Recently I did a couple of remote contracts on the Gibson desert in WA
The kids stayed with their father.  I hate flying.  Its the only way to get there is on a tiny plane
So with much courage ( in the form of Valium ) I got on the plane !

On the way home from my first stint out there we went through a storm! Well the turbulence was horrible, I was squeezing the strangers hand in the seat behind me so hard, he probably had a crush injury! At one point we got flung sideways I totally screamed !
After we got through it, the pilot gave me the thumbs up! I said " I screamed"
He said " I know I heard you! That was rough weather !"
But we got home safely

Here are some pictures
The landscape is stunning

I'm a registered nurse working with aboriginal peoples in remote Australia.

When I had to fill in my university application I wasn't completely sure what I was going to do I put down both nursing and for a Bachelor of Arts. I was accepted to Griffith University Gold Coast for nursing and started uni in 1997. I have not looked back since. 

I loved uni and did quite well. I chose to do my grad year at Longreach as both my grandparents lived in rural areas I quite liked the idea of doing a rural placement. Little did I know that 17 years later I would still be out bush.

Prior to starting at Longreach I worked in two nursing homes. I learnt a lot there and it is definitely a good place to get your basic nursing skills.

My graduate year at Longreach was not for the faint-hearted. Back then there were still a lot of what I like to call “battle-axes” around and they were quite hard to work with. They expected absolute perfection in everything and were quite hard on young nurses. It was tough to begin with and I had to deal with a lot of difficult situations with no support because that was how it was done in the old days. I was given heavy patient loads and told not to complain!

During my grad year I rotated around several hospitals: Alpha, Barcalden, Aramac  and Winton. Each place I met new people and learned new things. The enrolled nurses taught me how to take blood cannulate and do the practical dressings. There was nobody else there to ask or to mentor me.

 

Without a nurse educator to sign off on your progress and competency, it was sink or swim.

The hospitals I worked in had hospital-based ambulances, so even in my grad year, I was already going out on callouts. The first time, I was a nervous wreck.

It was the middle of the night and I was called to a lady who was unconscious after seizure. All the way there I kept saying to the driver, “You get the stretcher and I'll get the oxygen”. He must've thought I was a complete nut. It was raining, and I couldn't get into the gate. Eventually, I got into the house, a big old Queenslander. 

I got down on the bed to see if I could get a response and in doing so knelt in a cold puddle of urine. Somehow, that snapped me out of my shock and I was able to wake and stabilize her, and get her on the stretcher and back to the hospital safe and sound.

I would meet my first long-term boyfriend at Alpha and I ended up staying there for a couple of years. 

During my time at Alpha hospital I learnt to do pharmacy orders, store orders, rostering and accreditation activities. 

I also did a lot of callouts, working on call. Some situations were quite unimaginable. Things that even now I can’t believe happened, things you’d see in bad dream or a horror movie. Most of the stories really are too terrible to tell.

There was one incident where we had a heroin overdose, but both the doctor and the ambulance driver were too drunk. It was up to me, a junior nurse, to save the patient. He kept having fits and would periodically stop breathing. We were 50kms from the hospital, but some somehow I managed to keep him alive until we got there. Years later, a senior nurse from Rockhampton hospital we he eventually got sent told me that I saved that kid’s life that night.  

During those few years I did a short stint as a level 2 at the Clermont Hospital – now bear in mind, I was still a fairly junior nurse. One particular night we were evacuating a man out, and I had to put his catheter in. I only had one enrolled nurse working with me, as the Doctor was busy elsewere.

I successfully put in the catheter, but then realized that the man’s foreskin was still stuck up. I didn’t know what to do, so I rushed to the other nurse in panic, and asked for help, to which she replied “No way, I’m a lesbian, I’m not going near that thing”! 

When I got back to the patient, the head of his penis was starting to turn a scary purple colour. I did the only thing I could think off, I grabbed some gloves and started pulling on his penis. After what seemed like forever, his foreskin rolled back into place, and I swear to God, as I looked up to him, the old man lifted his head from his deathbed to give me a very strange look!

The people in the towns became like family. There, also, I learnt how to drink a lot of alcohol in order to self-medicate when the shifts were really bad. When the time came to leave Queensland, I was sad to leave a lot of good friends behind.

But in 2004 it was time to move on, and I headed for Tennant Creek in the Northern Territory. What an adventure that turned out to be. I was going for three months and ended up staying for one year. We were on call all the time, and back then, there were only one nurse and one doctor on a late night shift. 

It was before the Intervention and Close the Gap campaign, and before the strict alcohol restrictions were implemented. ED would be a bloodbath night after night. We were so short staffed, we regularly worked 12 hour shifts, clocking up 20-30 hours overtime a fortnight.

I would take turns with another nurse flying people on the plane to Alice Springs, even though it often made me sick. There were a lot of nightmare stories: the deaths, the suicides, the assaults and the chronic diseases. Broken bones and broken people. Alcohol continued being the most effective way to self-medicate.

There were good times too though, again the people in the town became like family and our presence made a tangible difference in saving and improving people’s lives there.

After 12 months there I headed off to Fitzroy Crossing in the Kimberley’s and had an absolute ball. I met a great bunch of nurses. We used to go head to the river on our days off and cook fish and potatoes in the fire, it was a great community atmosphere.

Again, we worked on call with hospital-based ambulances and again, we saw some harrowing cases. I remember one of the worst – a 4-year old burn victim. I took him to Perth, where he spent the next 12 months healing.

