Indigenous People: Rights, Comparisons, and Policies

This research essay explores the rights of indigenous people, comparing Australia's approach with other countries such as New Zealand and Nordic countries. It discusses the challenges faced by indigenous people, the laws implemented by the Australian government, and the international laws that protect indigenous rights. The essay also examines the definitions of indigenous people, policies for protection, life expectancy, expenditure and compensation, constitutional recognition, rights of land and resources, treaties, and the role of international law.

indigeneous people
Australia

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Introduction
Through this research essay, the indigenous person’s rights will be reflected along with the
Australian concept for them will be compared with different nations such as New Zealand and
Nordic countries. Peoples originating and developing in culturally different and distinct societies
are the indigenous peoples, their cultures, identities, and livelihood and along with their physical
and spiritual wellbeing are directly depended and linked with the land they live upon and the
natural resources they rely upon. The various jurisdictions and methods which are adopted by
Australia to protect and advance the rights of the indigenous people will be reflected by using the
examples of other countries and using relevant domestic laws, cases, international laws and other
materials.
Indigenous is defined as "originating in a particular region or country; native; innate; inherent;
natural.” The word was first derived by the Latin word Indigena, which means native or
eccentric inhabitant other than this it has several other meanings.
Problems faced in general
Although Indigenous people are the first peoples and act as the Guardians or the custodian of the
land for the next generation, still they are facing numerous problems, so, losing the land means
losing the identity, their lands are often very rich in resources and were appreciated, sold, leased
and considered over the plundered government and private companies1. But they are being
uprooted from their lands by the discriminatory policies of the government or the armed
conflicts, their activists also have to face violence and they also get killed for raising their voice
in defending their communities and protecting their lands. Some due to lack of proper education
and employment facilities and others for escaping from the abuses of their human rights
1 John Coates, Indigenous Social Work around the World, (Rutledge,1ST ed.2016)

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particularly the land rights and survival of their cultures, in their areas they are forced to leave
their traditional lands and move towards the urban areas. The cutoff in their resources and in
their welfare and survival makes it unable for the people to enjoy their human rights fully, rather
they are bound to face marginalization, poverty, diseases, and violence2.Now the views of
different nations will be seen and compared so to analyses the rights of indigenous people.
New Zealand’s views
In New Zealand where indigenous peoples were called as Maori; they were originated and settled
from Eastern Polynesia and have come to their position and situation were largely changed with
the arrival of Europeans to New Zealand, land disputes and sales gave rise to the conflicts, social
upheaval3. But they started recovering by the beginning of the 20th century due to the outstanding
justice and trials made by the New Zealand society and the government.
Nordic countries
In Norway, also the presence of the indigenous people was felt and were known as the Sami
people’s illustrative body in the Sami parliament had a very important authority which issued
them concerned culture, a heritage, reindeer farming and educational facilities. Its effects are also
applied over the policies of the finance and business. Its language was been used in nine
municipalities, two nations and a wide range of institutions throughout the state.
Sweden view
Indigenous people in Sweden are known as Sami and they can be registered to have a right to
cast vote in the election of Swedish Sami Assembly given that person must be of Sami
2 T. Milne, D.K. Creedy, R. West, Integrated systematic review on educational strategies that promote academic
success and resilience in undergraduate indigenous students,( 2015) 36 Nurse Education Today, 387-394
3 Marewa Glover, Annette Kira, Vanessa Johnston, A systematic review of barriers and facilitators to participation
in randomized controlled trials by Indigenous people from New Zealand, Australia, Canada and the United States,
(2014),22(1), Global Health Promotion

