A 'national emergency' in Australia: The Howard government's intervention in Northern Territory Aboriginal affairs

Abstract

"On 21 June 2007, Australian Prime Minister John Howard and Minister for Indigenous Affairs Mal Brough declared a “national emergency” in respect of widespread allegations of child sexual abuse in Australia’s Northern Territory (NT), which is home to about 15 per cent of Australia’s Indigenous population and includes some of the most remote and traditionally-oriented communities in the country. Their reference point was the recently released report of the Northern Territory Board of Inquiry into the Protection of Aboriginal Children from Sexual Abuse, Ampe Akelyernemane Meke Mekarle, Little Children Are Sacred, which found child sexual assault to be widespread throughout Aboriginal communities, and made 97 recommendations for a comprehensive response." Show more