant education for Indigenous Australians.
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Labor believes that Indigenous students, particularly in regional and remote areas, should have access to quality primary or secondary schooling or school infrastructure. Labor will hold all State and Territory governments to account for their service provision to Indigenous communities.
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Labor supports flexible delivery modes in regional and remote areas that enable students to maintain a connection with their home community. Labor also supports scholarship programs, which allow selected students to pursue broader academic opportunities.
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Labor will value Indigenous decision making in education and promote community leadership on the importance of education.
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Quality teacher recruitment and training, including an increase in the Indigenous education workforce, is a key priority for Labor.
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Labor believes that quality education and successful initiatives should be accessible to every student and community in need, including in urban areas. Programs must also be adequately resourced and have funding stability.
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Labor supports quality teaching environments and institutions that are culturally inclusive and will encourage Indigenous knowledge and perspectives in education curriculum.
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Labor supports a mandatory Indigenous studies component as part of all teachers' pre-service training.
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Labor supports bi-lingual and bi-cultural education and believes they have value for both Indigenous and non-Indigenous Australians.
Employment and training
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Labor recognises that Indigenous unemployment is chronic and is projected to increase dramatically in the next decade.
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Labor will invest strongly in quality; culturally-competent training that is linked to regional need and opportunities. Labor will grow local and regional partnerships between the community and private sectors.
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Labor asserts the rights of Indigenous workers to fair and equal recognition and remuneration for their work. Labor believes that CDEP should not be used to subsidise employment that would otherwise be funded by government.
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Labor will also ensure that employees of Indigenous organisations receive equitable remuneration to their counterparts in mainstream organisations.
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Labor will make sure unemployed Indigenous Australians are provided with the training, skills and personal development that are needed to successfully transition into employment.
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Labor will also ensure that Indigenous employment initiatives are resourced to carry out community development programs where needed.
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Labor will review the policy and funding guidelines of CDEP to meet the social and economic development agendas of Indigenous communities in remote areas.
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Labor will increase Indigenous employee recruitment and retention rates in the Australian Public Service including in upper management.
Economic and Infrastructure Development in Remote and Regional areas
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Labor affirms the importance of economic development in increasing self reliance and furthering the aim of self determination.
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Labor believes that governments must act as enablers of business development and job creation in remote communities.
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Labor understands that infrastructure needs such as roads and communications are an important prerequisite to economic development.
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Labor will realise the potential for economic opportunities in rural and remote areas through regional, evidence-based planning. Areas of potential include environmental and cultural heritage management and the tourism, mining and creative industries.
Native Title and Land Rights
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Labor understands that land and water are the basis of Indigenous spirituality, law, culture, economy and well-being.
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Labor acknowledges that Native Title and Land Rights are both symbols of social justice and valuable economic resources to Indigenous Australians.
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Labor recognises that a commitment was made to implement a package of social justice measures in response to the High Court's Mabo decision. Labor will honour this commitment.
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Labor fully supports Native Title as a property right under Australian law.
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Labor also fully supports the statutory recognition of inalienable freehold title under the Aboriginal Land Rights (Northern Territory) Act 1976 and the right of property owners to provide free, prior and informed consent to any major changes affecting their interests.
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Labor believes that negotiation produces better outcomes than litigation and that land use and ownership issues should be resolved by negotiation where possible.
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Labor will facilitate the negotiation of more Indigenous Land Use Agreements and ensure that traditional owners and their representatives are adequately resourced for this task.
- Labor believes that the independence of native title representative bodies should be supported to enable them to freely advocate on behalf of the people they represent. Labor will evaluate the performance of these bodies against transparent indicators, including how satisfied traditional owners are with the service they have received.
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Labor will address the chronic staffing retention issues of native title representative bodies by supporting professional development and mentoring opportunities.
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Labor will ensure adequate resourcing for the core responsibilities of Prescribed Bodies Corporate.