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community, must communicate in their language or their grandparents must speak that language
as the home language. Here their socio-economic condition was really very difficult but then
efforts have been made for raising their living conditions and from the reports it has appeared
that the justice system have succeeded in their purpose.
Australian View
In Australia indigenous people are different from those people who lives in Australia and in the
surroundings of the island before the colonization. These peoples are not only very harmful but
contributed in the creating confusion regarding the indigenous persons4. The Australian
government has implemented 3 criteria for determining whether a person is indigenous or not 1st
one is that whether they are descendants of Aboriginal or Torres Strait Slander, 2nd one is to
identify among them and the 3rd one states that whether they are accepted by the community of
indigenous where they live5.
A number of laws were passed by the Australian government to uphold the position of the
indigenous people in Australia and protect their land rights, election rights, heritage, and inter-
governmental administration etc. Some of the laws were “Aboriginal Lands Trust Act 1966”,
“National Parks and Wildlife Act 1974 (NSW).”
“Aboriginal Heritage Act 1988 (SA)”, “Living Marine Resources Management Act 1995 (No. 25
of 1995)” etc..
Comparison between policies for protection of indigenous people’s rights
4 Niranjan Casinader & Catherine Manathunga, Transnationalism in the Australian Curriculum: new horizons or
destinations of the past?(2016) 37(3) Discourse: Studies in the Cultural Politics of Education, 327-340
5 Libby Porter, Indigenous People and the Miserable Failure of Australian Planning, (2017) 32(5) Planning
Practice & Research 556-570

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The International Group for Indigenous Health Measurement are the experts who are considered
to be in the working force of the indigenous health group. They work with enough political
backings, the group is basically settled to head and coordinate with the efforts that overcomes the
hindrances which are caused by the disparity among the countries regarding the concepts, data
and methods concerning the indigenous life expectancy estimates6.
Differently defined-
Australia, New Zealand, Canada, and the USA has different definitions used for defining the
indigenous, with the operational methods the definitions, and also by the means of setting the
statistics of the death and the population allowed for the problems which are been known. New
Zealand, Australia, and the USA have established a ‘comprehensive ‘definitions for these people,
apparently the specifications for death are sufficient enough in quantity for calculating the table
of life in many States of Australia, or in entire USA. Rather Indian health service provided the
data for calculating the expectancy of life in USA. Special and in different studies are been used
in Canada for recognizing and estimating the expectancy of the life and death but they have
safeguarded several identified provisions for the same.
Australia did not have any particular law made for these peoples in the past but now they are
trying and building some for the betterment of these people.
Reliable changes-
Only the incremental changes will be required in New Zealand, Australia and the USA, for
strengthening, adjusting and validating the data for the existing census and death system methods
6 McDougall, Cairistin, Kelle Hurd, and Cheryl Barnabe, Systematic review of rheumatic disease epidemiology in the
indigenous populations of Canada, the United States, Australia, and New Zealand.(2017) 46(5)Seminars in Arthritis
and Rheumatism 675-686

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are developed. But in contrast in Canada, the major changes in the system will be required for
obtaining the nation wide data for all the subgroups of indigenous population and their deaths.
As compared to the other nations like that of Canada there are better and fast changing policies
in Australia.
Life expectancy-
According to a research the uncertainty associated with indigenous life expectancy was estimated
which was quite a very large one and at the same time, it is very hard to draw final decision
regarding differences between the two countries. But after conducting the comparison of life
expectancy between the people of Australia, New Zealand, Canada and U.S. it was found that
expectancy of life is greater in Australia as compared to the other 3 nations.7
Expenditure and compensation given by the nation-
The percentage of amount of money spent and compensation on the affairs of the indigenous
provided by the national government is really very high in Australia as compared to the other
nations except that of in Canada. But this only reflects the greater accessibility of the Australian
data. For example, New Zealand does not include any monetary cost for the programmers which
are solved by main agencies. In the very same way the Scandinavian countries also has costing
value for the infrastructure of social and physical values in the Sami regions which is not exactly
identified as cost spend for the indigenous people.. Therefore Australia has a better expenditures
and compensation policies provided by the national government as compared to other nations.
Constitutional recognition and political representation-
7 Gould, Gillian S., Ling Li Lim, and Joerg Mattes, . "Prevention and treatment of smoking and tobacco use during pregnancy in
selected indigenous communities in high-income countries of the United States, Canada, Australia, and New Zealand: An
evidence-based review." Chest 152, no. 4 (2017): 853-866.

