GET THE BALANCE RIGHT
Social development as part of economic development
By Rollo Manning
Tiwi suicide exposed - "Land of the dead" - UK Guardian newspaper
Having the highest suicide rate "in the world" came as a surprise and shock to close observers of the plight of the Tiwi people.
Social development as part of economic development
By Rollo Manning
Tiwi suicide exposed - "Land of the dead" - UK Guardian newspaperHaving the highest suicide rate "in the world" came as a surprise and shock to close observers of the plight of the Tiwi people.
This small community of 2,500 people on the two islands, Melville and Bathurst Islands, had already won the award for the highest rate of kidney disease in Australia (Professor Wendy Hoy The Health Report: 2 June 1997 - Kidney Disease in Aboriginal Communities).
Bathurst/Melville Islands were rated the most disadvantaged in Australia by a report in The Weekend Australian on 22 April 2006.
While these statements, statistics and reports do nothing for the morale of the Tiwi people their plight is a sad reflection of many remote Aboriginal communities across the North of Australia. These normally happy, friendly and fun loving people, who produce brilliant Australian Rules footballers, welcome tourists to their islands with great pride. Politicians use the islands for getting a picture opportunity and grabbing a headline for what is another government program claimed to be going to change the way they live.
Nothing has worked. It is getting worse.
The sooner government policy makers can come to terms with the fact that the problems start at the ground level and cannot be solved by pouring in money through government sponsored programs the better everyone will be.
The way to fix the disastrous situation is through social development - the rebuilding of the social capital that has been desecrated over the past 30 years by previous policy approaches that have failed to take account of the views of the people themselves.
In 1979 when noted publicist/entrepreneur John Singleton travelled the north of Australia he observed “…the do-gooders insist the Aboriginal people live exactly like us whites. It is obviously ludicrous.” And further “…every time I look at one of those bearded university-trained southern do-gooders, I wonder if they will ever realise that they can never solve the Aboriginal problem because they are the problem”. (The Bulletin 9th October 1979)
The question that has to be asked is why an Aboriginal community of people with one of the best developed economic resources through forestry, fish breeding, tourism, art and mineral mining should still be so socially disadvantaged.
Could it be that the money accruing to the Tiwi Islanders is not getting down to the real causes of social malaise?
Maybe it is time for the government to do something useful and look into why the social problems are getting worse in the face of more money coming in through private enterprise economic development.
Could it be that the people who govern the enterprises are profiting to an extent that needs changing for the sake of the majority. This was pointed to in a paper by former Tiwi Island Local Government CEO John Cleary in a paper done for the Centre for Independent Studies in April 2005. A full copy of this CIS Issues Analysis can be read at http://www.cis.org.au/IssueAnalysis/ia55/IA55.pdf It is an example that must be explored for the common belief is that improve the economy and lifestyle will improve. This is not the case with the Tiwi.
The motto should be:
"Gain economic strength through social development - build social capital and build a healthy community."
20th July 2006
The sooner government policy makers can come to terms with the fact that the problems start at the ground level and cannot be solved by pouring in money through government sponsored programs the better everyone will be.
The way to fix the disastrous situation is through social development - the rebuilding of the social capital that has been desecrated over the past 30 years by previous policy approaches that have failed to take account of the views of the people themselves.
In 1979 when noted publicist/entrepreneur John Singleton travelled the north of Australia he observed “…the do-gooders insist the Aboriginal people live exactly like us whites. It is obviously ludicrous.” And further “…every time I look at one of those bearded university-trained southern do-gooders, I wonder if they will ever realise that they can never solve the Aboriginal problem because they are the problem”. (The Bulletin 9th October 1979)
The question that has to be asked is why an Aboriginal community of people with one of the best developed economic resources through forestry, fish breeding, tourism, art and mineral mining should still be so socially disadvantaged.
Could it be that the money accruing to the Tiwi Islanders is not getting down to the real causes of social malaise?
Maybe it is time for the government to do something useful and look into why the social problems are getting worse in the face of more money coming in through private enterprise economic development.
Could it be that the people who govern the enterprises are profiting to an extent that needs changing for the sake of the majority. This was pointed to in a paper by former Tiwi Island Local Government CEO John Cleary in a paper done for the Centre for Independent Studies in April 2005. A full copy of this CIS Issues Analysis can be read at http://www.cis.org.au/IssueAnalysis/ia55/IA55.pdf It is an example that must be explored for the common belief is that improve the economy and lifestyle will improve. This is not the case with the Tiwi.
The motto should be:
"Gain economic strength through social development - build social capital and build a healthy community."
20th July 2006
