Australian angst : From Reaction to Action?

Continuing on from my last post, the debate Downunder following the revelations of serious domestic and sexual abuse in Aboriginal communities continues apace.

The national mood has turned to anger, with many voices clamouring that the abuses have been happening for years and that the Australian government's policy of non-intervention and the reluctance of politically-correct do-gooders to condemn what has been a long-standing and little publicised culture of abuse has served to reinforce and legitimise this abhorrent behaviour.

Australian Prime Minister John Howard has called for immediate action to bring the perpetrators of these abuses to book. "We're doing a great disservice to indigenous communities by … holding back from the proper enforcement of the laws against people who transgress those laws". The Indigenous Affairs Minister, Mal Brough, has announced an emergency summit, however, there has been widespread cynicism as to how effective this "Talkfest" will prove, given that several federal and state leaders have chosen to boycott the event.

For some commentators, this furore is strangely reminiscent of the media attention surrounding John Howard's 2003 summit. Let's just hope that Australia manages to harness the national mood and to act now, instead of sidelining the problem for another 3 years.