The National Indigenous Council Talks Back
A new national Indigenous Council was appointed by Minister for Indigenous Affairs Senator Amanda Vanstone over the weekend, and it’s been heavily criticized by political parties and the Indigenous community. Yesterday on The Wire we heard from Professor of Law at the University of Technology Sydney, Larissa Behrendt, who maintains that because the new council members were appointed – not elected – the premise of self-determination that Aboriginal people are still fighting for, has been ignored once again. But what do the members of this newly appointed council think? Chair of the newly appointed National Indigenous Council, Magistrate Sue Gordon, believes the new council members are there to give their own personal views to advise the Minister – they’re not meant to represent Aboriginal people in general.