By Natalie Zirngast
CANBERRA — About 1500 Aborigines and supporters rallied at Parliament House on August 20 to protest government cuts to the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Commission (ATSIC). Several Aboriginal performers were followed by speakers from Aboriginal councils, politicians, union leaders and church representatives.
Members of the crowd also addressed the rally, raising the need to oppose the proposed pipeline in the Gulf of Carpentaria, speaking about the history of Aboriginal oppression, and condemning Jennie George for her statements against the pre-budget rally on August 19. A message to the rally from Senator John Herron stating the Liberal government's commitment to the reconciliation process and to providing assistance for Aboriginal people, was condemned as lip service. The rally voted to call for withdrawal from the reconciliation council and for ATSIC commissioners to step down.
At the end of the rally, a group were stopped from peacefully entering old Parliament House by baton-wielding police. Several were arrested. Protesters condemned the police violence, citing similarity with the situation in South Africa under apartheid.
Wayne Wharton from the Murridi Federation of First Nations and a member of the Kooma Land Council in south-west Queensland told Green Left Weekly that the anger on August 19 had been brewing for a long time and that it was "gutless" of union leaders to disassociate themselves from their members.
He said that the charge on the doors was "the biggest display of multiculturalism between Aboriginal and non-Aboriginal people in this country. It's a lesson for this government that if they don't wake up to themselves, people will combine. People have a common goal and that common goal was the catchcry yesterday: justice and a better way of life, not to be sold out!"
Wharton commented that the budget was "a slap in the face for everyone who believes in a fair go. Students, Aboriginal people and the unions knew that they were going to bear the brunt of the budget and they were the ones that smashed down Parliament House.
"The media blew it out of proportion because of the government's reaction. The media in this country is owned by three families. Three families can't just control the news going out to 17 million people. The people do have a voice and a right to be heard."
Wharton said that Aboriginal people were discussing strategies for the campaign against ATSIC cuts and that the fight would continue, especially up to the 2000 Olympics. "We will be asking those who stood with us on August 19 to stand with us again, and bring some friends", Wharton said.