Babana Aboriginal Men's Group newsletter - March issue

7/31/2019 Babana Aboriginal Men's Group newsletter - March issue

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Babana News

Babana Aboriginal Mens Group Inc.

V

olume4Issue2

March2012

Babana News is the official Newsletter ofthe Babana Aboriginal Mens Group Inc.,and is produced in the main as an e-letter.A copy will also be produced in

the Babana Myspace site and a limitednumber will be available at our GeneralMeetings.

Opinions and conclusions contained inthe Your Word section are those of thewriter and do not necessarily reflect theopinions, policies, aims or objectives ofBabana Aboriginal Mens Group.

Inside this issue:

early childhood on a property

at Wyandra, 800km west of

Brisbane, where she helped

cook for the stockmen.

She would become "carer"

to her family after settling in

the Pomona area in the

Sunshine Coast hinterland,

her niece said.

"She did everything she

could to make her family

happy," Mrs Watson told The

Australian.

Mr Cheedy was born in

1907 on Hooley Station in

outback WA, where he

worked as a stockman and

windmill man. Later, he

moved to Roebourne

Reserve so his children

could get an education. Hewent became a preacher at

the Pilbara Aboriginal Church

and travelled widely in his

home state helping families

affected by alcoholism.

The Australian

Jamie Walker

3 April 03 2012

TWO of Australia's longest-

lived Aborigines have died

on opposite sides of the

country, drawing praise for

extraordinary lives that each

spanned more than a

century.

Federal Indigenous Affairs

Minister Jenny Macklin

yesterday led tributes for

Yindjibarndi elder Ned

Cheedy, who died in Western

Australia on Sunday, aged

about 105.

His passing followed that

of Queenslander "Aunty" May

Beckmann, also 105, who

was said by her family to be

the oldest Aboriginal woman

alive.

Ms Macklin said Mr

Cheedy had dedicated much

of his life to teaching young

people about his traditional

country in WA's Pilbara

region.

Last year, he was awarded

the prestigious NAIDOC

Lifetime Achievement Awardin recognition of his

contribution to caring for

Yindjibarndi law, culture and

language and the future of

his people.

"His outstanding

contributions over the years

helped to improve the lives

of Aboriginal people in

Yindjibarndi ... and beyond,"

Ms Macklin said.

Mrs Beckmann died in

Toowoomba on March 4, and

The Australian was asked by

close relatives to mark

"Aunty May's" lifelong

devotion to her family and

community in Queensland.

She was born on October

22, 1906. As was common

in that era, her parents,

Norman Hoad and Alice

Richards, were refused

permission to marry by thethen Protector of Aborigines

in Queensland.

"She had contact with her

Aboriginal grandmother and

other members of her

Aboriginal family, none of

whom spoke English," her

niece, Marlene Watson, 74,

said. "She learnt a little of

their language and

experienced some of their

cultural practices."

Mrs Beckmann spent her

From the Chair 2

Close the Gap 4

Aboriginal HealthFacts and

Statistics

7

Aboriginal school closes with

one pupil

8

Ancient Aboriginal rock art to

be catalogued

13

Tributes for our lost Aboriginal centenarians


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Our March Newsletter and by now

we are already in April. The year is

passing too quickly. Sometimes I

wonder how we can do so much with

such limited resources.

But we get on with it.

Our main focus in March was

Closing the Gap.

Closing the Gaps Statement of

Intent to work together to achieve

equality in health status and life

expectancy between Aboriginal and

Torres Strait Islander peoples and

non-Indigenous Australians by the

year 2030'. Out purpose was to

introduce the plan and the program

to our community and give

information and options for people

to be better informed on the

operation of the plan.

We held an event at Clarke Island

with over 200 people attending.

The day was a complete success

and there are too many people to

thank for that success. From

funding and donors to volunteers to

our guests from other organisations

and groups. There are so many

people who will be involved aseither providers or clients. And the

interest was so great I can only

think that at last we will get our

health up to, at least, the same

standard as the mainstream

community.

I thank everyone who was

involved and hope that we can now

move towards closing that gap.

April will bring us the Coloured

From the Chair

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BabanaNews

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Mark Spinks Chair of Babana

to work together

to achieve equality

in health status

and life expectancy

between Aboriginal

and Torres Strait

Islander peoples

and non-

Indigenous

Australians by the

year 2030' .

