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Time Rudd admitted mistake on NT intervention

19 June 2008 - Media Release Australian Greens - The Australian Greens today called on the Rudd Government to admit they'd made a mistake in backing the ill-conceived approach of the Northern Territory Intervention.

“The Rudd Government has always held up its commitment to evidence-based policy in Indigenous Affairs … and yet it is still pushing on with these ill-conceived Howard-era policies for which there was never an evidence base,” said Senator Rachel Siewert today.

"Its time the ALP returned to its core values and committed to an evidence-based, human rights and community development approach to Indigenous Affairs … and began to put these scarce resources to more effective use in the NT," she said.

“The suspension of the Racial Discrimination Act remains a sticking point and an international embarrassment for the Rudd Government. We do not need the review to tell us that this aspect of the intervention is and always will be morally wrong and ethically unjustifiable."

“The huge amount of resources currently being poured into the NT intervention has the potential to turn around lives on remote communities, but most of the money is being spent on administration and not hitting the ground to address the underlying causes."

"This is a massive community development opportunity that is being squandered. More needs to be done to ensure money is spent wisely on the things that actually make a difference," said Senator Siewert.

"The amount of money wasted on income management is a crying shame," said Sentor Siewert. "When the quarantining period comes to an end, those affected won't have been educated and empowered to take control of their own finances … and there still won't be jobs for them to go to."

“Much more of these resources need to be focused on delivering basic health services and protecting children at risk, on fixing existing houses and building safe new homes for the future,” concluded Senator Siewert.

Source: Australian Greens

Further information: NT Intervention issues page - includes news index and external links

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