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40 Years Anniversary for 1967 referendum on Aboriginal

By Joseph Keenan

6 May 2007 - In the lead up to the 40th anniversary of the 1967 constitutional referendum on Aboriginals, the National Council of Churches in Australia (NCCA) is organising a 40 days of action for 40 years of inaction campaign to help make Indigenous Poverty History.

The 1967 constitutional referendum, one of the few which manage to pass, had the highest yes vote of 90.77% in amending the constitution to allow the Commonwealth Government to make national laws in relation to Aboriginal people and included them in the census count so they could be part of the Commonwealth funding arrangements.

The referendum allowed for significant changes to be implemented thereafter. These changes include:

The introduction of positive discrimination
Enactment of various Acts, including ones that dealt with land rights, heritage and ATSIC
A new definition of Aboriginality was devised, moving away from the racist blood-quantum classifications of the past (ie full blood, half caste etc).

Despite these changes, the NCCA highlighted the sad realities facing Aboriginals. “Life expectancy is 17 years less than other citizens of Australia; traditional lands, languages and cultural practices remain under threat and Indigenous participation in areas such as education and the labour force remain lower than for other Australians,” said the NCCA on its website.

In relation to the Kriol Bible Launch in Katherine on the 5th May 2007, the director of Bible Society in the Northern Territory, Phillip Zamagias pointed to the high uptake of Christianity by Indigenous people.

"Proportionally, more Indigenous people actually claim to be Christians than the non-Indigenous population of Australia," Mr. Zamagias told the Australian Broadcasting Corporation.

Source: Christian Today Australia

Further information: make Indigenous poverty action page - includes news index and external links