Digger March. I have included a

poster in these pages. It would be

good if everyone who receives this

newsletter prints it out and posts it

on your notice boards at work or in

your organisations.

The more people we get attending

this memorial to our Aboriginal and

Torres Strait Islander comrades

who volunteered and, in many

instances gave their lives, toprotect country and family, the

better.

I cant finish this column without

mentioning the passing on of two of

our great men and the sadness it has

brought to me.

Jimmy Little and Bruce Larpa

Stewart. .

Both men of great substance.

Jimmy with his music, knowledge and

gentle grace and Larpa with his

leadership and courage.

They are men who gave of

themselvestheir time, their

knowledge, their talents (so different

and yet so similar), their courage and

their abilities. Time given with no

thought of return or reward.

Time given through their love of

their communities and their families.

Their sharing and their generosity.

They, to me, are modern warriors.

Keeping alive their cultures and

customs and sharing their wealth of

experience with all who asked of it.

Warriors and men who will sadly be

missed by me, by Babana and by all

those who they came into contact

with over their long and life-filled

years.


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Page 3

Krieg said.

"We all live very busy lives and time in

the dunny is a moment to be by

yourself and it allows a few minutes to

think about things - for contemplation."

Mounting pressures from a fast-

paced modern lifestyle meant few

people had the hours to spare needed

to read up on and research a health

issue and sift through and digest all the

information available online and off.

And much of what was available, said

Mr Krieg, was either poor quality or too

academic, too detailed and "too

overdone".

"There are those who still just want

the raw facts," Mr Krieg said. "They

want it distilled down. They will say

'Just tell me what I need to do, not all

the background to it'."

To "get the ball rolling", Mr Krieg said

he had inserted yellow-coloured pages

in the middle of the book that

encouraged those contemplating life

while on the dunny to try to identify the

physical and mental health "traps" they

were falling into, to get to the root of

issues and take action to change

their ways. It includes lists of

suitable helplines and a "shock

absorber quiz" for those feeling

overwhelmed or having problems

sleeping or coping.

Stress and distress levels among

WA's men and women were

continuing to increase, he warned,

because of the demands of themodern lifestyle.

Contributing factors included work

commitments spilling over into the

weekends and hours usually spent

sleeping and mobile phones and the

internet interrupting time spent with

family and friends

"When things are not going well, it

is not often that people slow down

and try and identify what is giving

them the most trouble and what

they can do about it," Mr Krieg said.

"Men in particular, they just work on

rather than regroup."

While the book is slanted towards the needs of

men and those living in rural areas, the

foreword by WA's Governor Malcolm McCusker

recommends its sensible suggestions and

thought-provoking stories to all and says theyare suitable for a much wider audience."We

are all in i t, it's only the depth that varies" was

written and published by Julian Krieg. Price

$9.95. The book can be ordered by emailing

[email protected] or writing to

Wheatbelt Men's Health, PO Box 768 Northam

WA 6401. Source: Marnie McKimmie , West

Australian

Dunny the new seat of learning

Marnie McKimmie

West Australian

Located far away from the

computer, gossip, family

distractions and work, the

dunny and the few minutes of

isolation spent on it daily is

being targeted as the ideal

opportunity to provide both men

and their partners with a quick

no-frills high quality lesson on

what really is best for health.WA award-winning men's

health and suicide prevention

expert Julian Krieg has

produced his physical and

mental health and relationships

advice book "We are all in it, it's

only the depth that varies" with

a hole punched out so that

string can be attached and it

can be tied to the toilet paper

roll holder.

Covering issues from obesity,

bad backs, fatigue, making time

for children to alcohol,

depression and suicide

prevention in an easy-to-

understand, down-to-earth

manner, it was put together by

the group Wheatbelt Men's

Health and follows on from Mr

Krieg's seven-year stint writing a

health column for rural

newspapers and presenting on

radio. "The dunny idea came

from years of 'my own personal

experience' and visiting houses

and noticing that most toilets

had some reading material," Mr


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BabanaNews

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Close the Gap

Page 4

CLOSE the GAP DAY 2012

On Friday 23 March 2012, Redfern Aboriginal Mens Group Babana, celebrated Close the Gap day on thenew Tribal Warrior Association Boat Mari Narwi.