While I was in Perth, I finished a grad certificate in applied health sciences, in rural and remote health. From there, I decided to return to Brisbane and see if after all the years in the outback, I’d be able to work in a city hospital.

I got a contract at the emergency department in the Royal Brisbane hospital. It turned out to be a good job, which I enjoyed. To be honest, after the challenges and the extreme injuries I encountered working remotely, I found city hospital with its abundance of nurses, doctors and support staff, to be quite easy.

Though I like my job, and being close to my family, I hated the city life with its traffic and pollution, it’s restrictions. Eventually, I headed back out bush to Julia Creek, and that’s where I met Zach. After 12 months working together, we decided to make a go of it, even though I was already committed to go to Yuendumu, a remote aboriginal community in the Tanimi Desert. We said our temporary goodbye and headed off.

This was my first aboriginal community, and it turned out a tough one. Again, this was before the Intervention, and not long after aromatic fuel came in. We worked 15-18 hour days. The food available in the community was of such poor quality that I lost five kilos while there, and was getting sores that wouldn’t heal on my body. But I loved it.

I decided to head up to the Cape to be closer to Zach, and found work on Lockart River and Wujal Wujal. It was a nice change from the desert, though it did rain a lot. But we had some great nurses and the food was certainly better.

Still, we faced some tough situations there. We worked on call, and we would carry two way radios (as there was no mobile service) and a special tool to cut down people who had hung themselves. We used to dread picking the tool up, hoping it would not be our turn to do the grisly task.

A lot of the suicides were a direct result of the dissemination of aboriginal culture, where young men, no more than teenagers, found themselves unable to pass traditionally into manhood, which was devastating for them.

Almost no family was spared by such death, making it impossible for it’s members to not be affected by grief, which in turn led to more suicides, propelling the vicious cycle on and on. The impact on the communities and the culture was deep and deadly.

In the end, Zach and I decided that we would head back to Tennant Creek, where the we could go back to on-call work and working in the ED, helping people with serious traumas and injuries. While living in Tennant Creek, I had my children Bailey and Temperance, and started my Masters Degree.

I got a job at the RFDS GP practice, which was great for a couple of years, but when the practice shut, I took a job at the aboriginal medical service as a chronic disease care coordinator. Working with a senior aboriginal health worker who I really got on with, I really felt like we had a big difference in people’s lives.

We would go out into the community and talk to people. We’d educate and help them manage chronic diseases and how to utilize mainstream services. We would coordinate meetings with consultants in Alice Springs and help the families understand what was happening to their loved ones. We saved a lot of people from dying.

One case in the particular was a young 30-something lady with two children, undergoing ‘futile treatment’ – in other words, she was going to die without necessary dialysis. I knew this patient had a diminished intellectual capacity, and my heart went out to her. I couldn’t let it go, so I asked anyone who would listen for help, and didn’t stop trying until I got an emergency guardianship order that allowed her to remain on dialysis. Once we organized proper care and a safe place for her to stay, she underwent all her treatments and surgeries and ended up working as a volunteer.

I loved the work, and the satisfaction being a health worker brought me. But there were a lot of times I felt burnt out and verging on admitting defeat in the face of rampant drug and alcohol addiction, domestic violence, and lack of housing and support.

I felt a lot of hopelessness in myself and around me. The smell of poverty is not something that can be breathed lightly. Hearing the story of a 6 year old that has been raped, or someone that has been beaten, is dying or homeless, or starving from the community, from the family is a lot different to hearing it on the news. Hearing it while standing in filth, breathing in the rotten garbage smell, the smell of overcrowding and unwashed bodies, seeing the mange-covered dogs and the children running around with sores and green snot dripping onto their top lips, is a lot different to hearing it in the sterile environment of a hospital or clinic.

But keeping things in perspective and setting small goals, I felt I was still making a difference, keeping people alive just a bit longer, or making terrible, hard lives just that a little bit easier. 

After 9 years in the community, I felt like I became an integral part of it. I had my own skin name. I hardly needed anything translated, I could understand and even speak enough Walpri to get by. I learnt a lot of the people’s culture, and how to navigate its intricacies.

But it was time to move to the city to ensure my children got a proper education, so we returned to Brisbane. And while they adapted quite well, I found it harder. 

I got a job for an aboriginal medical service in Woolloongabba. It was very different to what I was used to in remote areas, and I struggled getting used to it. Consequently, I took two remote placements on the NG lands Blackstone and Wingellina. Out in the dessert, I feel at home and my spirit is happy and free.

My children’s education is paramount, and I’m willing to sacrifice everything to make sure they have the best life, which is why we continue to live in the city. These days, I have to balance my work life with my kids, and I don’t want work to take away precious time with them. But every now and then, I need to get out into the bush. 

After 21 years of nursing, a Bachelors and a Masters, and many shorter courses, I am still learning new things and loving my work.

I have also started a Bachelor in Anthropology. Through my profession, I have become fascinated with why people do the things they do. I am keen to learn more about the human condition and to challenge myself further with my nursing.

Nursing is hard work, and sometimes it doesn’t feel very rewarding. It’s hard to talk about work with people who aren’t doctors and nurses without freaking them out with the gross or horrific details. Only other nurses can find humour in all the poo and vomit stories, as well as scarier things – that’s our way of coping with it all, I guess.

But overall, it is an awesome job, and I love it. 

