[Greens-Media] Indigenous Australia crisis - national response must be lead by PM

[Burling, Adam (Sen B. Brown)]

		Wednesday 17 May 2006

		Indigenous Australia crisis - national response must be
lead by PM

		Government must stop blocking safe petrol roll-out

		The whole nation must respond to the crisis of
degradation which has Australia's Indigenous people in its grip, Greens
Leader Bob Brown said today.

		"The Prime Minister should lift this issue to the top
his personal agenda. The plight of the First Australians is a national
disgrace. Australian must restore health, safety and dignity to
Aboriginal Australians. This will require tough decisions - and in light
of the $6 billion budget gift to wealthy Australians, there should be a
vastly greater commitment to Aboriginal Australia from Canberra,"
Senator Brown said.

		Senator Brown said that the focus on Aboriginal social
breakdown, including rape, paedophilia and destructive drug addiction
has to broaden to include white exploitation, profiteering and disdain
for Aboriginal culture.

		"We are 11 years into Mr Howard's Prime Ministry. His
most memorable early contribution to this outrageous situation was to
reject what he labelled 'black armband' view of history. The problem is
he turned the black armband into blinkers," Senator Brown said.

		Senator Brown said new Minister for Indigenous Affairs,
Mal Brough, should reverse the federal government's opposition to the
full roll-out of unsniffable Opal petrol in Central Australia, including
Alice Springs.


		Senator Brown will available for comment in Melbourne
today at Flagstaff Chambers, 557 - 561 Lt Lonsdale St at 11.30 am

		He will be given an address to students at the Agora
Lecture Theatre, Latrobe University at 1.00pm today.

		Further information: Prue Cameron 0408 473 379