Cultural Heritage and language
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Labor will make the protection, preservation and revitalisation of Indigenous languages a major priority. The urgency of this is underscored by the probability that 90 per cent of Indigenous languages will disappear over the next generation.
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Labor will significantly reform national heritage protection legislation to provide adequate protection of Indigenous cultural and intellectual property, as well as economic opportunities for Indigenous Australians.
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Labor is committed to promoting policies that support the preservation and recording of Indigenous cultural heritage and its protection from expropriation, exploitation and desecration.
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Labor recognises the need for balance between ensuring that Indigenous peoples possess the power to protect their own culture, both past and present, and the right to economic development for both Indigenous and non-Indigenous Australians. Labor will seek the agreement of traditional owners, as far as possible, when making decisions that affect cultural heritage. Non-adversarial processes that include Indigenous peoples in the protection of their heritage, cultural and intellectual property will also ensure greater certainty for all stakeholders.
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Labor will involve Indigenous people as key decision makers over the location, care and rules of access to their particular cultural heritage, artefacts and human remains in Australian public collections.
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Labor will also vigorously advocate this approach to other national governments whose institutions hold Indigenous Australian cultural heritage, artefacts and human remains. Labor will ensure Indigenous involvement in decision making and respect for traditional custom in the repatriation of these items or human remains.
Natural Environment
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Labor believes that Indigenous knowledge and experience of lands and waters is a beneficial and under-utilised asset in the management and use of our natural environment.
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Labor will recognise the monetary value of Indigenous natural resource management and make it a central component to national environment and climate change strategy.
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Labor acknowledges the conservation and economic value of Indigenous Protected Areas and will provide appropriate and sustainable levels of funding to reflect those values.
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Labor will strongly encourage private sector partnerships with Indigenous land managers to deliver greenhouse gas abatement services and offsets.
Deaths in Custody, Criminal Justice and Community Safety
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Labor notes the high level of incarceration experienced by Indigenous people and that these high rates continue to rise.
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Labor recognises that the 1992 Report of the Royal Commission into Aboriginal Deaths in Custody identified the systemic causes of incarceration and provided a specific and targeted agenda for reducing social and economic disadvantage. Labor will review progress and support the continued implementation of its recommendations by all levels of government.
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Labor will also reinstate the full publication of statistics on deaths in custody.
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Suspicious deaths in custody must be treated in a manner that maintains public confidence in the justice system.
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A Federal Labor Government will work with State and Territory Governments to ensure that Indigenous communities are safe and that women, children and elders in particular receive the full protection of the law.
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Labor believes there is one standard of law in Australia that must be applied to all Australians and understands that the recognition of customary law in some areas of legal practice does not compromise this standard.
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Labor recognises that the consideration of customary law in sentencing and traditional methods of treating offenders has improved law enforcement and the effectiveness of the justice system in a number of Indigenous communities.
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Labor supports this collaborative approach to the extent that customary laws or traditional methods do not breach Australian law or basic human rights.
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Labor will ensure that Indigenous legal services are adequately resourced to represent and provide quality advice to their clients. Labor will also ensure that solicitors and other staff working in these services receive equitable remuneration.
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Labor will continue to oppose mandatory detention when applied to juvenile offenders and to adults because it is discriminatory in practice and ineffective in reducing crime or criminality.
Stolen generations
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Labor recognises that past government policies which separated Indigenous children from their families continue to have adverse economic, social and cultural effects. The trauma caused by these policies continues to affect all generations of Indigenous families, including the younger generation.
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Labor will provide a comprehensive response to the Bringing them Home Report, including a formal apology. Labor will also ensure that remedial initiatives such as link-up and family history programs and Bringing them Home counsellors are adequately resourced to meet demand.
Stolen wages
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Labor recognises that certain past government policies on the State, Territory and Commonwealth level denied Indigenous workers their wages and entitlements. Those policies have imposed an economic and social disadvantage on many of those workers and their descendants today. Labor understands the ongoing need for redress and the resolution of this outstanding issue.
Source: 
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Australian General Election 24 November 2007 