I have no regrets in my career: I have done everything I ever wanted to, and there are still many more years to come of learning, caring and meeting beautiful people. 




 Assignment two 

ANT2004

Due 21 Oct 2015

 What is meant by ‘ethnic cleansing’ and ‘genocide’? What is the evidence such behaviour is very ancient? How might it have changed in recent times?

This essay will discuss ethnic cleansing and genocide, what they mean and how and why they are different. On the service Genocide and ethnic cleansing appear to have similar definitions however upon closer examination they are different practices. This essay will also look at case studies from history showing that while the terms ethnic cleansing and genocide may be recent they acts are not. In particular the ethnic cleansing and genocide perpetrated on the Australian Indigenous population from the time of Captain Cooks landing in 1777 up until the mid-1900’s.  Finally this essay will discuss if ethnic cleansing and genocide may have changed in recent times, or if the practice of ethnic cleansing (Wees, 2010) and genocide remain the same as it always has.

The term genocide was first coined by a Polish man – Raphael Lemkin in 1944 (Krieken, 2004). In describing Nazi Germany’s practices of various forms of killing or annihilating Jews, the definition can also in a more broader sense be used to describe the variety of ways different groups can be eliminated including that of their physical environment and culture (Krieken, 2004; Hinton, 2002). Lemkin, lobbied+ to have Genocide recognised as a crime and eventually succeeded.  Genocide is the crime of eliminating a group of humans that is recognised by most international laws and by the Unite Nations (Hinton, 2002)

Ethnic cleansing may seem the same as genocide but it differs in that ethnic cleansing can be used to eliminate, destroy or forcibly remove from an area (Sirkin, 2010) another cultural or religious group by any means necessary, including removal, changing laws, bullying and intimidation , mass killings – genocide (Sirkin, 2010). The terms genocide and ethnic cleansing are often used interchangeably (Sirkin, 2010). International law has classed ethnic cleansing as a crime against humanity which can include murder, enslavement, and deportation.

The differences between the two acts become clearer when genocide is looked at more closely – in order for the crime of genocide to be present there must be a specific intent to destroy a group of people that share a common identify such as race, ethnicity or religion. The victims of genocide must belong to a protected group and a single act could constitute as genocide (Sirkin, 2010) 

Crimes against humanity such as ethnic cleansing can occur in any population group and a single act would unlikely constitute as a crime against humanity (Sirkin, 2010)

When a group of people are denied the right to exist that is genocide 

Ethnic cleansing is more of a descriptive term rather than a legal term ethnic cleansing Is used mainly to achieve ethnic homogeneity and can be done without mass murder genocide on the other hand is an international crime under the United Nations and is usually achieved through mass murder and its purpose is to destroy the entire race ethnic all religious group

There are many examples of genocide and ethnic cleansing in history, long before there was ever a term for it – Many indigenous peoples were being forcibly removed or killed by invading societies, Since the sixteenth century European nations have moved throughout the world often displacing , confining or destroying native (or Primitive) people (Goody, 2002)Genocide has occurred for centuries, from the well-known, Jewish holocaust and the genocide of the Rwandan Tutsi to lesser known Ancient Assyrians intent on the destruction of Babylon and the Mongols of Genghis Khan (Hinton, 2002).  It is thought that genocide has been a part of the human world since the beginning, in ancient Greek and roman society genocide and ethnic cleansing were common practices in order to annihilate ethnic groups or enemies (Wees, 2010).  Often the invading solders would kill all men of age and sell the women and children into slavery.  Sometimes the killing was indiscriminate including animals and when the killing stoped those left alive were split up from their family groups and sold separately ensuring the complete destruction of that group (Wees, 2010). History records even buildings and whole towns were burnt to the ground, there is some debate over the lands being sown with salt or covered in tar due to the time and cost involved but it could have been done on a small scale (Wees, 2010).  In some events in history total villages were wiped out and the buildings burnt to the ground.  In others all the men including male children were killed to ensure the line could not continue and women were sold into slavery.

In later times ethnic cleansing and genocide was practiced in Australia after Captin Cook landed right up until the 1960’s

Aborigines were wiped out by most of the 5 types of genocide described by Krieken, (2004)

Which include (a) Killing members of the group; 
(b) Causing serious bodily or mental harm to members of the group; 
(c) Deliberately inflicting on the group conditions of life calculated to bring about its physical destruction in whole or in part; 
(d) Imposing measures intended to prevent births within the group; 
(e) Forcibly transferring children of the group to another group. (Schabas, 2000)

In the early part of the ninetenth centuray Europeans assumed the Aboriginies would die out, however as the continant was settled and explored relationships were created with Aborignals sometimes resulting in what was known at the time as ‘half caste’ children.  It soon became obvious to the settiling Europeans Aboriginals were not going to die out so they were often removed from their lands seperating them from their culture.  The children were forcibly removed, records are patchy at best so it is not known how many children were taken. At the time it was thought that removing “half caste” children to assimilate them into a European way of life and leaving the Aboriginal population to die off was the right thing to do.  In 1937 a Chief Protection officer in Western Austraila – AO Neville asked “Are we going to have a population of 1 million blacks in the commonwealth, or are we going to merge them into our white community and eventually forget that there ever were any aboriginies in Austraila?” (Commonwealth of Australia, 1937:11).  What is known as the Stolen Generation refers to the forced removal of children from their families.  The Children of mixed blood or ‘Half Caste’ as it was called at the time were taken from their familes by force or decit – one women recalls the police coming and telling the parents that the kids had to go to school, the children were loaded into the car and were never seen again. Many children were taken far away from their home lands and seperated from their siblings in order to separate them from their land and culture.  Often Aboriginals were placed in camps or areas such as Melville island and left to die out. (Eller, 2006)