Almost 200 Aboriginal people from Redfern, South Coast, North Coast and La Perouse were entertained byUncle Vic Simms and informed by guest speakers from Wyanga Aged Care (Aunty Millie Ingram), Prince ofWales Hospital (Linda Boney), Guriwal Aboriginal Corporation La Perouse (Aunty Barbara Keeley), Depart-

ment of Community Services (Will Garton), Babana Mens group Chairperson (Mark Spinks) and ExecutiveMember (David Pross), John Holland Group (Nikki Suey) and Virgin Airlines (Christiee Louttit).


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Page 5

Information obtained through surveys conducted on the day for those who attended have highlighted the 5 mainissues affecting Aboriginal people, so that Babana and other organizations can provide further events as Close theGap Day to assist Aboriginal people long term

*


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BabanaNews


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Aboriginal HealthFacts and Statistics

Australian bureau of Statistics

On Wednesday 31 March 2010, the

Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS)

released the 2008 Causes of Death

data. The suicide statistics on this

webpage will be updated by Friday

16 April 2010 to reflect the new

data.

For a summary of the updated

2008 data, refer to Recent Australian

Data section on the media

professionals website

Caution must be exercised in

examining information and data on

patterns of mental illness and suicide

in Aboriginal and Torres Strait

Islander communities as accurate

statistics and population estimates

are unavailable. Data that are

available are limited in quality.

Discussion in the field draws both on

available Australian research and

limited data on hospitalisation and

mortality rates for Aboriginal and

Torres Strait Islander people. The

following information is presented to

progress the development of an

understanding of the factors that

influence and impact on the mental

health and wellbeing of Aboriginal

and Torres Strait Islander

Australians.

Definition

An Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait

Islander person is a person ofAboriginal and/or Torres Strait

Islander descent who identifies as an

Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait

Islander and is accepted as such by

the community in which he or she

lives.

Population Context

Aboriginal and Torres Strait

Islander peoples comprise 2.4% of

the total Australian population, with

estimates as of June 2001 at

458,500. Torres Strait Islanders

comprise 11% of the total Aboriginal

and Torres Strait Islander

population.

A significant proportion of

Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander

people (69%) live outside the major

urban centres. In 2001, around one

in four Aboriginal and Torres StraitIslander Australians lived in remote

areas compared with only one in fifty

other Australians.

Over half of the Aboriginal and

Torres Strait Islander population live

in either NSW (29%) or QLD (27%).

Although the Northern Territory (NT)

has only 12% of Australia's


people they represent 29% of the

total NT population, which is the

highest proportion in any state or

territory. Over half (58%) of all Torres

Strait Islander people live in

Queensland.


Islander peoples are a young

population with a median age of

20.5 years compared with 36.1

years for other Australians. As a

result, it can be misleading to make

direct comparisons with the broader

Australian population which has a

different age structure.

The estimated life expectancy at

birth of Aboriginal and Torres Strait

Islander people is much lower than

for other Australians.

Aboriginal Mental Health (Social and

Emotional Wellbeing)

Some people, including Aboriginal

and Torres Strait Islander Australians

prefer the term "social and emotional

wellbeing", rather than "mental

health" because of its more positive

and holistic connotations.


people have traditionally viewed

health as including not only the

physical health of the person, but

also the social, emotional and

spiritual wellbeing of the whole

community.

Trauma and grief have been

identified as significant issues for


communities and for individuals. At

present, there isn't any definitive

national data about the incidence or

prevalence of mental disorders

among Aboriginal and Torres Strait

Islander people. Limited available

research however supports the

conclusion that serious mental

disorders occur in Aboriginal and

Torres Strait Islander populations,

(Continued on page 12)


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Aboriginal school closes with one pupil

Stuart RintoulThe Australian

9 April

FOR several weeks this year, a

Year 8 boy attending the Ballerrt

Mooroop College, in Melbourne's

north, was the $1.1 million

student.

That was the annual operating

budget for the Aboriginal

"pathways" school and the boy

was the school's only student.

Ballerrt Mooroop has now

been de-staffed and its closure

may signal the end of Victoria's

experiment with Aboriginal

schools, which have had low

enrolments and poor academic

outcomes.

Ballerrt Mooroop began as a

Koorie Open Door Education

school in 1995. In 1997, the

Glenroy school had 86 students.