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Australian indigenous did not have any particular treaty or constitution enjoyed as that of
Sweden. But there were treaties signed and made for them in New Zealand, Canada and U.S. and
also in Norway the responsibilities of the States with respect to their Sami the indigenous people
is inserted in the very recent time in the constitution. But Australia has a very poor history of
representation of the indigenous people in the government unlike that of New Zealand where
there are some seats which are already reserved for these people or in Canada where the
indigenous people are represented by guaranteed elections by creating electorates geographically
Just like Sweden and Norway, Australia also has taken place in the mechanism for conducting
elections for representing them in the body of the national indigenous. The Australian body had
additional political roles created by the counterparts of the Scandinavia which performs the
administrative functions in the department and can also be construed with the model of the
Canada that influences the informal body that is having decentralized administration in its
increased form.
Rights of land and resources-
The government of New Zealand, Canada and U.S. has recognized numerous land and resource
rights for its indigenous people and they also had customized courts and tribunals adjudicating
on the matters relating to the rights. In Australia the ruling government has just started
addressing the issue in the year 1970 and the court found only a common law which was based
on these rights, while the role of courts and tribunals are still being in progress. In Norway and
Sweden the issues of land has been treated as land use and not as the ownership of the8.
In the case of Yammer v. Eaton an aboriginal man, haunts and killed 2 baby crocodiles with a
mock or traditional harpoon, in a national park where they had native title’s right. He was
8 Dr. Suzanne P Moore, Sebaastien Antoni, Cancer incidence in indigenous people in Australia, New Zealand,
Canada, and the USA: a comparative population-based study,(2015) 16(15), The Lancet Oncology, 1483-1

INDIGENOUS PEOPLE 7
sentenced under section 54(1) of the Fauna Conservation Act 1974(Old.). Issue here was that the
can the native title co-exist with the other legislation? For which the High Court upheld that the
it was difficult to identify that which fauna was owned by the Crown and also that the statutory
schemes does not thinks about the possession of the crown over the fauna., as the native title was
not extinguished by the Fauna Act. Shunting of crocodile was permissible, there were rights as
well as restrictions and obligations indigenous people regarding their native title, but none could
restrict their ability to haunt. As the government had not owned that crocodile9.
This case highlights the native titles of the indigenous people in Australia, which is apparently
present in other nations but are identified by the different names and titles. Like in New Zealand
they had got seats in the parliament while had no native titles.
Treaty
It means a formal agreement which defines the relationship between the indigenous people and
the government. It includes binding pacts on specific issues such as protection of the rights and
acknowledging about the wrongs done. It could also set out the practical agreement like that of
the health and education. Australia does not have any specific treaty for the indigenous
population10.
Australia provide better protection to them since provide them with a base of regional self-
governments, and can also underline the guidelines for the regional treaties, and can also provide
structures and systems for making decisions on the local and regional basis11. There are no
particular treaties in Australia for these people while in Canada there areTreaties and contracts
made in between the Canadian government, groups of indigenous people and mostly the regions
and the areas that defines the basic responsibilities and duties from each and every perspective.
9 (1999) 201 CLR 351
10 Julian E Kunnie, Nomalungelo L Goduka, Indigenous Peoples' Wisdom and Power,( Routledge,1st ed.2017)
11 James R.A. Butler, Sara Busilacchi, Tim Skewes, How resilient is the Torres Strait Treaty (Australia and Papua
New Guinea) to global change? A fisheries governance perspective, (2019) 91,Environmental Science & Policy,