Under the definition of Genocide these acts meet the crietira of genocide – the forced removal of children, serious mental harm and infilicing conditions calculated to bring about the destruction of people

All of this also resulted in the destruction of cultural values and was either deliberatly intended or a consequence of the acts of genocide, the destruction of cultural values comes under the definition of ethnic cleansing which is a term used to describe a wide number of atrocities but is not a crime in isteslf unlike genocide 

The crime is the indiviudal events that take place during a period of ethnic cleansing which often sees massive abuse of human rights, intimidation, bullying, removal, mass murder or genocide (Cohan, 2007).

In even more recent times in the last ___ years the world has seen genocide and ethnic cleansing being practices, the atrocities that have occurred in Rwanda is a well known example

The difference between genocide and ethnic cleanisng in the past and today is minimal

There is now a term for it and genocide at least is recongnisaed globally as a crime and has been defined by the United Nations 

However forced removal and mass killings still take place.  There is more media coverage and anthropologist are beginning to realise they need to look more closely at genocide and ethnic cleansing.  However as good anthropolgy is ethnographic study this is quite difficult.

In ancient times the motivation for genocide may have been sligthly different in some instances, however political gain and resources seem to be a common thread as does religious differences, language and culture 

A difference is that in most cases other coutries would step in to stop a whole town being massucured and burnt to the ground.

The rwandawn genocide is considered a moden genocide (Eller, 2006)

The population growth makes it hard to  a whole group and wide spread slavery or the ability to sell large groups into slavery dose not exsist, although slavery still exsists it is illeagal.  Other countries will take in refugees and protect them from acts of genocide but it is usually too late to shelter them from ethnic cleansing as simply by being a refugee in another land human rights abuses have occurred 

In modern times the world has the united nations to turn to and genocide is offically recognised as a crime against human rights 

Initating group leaders can be held accountable and stand trial for crimes against humanity 

With modern warfare and technology ethnic cleansing and genocide can occur more viciously and if not stopped by outside groups could be quite successful, although as mentioned before population groups are often more numerous and wide spread if ethnic cleansing and is described as the expulsion all removal of the population from their lands due to either religious or ethnic discrimination political strategic or idea logical considerations or a combination of these reference Bell -fialkoff.

Then estimate cleansing has been around for many centuries although in ancient times the practice may have been because of a different motivation the Romans and Greeks practised estimate cleansing on a smaller scale to procure slave labour during the Middle Ages ethnicity was not a source of prosecution but religion was mini anthropologist's remark that most of Native Americans suffered definite cleansing when they were forced to reset all in allotted territories ethnic cleansing Ndis century is more motivated by nationalist movements in order to cleanse and area

But scholars often note that the difference between ancient ethnic cleansing Angie on your side and modern closing in genocide is that of the nationstate

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My friends website ! It has everything !

Hello

Well I know this cool chick -Robina
She can do anything and she's living the dream !!

Check out this website

www.number45.com


There is Curry paste
There is awesome handmade products

And the best there is emotional renovations !

I was feeling like crap ALL the time

Now I feel great ALL the time

Here is some of what she wrote today

I've been asked heaps of times this week.... So what do you actually do??

Here's the answer.
I hang out with cool chicks who are feeling crazy!
Crazy bad but they wanna feel crazy good.

Often they say things like:
- I don't know what I want/where I want to be in life
- I wish I had more time to do the things I wanna do
- I wanna wake up and actually feel happy instead of going 'oh crap'
- I lie awake worrying about stuff
- I don't even remember who I am anymore

Often they feel:
- overwhelmed
- worried
- like a failure
- out of balance
- angry
- guilty
- lost
- like they can't silence the chaos in their heads

Often they say the WANT to feel:
- happy
- content
- calm
- in control
- peaceful
- energy
- focused

So they get in touch.... we chat on the phopne for about 1/2 an hour to see if we'd be a good fit to work together and then we do...

And when we're done they say things like:
- Thankyou for finding ME in ME so my family could have the best ME I could be.  OMG how luck I am to have met and engaged in the amazingness you have to offer me and so many others.
- I am coping at work!
- I am coping with the kids, I hadly yell at all, in fact the kids have been brilliant for ages.
- I'm not cranky anymore
- There's no fights, no anger, no bitterness,  no resentment, no disappointment anymore
- you've worked a miracle and I really appreciate it.

THIS is what I do.  Work with women to remind them how to find their happy hearts...  feels like togetherness... feels like freedom...

So there ya go Rochelle that's what I do.  If you wanna know HOW I do it, let's chat?  No pushy bossy stuff, just chat.
email me

Did a 1000km round trip today to get the kids birthday presents and some grocery shopping
Also got a pedicure

Just didn't feel like doing online shopping this time !