By 2009, there were 28, costing

taxpayers $95,000 a student, or

nine times the state average.

Attendance was 66 per cent.

Last year, there were 11

students, with 64 per cent

attendance, being taught by

eight teachers. The school had

recurrent income of $1.1m.

Forced to share its grounds

with a special school for

disabled students, Ballerrt

Mooroop began this year with

two students, which quicklybecame one. After several

weeks, the sole remaining

student was removed to another

school.

According to Aboriginal activist

Barbara Williams, the boy "was

happy with the school and when

he was told it was closing, he was

crying his heart out".

But the Victorian Education

Department says Aboriginal

people have voted with their feet,

enrolling their children in

mainstream schools. There are

almost 1200 indigenous students

in Melbourne's north.

"Since we wound up with one

student, we couldn't justify

spending $1.1m to keep it going,"

regional director Wayne Craig told

The Australian.

"The community has voted with

its feet in a lot of ways. When you

wind up with a school with no kids

in it, I guess basically the decision

is made for you."

Over the past 17 years,

Victoria's four Aboriginal

campuses, in Mildura, Swan Hill,Morwell and Glenroy, have been

tried as Prep-Year 10 (KODE),

Prep-Year 12 (Victorian College of

Koorie Education) and Year 7-10

(Pathways), with the goal

eventually of reconnecting

disengaged Aboriginal students

with mainstream education, or

training.

In 2007, respected Aboriginal

educator Chris Sarra reported

they had "failed dramatically" to

boost Aboriginal education and had

become a dumping ground for

difficult Aboriginal and non-

Aboriginal students.

Last year, the state's Auditor-

General, Des Pearson, said the

Education Department could not

demonstrate whether they were

working.

Ms Williams said students had

been discouraged from attending

the Glenroy school, while fellow

activist Gary Murray said Ballerrt

Mooroop had been allowed to

become a "poor black school that

takes in naughty black kids".

Mr Murray, who attended Glenroy

High School, said a more creative

strategy, aimed at strong academic

results and incorporating sports and

performing arts academies, could

have succeeded.

He said Aboriginal activists would

now fight for the Glenroy site. "We

can't fight for the kids, because

they're not there," he said."If the Greeks can have their

schools and the Jews can have their

schools and the Muslims can have

their schools and the rich kids can

have their schools and the disabled

kids can have theirs, why can't we?"

he said.


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Demons dump EnergyWatch as sponsor and Polis resigns as CEO

Paul Tatnell, Padraic MurphyHerald Sun

5 April 2012

MELBOURNE Victory and the

Melbourne Rebels have followed the

Melbourne Football Club in dumping

EnergyWatch as a sponsor after its

co-owner posted a litany of racist and

sexist comments on Facebook.

The clubs today severed their ties

with EnergyWatch after the Herald

Sun revealed Ben Polis' catalogue of

slurs against Aborigines, Asians and

women including Prime Minister Julia

Gillard.

Mr Polis resigned as CEO of

EnergyWatch today, but will remain a

co-owner in the lucrative business.

EnergyWatch said its senior

management held emergency talks

with Mr Polis this morning. He soon

resigned from his position.

The chief financial officer and co-

founder of EnergyWatch Luke

Zombor will take over the CEO role.

Mr Zombor said he was saddened

with what had gone on and

unreservedly apologised.

"It's been a tough day - I'm

concerned about Ben's health and

profoundly disappointed that our

EnergyWatch brand has been

embroiled in his remarks,'' he said in

a statement.

"Let me make it crystal clear, the

recent comments of Ben Polis are at

diametric odds with those ofEnergyWatch, our management and

our team members.''

Melbourne Football Club dumped

EnergyWatch as a sponsor this

morning, calling Mr Polis's

comments "disgraceful and

abhorrent".

The Victory and the Rebels

followed suit this afternoon.

In a statement, the Victory said it

"views Mr Polis' comments as totally

unacceptable" and said it was left

with no choice.

"It is less than ideal that we find

ourselves in this position today, but

we take matters like this very

seriously," Chairman Anthony Di

Pietro said.

"After a thorough investigation and

discussions between Board and

Management, we felt it in the best

interest of the club, partners and

members that we make the decision

to terminate the agreement with

immediate effect."