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The contracts and bonds lays down those present as well as continuous treaties, duties and pros
for all divisions responsibilities and duties of these people are identified and mentioned
in Section 35 of the Constitution Act, 1982 and are also an essential part of the United Nations
Declaration for the obligations of these indigenous people that are adopted by the Canadian
government..
The International Law
It guarantees rights to the indigenous people relating to their traditional lands, knowledge and
culture preservation and also human security. It further provides rules and areas of interest of the
indigenous people. United Nation Declaration along with the International Law settled out 6
main areas of action which includes, that the Commonwealth Government to declare formally its
support for United Nation Declaration on the rights of the these people12. A National Human
Right Act must be enacted in Australia which will include the protection of the indigenous
people there. Constitutional reforms for recognising those peoples in the preamble and to
eradicate discriminatory provisions and replace them with those of guaranteeing equal treatment
and non-discrimination. Establishment of National Indigenous Representative Body and the
process for ensuring their full participation in the making of those decisions that affects their
interest.
Conclusion
From the above argument it is clear that indigenous people in Australia had a very good and a
static position which started reducing due to the emergence of the Europeans and their colonial
system, which had created a mess for these people but with time it was overcome and started
improving and getting back to the normal. Therefore, now after having a glance over all the
12 Yael Danieli, Elsa Stamatopoulou, Clarence Dias, The Universal Declaration of Human Rights: Fifty Years and
Beyond, (Rutledge, 2018)

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above provision it is made very clear that in Australia there are already many laws implemented
for the indigenous people only the thing they need is to make treaties.

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Bibliography
Coates John, Indigenous Social Work around the World, (Rutledge, 1ST ed.2016)
Danieli Yael, Elsa Stamatopoulou, Clarence Dias, the Universal Declaration of Human Rights:
Fifty Years and Beyond, (Rutledge, 2018)
Yammer v. Eaton (1999) 201 CLR 35
Kunnie E Julian, Nomalungelo L Goduka, Indigenous Peoples' Wisdom and Power, (Rutledge,
1st ed.2017
R.A James. Butler, Sara Busilacchi, Tim Skewes, How resilient is the Torres Strait Treaty
(Australia and Papua New Guinea) to global change? A fisheries governance perspective,
(2019) 91, Environmental Science & Policy,
Dr. Moore P. Suzanne, Sebaastien Antoni, Cancer incidence in indigenous people in Australia,
New Zealand, Canada, and the USA: a comparative population-based study, (2015) 16(15), The
Lancet Oncology, 1483-1
Gould, Gillian S., Ling Li Lim, and Joerg Mattes, "Prevention and treatment of smoking and
tobacco use during pregnancy in selected indigenous communities in high-income countries of
the United States, Canada, Australia, and New Zealand: An evidence-based review." Chest 152,
no. 4 (2017): 853-866.
McDougall, Cairistin, Kelle Hurd, and Cheryl Barnabe, Systematic review of rheumatic disease
epidemiology in the indigenous populations of Canada, the United States, Australia, and New
Zealand.(2017) 46(5)Seminars in Arthritis and Rheumatism 675-686

INDIGENOUS PEOPLE 11
Casinader Niranjan & Catherine Manathunga, Transnationalism in the Australian Curriculum:
new horizons or destinations of the past? (2016) 37(3) Discourse: Studies in the Cultural Politics
of Education, 327-340
Porter Libby, Indigenous People and the Miserable Failure of Australian Planning, (2017)
32(5) Planning Practice & Research 556-570
Milne T., D.K. Creedy, R. West, Integrated systematic review on educational strategies that
promote academic success and resilience in undergraduate indigenous students,( 2015) 36 Nurse
Education Today, 387-394
Glove Marewa, Annette Kira, Vanessa Johnston, A systematic review of barriers and facilitators
to participation in randomized controlled trials by Indigenous people from New Zealand,
Australia, Canada and the United States,(2014),22(1), Global Health Promotion