It was a good day 

When we get used to violence

My children saw someone die last week

I arrived home from work and they were telling me all about calling the ambulance and the lady crying 'his heart stopped' and how the man put a cloth over the persons face

the ambulance came

the kids went into great detail and i realized they were describing someone had passed away ( i did confirm this )

I don't know how i feel about this - i cant really process it - but maybe no parent knows the answer to how to deal with your children seeing someone die 

maybe i should Google it !

but such is life here  that it really just seemed like a normal day 

who else has a 3 yo and 5 yo that think nothing of witnessing such events 

although i doubt they realize the "death part" its just that they are so used to seeing violence, and calling the ambulance and hearing the wailing that they think its a normal part of a week

Then this evening a lady called out she was bleeding from her head
i took cloths down to help stop the bleeding, the kids were behind me watching we called the ambulance
The lady had been hit with a can of tinned meat and had quite a nasty laceration on the side of her head
The kids watched as the police and ambulance came and took her off to hospital
what did they make of this ???
I dont know they have seen such events since they could lift their heads up and look around

When someone asks how your day was and means it -

When someone asks how your day was and means it -- the reply is not so short and not so 'stock standard'  - Good thank you and how was your day ? No the reply is emotional and long ............
(I did make the last part of my reply into a second blog post titled when we get used to violence)

My lovely friend Robina Sent me an e mail asking how my week was? And this was my reply

You can see her blog and website here  :

http://www.numberfortyfive.com/

Hi Robina!

I got the handmade journal, it is beautiful - too good to write in LOL

Thanks - that brightened my day( these are awesome check them at number45 - they are by artist Chris Bolton form WA)

Well I'm still sick, feel miserable, don't want to be at work, but I'm here anyway 

infected sinus, the beginning of tonsillitis .......................

how is my week going you ask ??  - 

I have lost the passion for my work - 2 years in this job and i'm burnt out and don't care

but then that means people will die (no i'm not being dramatic, since you worked here  i know you know how sick the people are here anyway)

this week one person missed 7 x renal dialysis - we found him trying to drive a car - confused and rambling so we called the police to get him out of the car and took him to see the visiting renal consultant. (Not such an easy task in a community where the police are not thought of kindly! Fortunately without giving away confidential information we were able to convey to the onlookers we were worried about his health ).

"if he lives through the night we will see if he will go to [regional hospital] for dialysis "

          Person no: two refuses to go to [regional hospital] for dialysis and is just getting the odd                      dialysis here - she wont go because her daughter died of a sudden illness last year, her                          partner died and she had massive cardiac surgery and a 4 months in ICU 

she will die - or at least considerably shorten her lifespan before she will of to [regional hospital]- I accept that but it doesn't make it any less frustrating or hard.  Trying to coordinate  all the services involved inst easy ether 

Person no: three a 3 year old child that needs weekly medication - her mum was not bringing her into the clinic twice a week so under a lot of consultation we had the medications changed to weekly

she has not been in for 6 weeks ! we cannot find them this week

DCF closed the case earlier this year - i got them to re open it 

DCF were not aware that they had not attended the clinic for 6 weeks 

nobody followed up on this while i was away

in fact nobody followed up on the children's portfolio at all there are about a page of children that are really complex 

these kids are so sick - i cant spell half there conditions. so I'm not going to list them but believe me when i say OMG

I digress 

Person no: four and five

an elderly couple both with dementia - they keep getting kicked out of families houses so they live in the long grass, she cant push his wheel chair off to a decent homeless camp, which there are a few around here , so she pushes him of the side of the road into some scrub to sleep

with out family, guardianship or enduring power of attorney a nursing home placement is almost impossible although we do try to get them in for respite care occasional 

no medications

no check ups 

no one cares 

I care - but i don't have the energy - i get to work at least an hour late everyday - so disrespectful to be late to work on a regular basis -- but I DON'T CARE 

I cant fight the system any more 

I admit defeat 

and although i KNOW there are no solutions out here , there is no housing, no escape from the grog (alcohol restrictions are useless, grog is coming in on the back roads and being sold at 5 and 6 times the price it was brought for on the black market )

no escape from Domestic violence 

if you keep perspective and set small goals you can make a difference you can keep people alive just that bit longer , or make there already horrible lives just that bit easier and that is enough - I'm not going to save the world, i might not even save someone's life, but i do get to keep people alive just that bit longer to spend with there families, i do get to bring a bit of comfort to an otherwise hard life

(and in doing that have actually saved a life or two, a happy 'side effect' for lack of a better term). 

Yet knowing all that, practicing all that for the last two years and i have somehow been overwhelmed and am admitting defeat 

(although not out loud, not yet - every now and then a ray of hope pokes through the grey clouds)

I didn't mention that being involved in this community for 9 years

and working so closely with an Aboriginal elder and health worker, working in the town camps - or community living areas ,

I have my own skin name

I hardly need anything translated, i can understand more than i can speak Walpri but it is enough to get buy

I have learnt a lot of the culture and how to navigate it 

In doing that i am also privy to some of the hopelessness and the facts , story's and the events of the everyday life's out here, more so than most people, more than people sitting in an office or clinic anyway 

the smell of poverty is not something that can be breathed lightly 

hearing the story of a 6 year old that has been raped, or someone that has been beaten, someone that is dying or homeless or starving from the community, from the family is a lot different to hearing it on the news 

hearing it while standing in filth, breathing in the rotten garbage smell, the smell of overcrowding and unwashed bodies seeing the mange covered dogs and the children running around with sores and green snot dripping onto their top lips

is a lot different to hearing it in the sterile environment of a hospital or clinic.

Anyway that's my week, thanks for asking - I mean it - no one asks 

Oh and i think this e-mail covers your question on "something most people don't know about you"

in short - i'm not as happy as i appear and i'm quietly admitting defeat 

I hope you have a lovely weekend 

I'm planning on some packing and tidying of the house 

x

Rochelle 

what, in your view, is the moral relationship between humans and the environment?

 what, in your view, is the moral relationship between humans and the environment?