It also comes after it was revealed

Mr Polis said he "hates" soccer and

may support Melbourne Heart

instead.Rebels club chairman Harold

Mitchell was asking officials to

investigate how long it would take to

remove the companys logo from its

playing jumpers.

And energy companies are also

abandoning the broker, with both

TRUenergy and Momentum Energy

distancing themselves from

EnergyWatch.

TRUenergy had suspended its

contract with the energy broker

indefinitely, the company said in a

statement.

TRUenergy and its NSW branch

EnergyAustralia, said the comments

were "extremely inappropriate."

"TRUenergy does not tolerate such

comments within its own business

and consistent with that position we

expect a similar standard of

behaviour from our service

providers," the statement said.

"The remarks were deeply

concerning to our company and are

completely out of step with

community expectations."

Momentum Energy has torn up its

contract despite admitting the move

will lose them money.

"Mr Poliss comments on his social

media pages are offensive to

Momentums staff and customers,"

managing director Nigel Clark said.

"The value we place on integrity and

diversity means we cannot continue

to work with EnergyWatch."

The Victorian Amateur FootballAssociation also dumped

EnergyWatch this afternoon.

"This morning the VAFA Board

became aware of reckless comments

made by EnergyWatch CEO and co-

owner Mr Ben Polis and has

terminated the Associations

arrangement with that company with

immediate effect," Mr Sholly said.

"Whatever the level of offence



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NewsletterTitle

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Demons dump EnergyWatch as sponsor (cont)told that EnergyWatch is under

investigation by the tax office for

unpaid entitlements to its employees.

Mr Polis, the co-owner and CEO of a

company that gives an estimated $2

million a year to the Demons, has gone

to ground this morning after the Herald

Sun revealed a litany of racist, sexist

and offensive comments posted by him

on Facebook.

His comments have deepened the

racism crisis engulfing the Melbourne

Football Club.

Speaking on 5AA radio in Adelaide

this morning, Ms Gillard said she was

not worried about Mr Polis's comments

about her, but found them "nasty" and

"disappointing" in general."Some of it (is) very, very nasty about

great indigenous players, some of it

very nasty about women too, and its

such a pity to see these comments

because youd have to say the AFL has

played a tremendous role in Australia

for reconciliation, for promoting

indigenous players... so to see that kind

of stuff is really disappointing.

AFL boss Andrew Demetriou

described the posts as "offensively

outrageous" and a former Demons

president said the club must cut ties

with the controversial entrepreneur.

"It has put the Melbourne Football

Club in a terribly difficult situation.

They obviously know our view, as

would the general community, which

wouldn't tolerate those sorts of

comments," Demetriou said.

"I'm not quite sure what he (Polis)

is thinking."

Former Demons president Paul

Gardner told 3AW the club had to

end its deal with EnergyWatch.

"If Melbourne keep him as a

sponsor, this is tarnished money."

"They must cut him loose

immediately."

This morning, the Herald

Sun has seen more

evidence of inappropriate

racist remarks this time

focusing on US president

Barack Obama. The

comments are too

offensive to publish.

Mr Polis admitted to the Herald

Sun yesterday that he made dozensof offensive remarks on Facebook.

He sledged the Demons'

indigenous player, Liam Jurrah,

claiming his arrest last month over a

machete attack was good because

it generated publicity for

EnergyWatch.

Do I have any beef with

Aboriginals? No I don't. If you get on

to my Facebook I make comments


caused by Mr Polis inanities, it

is of even greater concern that

his comments seem designed to

insult as many people as

possible.

EnergyWatchs biggest money

maker, AGL, has yet to

announce whether any action

will be taken against the broker

despite its competitors fleeing.

Other clients of Mr Polis told

the Herald Sun it could not

continue working with the broker

given the nature of Mr Polis

comments.

The Herald Sun

understands a number

of organisations linked

to EnergyWatch are

receiving legal advice

on whether they are

allowed to terminate

their relationship with

the company.

The Herald Sun can

also reveal more shocking

comments made by Mr Polis,including:

REGULAR drug use, including

with a high profile cricketer

USE of a company credit card

to pay for sex workers

TOLD staff he didnt want

Indians answering phone calls

TALKED about bringing a gun

into the office to shoot the

muppets in the office.