 

Human kind has an obligation both a moral and an ethical one, to look after and protect the environment not only for now but for future generations.  If Human kind is to survive long enough to evolve and go on then the world we live in needs to be cared for and respected.

A second opinion held by some environmental philosophers is that we have no moral obligation to future generations as they cannot reciprocate.  This actually seems quite harsh, without moral obligation to the environment then there would unlikely be a planet for our descendants to inhabit

Anthropocentrism literally means “human-centeredness “. An anthropocentric ethic claims that only human beings are morally considerable in their own right, meaning that all the direct moral obligations we possess, including those we have with regard to the environment, are owed to our fellow human beings. The moral obligation between humans and the environment exists now, because it is our environment, our home that is being effected by damaged being caused to the environment.

A third view is Early Christian views which show that humans have no responsibility towards the environment as humans are given a dominion over it. This means that God has given humans authority over the earth, animals and plants

The granting of moral standing to future generations - Human beings who do not yet exist, is considered necessary because of the fact that many environmental problems, such as climate change and resource depletion, will affect future humans much more than they affect present ones.

Although having said this the question remains who are the future human beings.

The relationship between the environment and humans can be complicated, as human morals are individualized and humans place values on things that are important to them so a farmer may have a stronger moral view on the environment than say an oil or office worker.

In the end my view is that humans individually and collectively have a moral relationship to the environment in order to protect ourselves and future generations of all living forms from harm.

 

345 words

 

Brennan, A & Lo, YS 2010, Understanding environmental philosophy, Acumen, Durham UK, pp. 18-37.

Carson, R 2000, Silent Spring, Penguin, London, pp. 21-30.

Hardin, G 2005, 'Who Cares for Posterity?', in LP Pojman (ed.), Environmental ethics: readings in theory and application, 4th ed., Wadsworth, Belmont CA, pp. 324-30.

Westra, L & ECI 2005, 'The Earth Charter: From Global Ethics to International Law Instrument', in LP Pojman (ed.), Environmental ethics: readings in theory and application, 4th ed., Wadsworth, Belmont CA, pp. 590-6.

 

Australian Indigenous Income Management

Australian Indigenous income management

Part 1: The Case

Introduction

As the indigenous population in Australia reaches almost 700,000 (2011 census) (Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS) 2011) The Australian welfare programs for the Indigenous have seen some changes in recent years.  While many Australians enjoy world class health and education systems, many indigenous particularly those living in remote areas live in improvised conditions. There is substandard housing, problems with alcohol, domestic violence, high crime rates and low school attendance. During the 2007 Howard government intervention income management was brought into the Northern territory as a way of helping Indigenous manage their incomes. Using social justice and human rights frameworks this case study examines the current income management programs in the Northern Territory

                                                                                                                                            

Case overview

Australia has a significant history when it comes to the indigenous population – one of

abuse, genocide, stolen generation and lack of human rights.  In 1883 the board for protection of aborigines was established, they later changed their name to the aborigine welfare board (The State Records Authority of New South Wales, 1995).

 

The duties of the new Board were to: apportion, distribute and apply moneys for the relief or benefit of Aboriginal people; or to assist them in obtaining employment; maintain them whilst employed or otherwise to assist them to become assimilated into the general life of the community; distribute blankets, clothing, and relief to Aboriginal people; provide for the custody and maintenance of Aboriginal children; manage and regulate the use of reserves; exercise a general supervision and care over all Aboriginal people and over all matters affecting their interests and welfare, and to protect them against injustice, imposition and fraud; arrange for the inspection at regular intervals of each station and training school under the control of the Board.( The State Records Authority of New South Wales,1995)

 

While there has been some changes to the Aboriginal welfare board, and Aboriginal policies including name changes, The Howard Governments 2007 intervention – close the gap strategies remain similar to the duties carried out in 1883  (Cox, 2015; Buckmaster & Ey, 2012). 

 

According to Altman and Sanders (1995) after the 1967 referendum Australian aborigines subsequently became very dependent on welfare.  Some Authors including famous Aboriginal leader Noel Pearson describe the past aboriginal welfare system as the downfall of aboriginal society and what has led to a cycle of dependence on welfare, alcohol abuse, domestic violence, unemployment, vulnerable children and irresponsibility (Davidoff & Duas, 2008). Income management came about after the report on allegations of serious sexual abuse of children in Aboriginal communities, the report is called “The little children are scared” (Korff, 2015; Gibson, 2012).  The Howard Government introduced Income Management into the Northern Territory as a way of assisting welfare recipients (Gibson, 2015).  In order for the Howard Government to do this the Anti-Discrimination Act had to be suspended in order to pass policy on income management (ACOSS, 2009).

 

Income management was automatically applied to all indigenous persons on Centrelink benefits living in the Northern territory – everyone received a Basics card, where a percentage of their center link benefits were put on the card.  (Korff, 2015). The card requires a pin number and at first could only be used at some shops, now there is a greater range of shops the Basics card can be used at. The Basics card cannot be used to buy alcohol, tobacco, pornography or some takeaway foods. (Korff, 2015).

Some authors suggest that Income management was brought into control what Aborigines in the Northern Territory could spend their money on, (Gibson, 2012; Korff, 2015; Bielefeld, 2012).  These authors suggest that Income Management has a negative and discriminatory impact on Aboriginal peoples in the Northern Territory (Gibson, 2012; Korff, 2015; Bielefeld, 2012).

 

A second type of income management is used and is popular in some parts of the Northern Territory, the individual arranges a certain amount of their money to go to a particular shop each pay week, including to rental agencies or other bills such as electricity, where they can either save it up for larger items, such as white goods or furniture or to shops including butchers, grocery shops or other retail outlets where they can get food and other essential items (Gibson, 2012).  This negates the need of having a pin based card (Korff, 2015).

 

The objective of income management set by the Howard Government in 2007 has been to reduce immediate hardships by directing welfare payments to those who need them, help people on welfare payments obtain essential items and reduce the amount of money spent on alcohol tobacco pornography and gambling ( Buckmaster & Ey, 2012; Korff, 2015; Dvidoff & Duas, 2008) . Income management is also used to help people with budgeting and reduce vulnerable people on welfare from being harassed and abused for their payments (Korff, 2015).  Income management is also used to encourage socially responsible behavior (Buckmaster & Ey, 2012; Korff, 2015; Dvidoff & Duas, 2008).

 

There are Advantages and disadvantages to these two types of income management.  Firstly it allows vulnerable people access to money in order to buy food or other essential items when needed. (Korff, 2015) Studies have found that there have been benefits to children women and the elderly on income management as they have been able to access food clothing and other essential items. The individual can control the pin number, if they have a basics card or go to a shop their money is at, to get purchase essential items (ACOSS, 2009)

Income management is designed to help recipients budget and reduce the amount of cash funds for alcohol, tobacco and gambling (Buckmster & Ey, 2012)

Disadvantages include – there was no or limited consultation with Aboriginal people regarding this program , and income management was initially limited to Indigenous people in the Northern Territory with a trial program in Cape York Queensland (QLD).  Recently the government has expanded income management to other areas in QLD and to people of all ethnic backgrounds. Income management and basics cards, or the shops that allow Basic Card use for welfare recipients is not yet Australia wide (Bielefield, 2013; social policy research, ACOSS, 2009; Cox, 2015).

         People only have access to a certain amount of ‘cash’ money to purchase other items individuals on income management have reported not changing what they spend their money on and feeling more shamed and embarrassed because they are on income management. (Korff, 2015).

 

          Key stakeholders are the Indigenous people of the northern territory, Centrelink – which is managed under the department of human services to deliver a wide range of services to Who provide the basics cards an income management

The government who implemented this policy and the shop keepers that provide facilities to have the basics card or those that sell items that cannot be accessed by basic card holders such as tobacco and alcohol outlets. The stakeholder are all effected in different ways by income management

 

 

Summary of issues

 

Income management was introduced in the Northern Territory by the Howard government in 2007 it includes allocating a certain percentage of money onto the basics card, which restricts what people can use the money for Income management can also be allocating a certain amount of money to various shops.

The government had to suspend the anti- discrimination act to pass the policy on income management

           The objectives of income management include:

Reduce immediate hardships

Help recipients obtain essential items

Reduce the amount of money spent on alcohol, tobacco and pornography

There is some evidence that income management has aided vulnerable people

However income management policy was not done in consultation with the indigenous and there is evidence to suggest income management has not met all its objectives (ACOSS, 2009)

 

Part 2: Analysis and possible recommendation

 

Welfare and social justice considerations;

Social justice can be described as the fair distribution of resources among the population.  In Australia social justice is about making sure all peoples have the right to choose how they live and the ability in which to make those choices (Australian Human Rights Commission, 2014) Social Justice is grounded in everyday life and according to the social justice commissioner (Australian Human Rights Commission, 2014) Social justice is about housing with running water and sanitation, the right to education, employment and good health.  For the indigenous peoples of Australia it is also about recognising them as the original owners of the land with a right to a distinct culture and status, the right to land and the right to self – determination. Social justice is up held when the rights of indigenous peoples are promoted. (Australian Human Rights Commission, 2014; Social Justice Report 2007; Social policy research Centre (SPRC), 2015).

            People on welfare often face more discrimination find it harder to gain education, seek employment (Murphy, Murray, Chalmers, Martin & Marston 2011).  The shame people feel while on welfare and the social injustice they experience is high.  Income management takes people’s ability away to manage their income and therefore resources as they see fit.

Making income management less obvious for those that choose to be on it

Reducing the stigma of welfare in Australia would be beneficial to recipients

There is no doubt that there are vulnerable people that could benefit from income management.  The anti-discrimination act that had to be suspended in order for the Howard government to put income management into place should be reinstated

 

Human rights considerations

Human rights are rights that are inherent to all human beings regardless of culture, sex, place of residence or any other status.  Human beings all over the world are entitled to human rights which are inherent, invisible and interrelated without discrimination. (Almond, 1993)

In order for the government to roll out the income management scheme in 2007 the racial discrimination act had to be suspended (Gibson, P, 2012). In Australian law the right to nondiscrimination is excluded on the basis of a person’s status such as homeless, on welfare or unemployed. The United Nations states that all human beings have the right to nondiscrimination regardless of social status (Human Rights Commission, 2014)

By implementing income management several human rights were breached these include the right to self-determination – the choice of how income is managed has been taking away from people. The income management policy interferes with the right to use personal income.  Freedom of movement – when the basics card was implemented not all stores accepted the card, and the system is not set up in other states and territory’s making it difficult for people to move around Australia freely (Bielefeld, 2013; Bielefeld, 2012; ACOSS, 2009).