The Herald Sun has also been

(Continued from page 9)


11/16

Page 11

about every single race

He then wrote that when Jurrah

"came to the Dees they thought he

had tribal tats but it was ring worm.

He had never been to a doctor in his

life, he comes from outback

bit past Carrum Downs".

The Demons' board last

night held a crisis meeting to

decide the future of the

sponsorship.

"The club is extremely

concerned with these

allegations. We have

commenced a full

investigation," the board said.

Mr Polis, who is also the major

sponsor of Melbourne Victory,

claimed the statements were private

"jokes" and said he could not be a

racist because he had once dated a

"half-Aboriginal" woman.

"Do I have any beef with

Aboriginals? No, I don't. If you get on

to my Facebook I make comments

about every single race."

In other explosive comments, therising business star:

SLAMMED Prime Minister Julia

Gillard as a "peasant" but thanked

her for the carbon tax before later

admitting to scaring the nation about

rising energy prices.

DISMISSED Melbourne Victory as "f-

--ing useless" and expressed hope

that star Harry Kewell's career would

turn into a "train wreck" because it

was good for EnergyWatch.

(Continued from page 10) RIDICULED EnergyWatch

customers who signed up on

Christmas Day, later claiming they

were "Muslims and Jews".

CLAIMED "Asian girls add no value

to society apart from insurance

premiums cause they can't drive".

LABELLED promotional models as

"s----" who should be "slapped

around" and said "fat people should

have no rights, just like a woman".

BAGGED Rosebud as "a s--t whole"

where "even the Aboriginals didn't

want to holiday".

BOASTED a retired football legend

had snorted cocaine at his home.

SAID Frankston was "full of inbred

Labor voting franksterian peasants"and claimed Docklands is full of

"wogs" and "fat brides".

BRAGGED about getting six luxury

tickets to Europe from The Age

newspaper, believed for extensive

advertising spending.

Mr Polis also claimed he would not

set up business in Darwin because

he "doesn't help Aboriginals", and

made other comments too offensive

to publish.

On the drug use of the former AFL

player, Mr Polis said it happened

after a recent polo event in Portsea.

He told the Herald Sun he was not

a racist and all the comments were

"jokes" - but admitted many were not

appropriate.

He claimed he could not

"be a racist" because his

cleaner was Asian.

"You're taking private

comments in relation to

something that I'm talking

to friends about," he said.

"In relation to Liam

Jurrah ... has it offended

the Melbourne Football Club, well

obviously the answer is yes, I think

they will probably be very upset. I

want to apologise to Liam Jurrah.

"Are my comments pushing the

envelope or construed to get

reactions out of people. Well,

obviously they are. People who know

me know I push people's buttons all

the time."

The AFL last night said Mr Polis's

remarks were a matter for theDemons.

"The content and tone of the

alleged material published on

Facebook is concerning to say the

least," a spokesman said.


12/16

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Aboriginal HealthFacts and Statistics (cont)

be a risk factor for mental illness.

Several surveys have shown that


Australians are less likely than other

Australians to drink alcohol, but those

who do drink are more likely to

consume it at hazardous levels.


Australians are also at risk of ill health

when using illicit substances such as

marijuana, heroin, amphetamines and

inhalants (for example petrol, glue or

aerosols).

There are no reliable national data on

petrol sniffing, but case studies

indicate that the practice continues to

be a major problem in some Aboriginal

and Torres Strait Islander communities.

Effects of petrol sniffing include

aggression, lack of coordination,

hallucinations, respiratory problems

and chronic disability, including mental

impairment.

Suicide

Suicide and self-harming behaviours

were not part of traditional Aboriginal

and Torres Strait Islander culture, prior

to contact with Europeans. However,

suicide and self-harm now occur more

frequently in these communities than

among other Australians.

As with other data about health and

wellbeing in Aboriginal and Torres Strait

Islander communities, it is difficult to

know the true extent of suicide. The

available data on population estimates,

hospitalisation and mortality rates arelikely to be an underestimate.

In 2008, suicide was the leading

external cause of death for

Indigenous Australians. Preliminary

data for 2008, pending further

review, indicates that suicide

accounted for 4.2% (103) of

Indigenous deaths due to all causes

in that year; 74 were males and 29

were females.

Suicide is more concentrated in

the earlier adult years for Aboriginal

and Torres Strait Islander people

than for other Australians.