Indigenous land rights were disregarded and 5 year leases of indigenous lands were obtained without consultation with indigenous people.

The government when implementing income management did so after the report – ‘The Little Children are Scared’ was released that showed children in Aboriginal communities to be vulnerable. The objective of income management was to reduce immediate hardships

Help recipients obtain essential items, Reduce the amount of money spent on alcohol, tobacco and pornography

 

There are reports that many people forced to go on income management feel as if they have no control over their lives and that having a basics card has not improved the ability to buy or have access to essential items (Korff, 2015)

Low income earners are more likely to experience a breach in their civil and political rights

From a human rights perspective mandatory income management that has been introduced into the Northern territory has breached human rights by not consulting with the people it applies to, by not allowing freedom of movement and self- determination in management of funds (Korff, 2015).

The government has advocated that income management policies need to be evidence based, to ensure they are meeting the objectives.

There are cases being made by indigenous peoples and organisations for voluntary income management –Income management and the use of basics cards needs to be in consultation with Indigenous peoples (Gibson, 2012).  Other changes that can lessen the impact income management has on people include - restrictions from basics cards removed, giving people the right to manage their resources and the availability of shops allowing the use of basics cards Australia Wide

 

Summary of recommendations

 

From a welfare and social justice perspective

•   Income management should not be discriminatory 

•   The anti-racial discrimination act should be reinstated

•   Either all welfare recipients should be subject to compulsory income management or no welfare recipients should be subject to it.  Income management could be valuable to certain people and be available as a voluntary option.

•   Public policy change to make welfare recipients less recognizable

 

From a human rights perspective

•   Income management including basics cards should be voluntary

•   Income management policies should be done in consultation with aboriginal peoples

•   Income management is beneficial to vulnerable people, so should be available to those who require / wish to have it

•   Basics cards should be less restrictive on what is able to purchase with them

•   Basics cards should be available to use at all stores Australia wide

                                                                                         

 

Part 3: Final recommendation

Income management should remain an option for people on welfare as there is no doubt that vulnerable people are taken advantage of and results show that some people find using the basics card to access essential items beneficial, there is also evidence that supports the view of many people finding income management discriminatory and shameful (Buckmaster & Ey, 2012; Korff, 2015; Dvidoff & Duas, 2008). Compulsory income management has breached human rights, Income management should be voluntary and in consultation with the people receiving it.

 

 The negative views around income management and basics card need to be removed, through de stigmatization allowing people receiving welfare payments to have the same rights afforded to all Australians  and making recipients more anonymous (Gibson, 2015).  The stigma of welfare and income management in Australia needs to be reduced this will improve human rights for people receiving welfare, by taking a way the shame they feel, and allowing people to access education and employment

The anti-discrimination act should be reinstated and any income management programs in line with the criteria outlined in the act.  The removal of the Anti-Discrimination act breached human rights and is quite damaging to the Aboriginal peoples (Buckmaster & Ey, 2012; Korff, 2015; Dvidoff & Duas, 2008).

 

 

Total word count: 2667

Word count without quotes and references: 2280

 

 

Reference list

 

Almond, B 1993, 'Rights', in P Singer (ed.), A Companion to Ethics, Blackwell, Oxford, pp. 259-69.

Altman & Sanders, 1995, discussion paper 193 center for aboriginal economic policy. Centre for Aboriginal economic policy research

 

Australian Human Rights Commission 2014,://www.humanrights.gov.au/ Viewed 02/06/2014.

 

Australian Bureau of Statistics 2011, Australian Capital Territory in focus 2002, cat. no. 1307.8, ABS, Canberra.

 

Bielefeld, S 2012, Compulsory Income Management and Indigenous Australians: Delivering Social Justice or Furthering Colonial Domination?, Sydney law Journal Vol 35 (2) p301 -315.

 

Bielefeld, S, 2013, Compulsory Income Management and Indigenous Peoples- Exploring Counter Narratives Amidst Colonial Constructions of Vulnerability, Sydney Law Journal Vol 36 : 695 p 21-45

 

 

Buckmaster & Ey, 2012, is income management working? Social policy section: Parliament of Australia, Department of Parliamentary Services.

 

Cox, 2015, Income Management, University of Technology, Sydney.

 

Davidoff & Duas, 2008, income management

 

Gibson, P, 2012, Income management in the Northern Territory, racism is still the issue. Jumbunna Indigeous House of Learning  

 

 

Korff,J, 2015, Northern territory, Emergency Response (NTER)- “ the intervention” www.creativespirits.info . Viewed 26/5/15

 

Murphy, J, Murray, S, Chalmers, J, Martin, S & Marston, G 2011, Half a citizen: life on welfare in Australia, in Allen & Unwin, Sydney, pp. 1-21.

 

 

Social Justice Report 2007 - Chapter 3: The Northern Territory 'Emergency Response' intervention

 

Social policy research Centre (SPRC), 2015,university of new south wales and Australian Institute of family studies, evaluation framework for new income management (NIM), prepared for the Department of family’s, housing, Community Services and in diagnosis SPRC,

 

Submission to the National Human Rights Consultation. ACOSS, June 2009, Australian Council of Social Service

 

 

The States records Authority of New South Wales, 2015 Copyright the States Record Authority of New South Wales www.records.nsw.gov.au/ Viewed 01/06/2015