Death rates from suicide for


males and females are over twice

the rate for other Australian males

and almost twice the rate for other

Australian females.

In recent years, the death rate

from suicide for Aboriginal and

Torres Strait Islander males was

highest in the 15 to 34 year age

group. For females, the rates have

generally been highest in the 15 to

24 years age group.

The suicide rate among older


people is low compared to other agegroups and other Australians of the

same age, however, as a smaller

number of Aboriginal and Torres

Strait Islander people live to an age

over 65 years it is not possible to

draw many conclusions from this

and such disorders are at least

as common as they are among

other Australians.

Data on hospitalisation and

mortality due to serious mental

disorders and illnesses are

currently the main sources of

information about mental

disorders in Aboriginal and

Torres Strait Islander people.

These data sources 3 4 indicate

that:

The chance of an Aboriginal

and Torres Strait Islander person

being involuntarily admitted to

psychiatric care is three to five

times higher than for other

Australians.

In 2004-5, Aboriginal and

Torres Strait Islander people

were twice as likely to be

hospitalised for conditions

classified as 'mental and

behavioural disorders' than

other Australians.

The rate of hospitalisation for

Aboriginal and Torres StraitIslander Australians diagnosed

with mental disorders due to

psychoactive substance use was

four to five times higher than the

rate for other Australians.

While mental illness and

emotional distress may cause


Islander Australians to come into

contact with the criminal justice

system, incarceration may also

(Continued from page 7)


13/16

Page 13

Ancient Aboriginal rock art to be catalogued

AFP

2 April 2012

AUSTRALIA'S greatest ancient

Aboriginal rock art detailing

kangaroos, turtles and humans on

boulders in the remote Pilbara area

will be studied under a US$1.1

million deal announced

Monday.

Tens of thousands of the

indigenous works, which are

scattered over the mineral-

laden region, will be researched

and catalogued under a six-year

agreement between the

University of Western Australia

and miner Rio Tinto.

Although one of the world's

richest collections of Aboriginal

art, the carvings which lie on theNational Heritage-listed

Dampier Archipelago, about 1,500

kilometres (930 miles)

north of Perth, have

never been fully

documented.

"It's surprising that we

don't know what is

there but that is very

much the case for

everywhere in

Australia, everywhere

that we have rock art,"

said Australian rock art

expert Jo McDonald.

"The Sydney region is a very good

example of that. We've probably only

documented about 25 percent of the

engravings in Sydney 200-plus years

later.

"It's a very time consuming process

and there's a lot of it."

The rock art in Western Australia's

Pilbara is thousands of years old and

includes images of thylacines, the

"Tasmanian tigers" which became

extinct on the Australian mainland

an estimated 3,500 years ago.

Among the most significant panels

are those showing human faces and

activities and what some experts

believe are mythical figures.

Also amidst the boulders on the

Burrup peninsula of the Pilbara, one

of the country's major industrial hubs

for resources, are archaic faces

which McDonald said could be

among some of the earliest

documented images of humans.

"The Burrup includes some of

what we think is the earliest art

in Australia," said McDonald, who

will become the first Rio Tinto

Chair of Rock Art Studies at the

University of Western Australia.

"But it also records the changing

climate.

"So the sea level rose to where it

is now about 7,000 years ago

and a lot of the art there has

been produced after that time,

so we've pictures of turtles and

fish and sharks and

other marine animals

that obviously record

that phase."

The government placed

the Burrup rock art on

the National HeritageList in mid-2007 but

campaigners fear that

threats to it have

intensified in recent

years as mining and

energy companies drain

the region of iron ore, natural gas

and other resources to feed the huge

demand from Asia.

(photos are free common)


14/16

Page 14

NewsletterTitle

Volum

e4Issue2

Close the Gap Event


15/16

Page 15


16/16

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A queer country, so old that as youA queer country, so old that as youA queer country, so old that as youA queer country, so old that as you

walk on and on, there's a feelingwalk on and on, there's a feelingwalk on and on, there's a feelingwalk on and on, there's a feeling

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back to Genesisback to Genesisback to Genesisback to Genesis ---- Australian

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Babana Aboriginal Men's Group newsletter - March issue

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Transcript of Babana Aboriginal Men's Group newsletter - March issue