Stronger Futures policy

The Building Stronger Regions, Stronger Futures policy, launched on 3 May 2003 by the Northern Territory Community Development Minister Jack Ah Kit, involved consultation between the Northern Territory Government and Indigenous group leaders of the Northern Territory to form a regional governance system and improve service delivery outcomes within the Northern Territory. Due to the high failure rate of small councils in the Northern Territory, their increased dependence on non-Aboriginal staff for basic needs, and the corrupt and fraudulent activity within local governments, the policy created representative and administrative regional authorities and transfused local governments into twenty large and stable councils. The regional authorities would sustain initiatives of regional development, require the support of residents, supply decision-making structures and provide a culturally based electorate. The Local Government Act of 1978, which established community governance structures in remote areas of the Northern Territory and promoted local governments in Aboriginal communities, supplied an appropriate statutory foundation for these authorities. In addition, the policy addressed capacity development in governance through the development of improved financial and service capacity monitoring, instatement of development officers and establishment of stronger administration in local and regional areas. This agreement defined the anticipated outcome of the regional authorities. In late 2006, the Building Stronger Regions, Stronger Futures policy was replaced with the New Local Government Policy due to "ideological dissatisfaction and implementation difficulties experienced by government bureaucrats in trying to accommodate Indigenous regional concepts, ideas about representation for local government and consensus methods of decision making." The discussion-based approach of the Building Stronger Regions, Stronger Futures policy took time and strained the resources and capacity of both Governments. ==New Local Government Policy==

In 2006, the Australian Government enacted the New Local Government Policy which established mandatory regionalisation within the Northern Territory and outlined nine regions, which were to be acknowledged as shires, to command a single democratic governance structure through a "one size fits all" approach. The policy exhibited similar flexibility in Indigenous governance structures and decision-making processes, compared to the Building Stronger Regions, Stronger Futures policy, yet effectively ignored culturally based processes of local governance, Indigenous governance systems and cultural geographies within the shire structure. In order to address Indigenous input, the policy created 'transitional committees' through which the Australian Government could provide advice about shires and non-Indigenous individuals and stakeholders could participate. ==Northern Territory National Emergency Response Act 2007==

In August 2007, the Coalition Australian Government responded to the ALP NT government's Little Children are Sacred report, with the Northern Territory National Emergency Response Act 2007, bringing about what became known as "The Intervention". This was developed without the involvement of the NT government. Through this Act, the Australian Government seized administrative control of sixty remote Indigenous communities, attained compulsory leases on Indigenous settlements for a minimum of a five-years and enacted legislation to act on these changes. As a result, "all communities located on the Aboriginal inalienable freehold land under the Aboriginal Land Rights Act 1976 would have their permit systems revoked." In addition, the Australian Government sent an Emergency Response Taskforce, which included the Australian Army and Department of Families, Community Services and Indigenous Affairs, to "priority communities" in order to ensure requirements of the Act were carried out and oversee health checks on Aboriginal children. At the November 2007 federal election the ALP was voted into power, and expressed a desire to evaluate the new Act. ==Northern Territory Emergency Response Evaluation==

In October 2008, after an examination of an independent review of the Northern Territory Intervention, the Australian Government pledged to recognise the extreme disadvantage and social seclusion experienced by remote communities within the Northern Territory, form a legitimate relationship with the Indigenous people based on consultation, acknowledge Australian human rights responsibilities and reinstate the Racial Discrimination Act 1975. From June to August 2009, the Government held consultations with Aboriginal communities in the Northern Territory to identify the proper direction for the Northern Territory Emergency Response. In June 2010, as a result of these consultations, the Australian Parliament passed legislation to "reinstate the operation of the Racial Discrimination Act 1975 in relation to the Northern Territory Emergency Response, introduce a new, non-discriminatory scheme of income management, redesign the alcohol and pornography restrictions, five-year leases and community stores licensing, redesign law enforcement powers to improve and make them sustainable for the greater long-term benefit of Indigenous people." The report identified certain problems within the Northern Territory Emergency Response such as the blanket imposition of initiatives, especially those that demanded behavioral change such as income management, and the suspension of the Racial Discrimination Act 1975. The report identified specific issues within the Intervention such as the lack of interpreter services, persistent challenge of housing, high rates of violent crime and alcohol-related offenses, low employment rates, and low rates of school attendance. Through this evaluation, the Australian Government recognised the large discrepancy which persists between non-Indigenous and Indigenous peoples within the Northern Territory and has created the "Stronger Futures" Policy along with several pieces of supportive legislation to continue "closing the gap." ==Stronger Futures policy of 2011==

On 23 November 2011, Hon Jenny Macklin MP, the Minister for Families, Housing, Community Services and Indigenous Affairs introduced legislation to Parliament in order to address issues within the Northern Territory and released the Stronger Futures policy statement. The Stronger Futures in the Northern Territory legislation seeks to address the disadvantaged position of Aboriginal Territorians in the Northern Territory and create a collaboration between the Northern Territory Government and Aboriginal Territorians to construct a strong future together. This engagement of different governance bodies, the Aboriginal Territorians, Northern Territory Government and Australian Government, seeks to encourage reform and improve service delivery across the Northern Territory. The Stronger Futures in the Northern Territory Policy statement declares, "At the heart of this work will be the views of Aboriginal people in the Northern Territory." The Australian Government identified imperative issues within the Northern Territory such as appropriate education, rampant alcohol abuse, housing availability and the deficient supply of economic and employment opportunities. Supporting legislation The Australian Government intends for all legislation to occur in collaboration with Northern Territory Indigenous communities, which the Government recognises did not happen during instatement of Northern Territory Response Act. All legislative measures will continue to comply with the Racial Discrimination Act 1975. • The Stronger Futures in the Northern Territory Bill 2011 supports the ability for Aboriginals in the NT to have families and cultivate livelihoods. The measures within the Bill express a desire to create communities in the Northern Territory where children can grow up safe and healthy. • The Stronger Futures in the Northern Territory (Consequential and Transitional Provisions) Bill 2011 proposes repeals of Northern Territory Emergency Response Act of 2007, amendments to Commonwealth Laws to improve operation of existing measures like pornography restrictions and prohibitions on considering customary law in bail and sentencing decision. • The Social Security Legislation Amendment Bill 2011 intends to assist disadvantaged and vulnerable Australians and improve school attendance. Certain legislative measure seek to address the issue of alcohol abuse in the Territory by allowing State and Northern Territory authorities to refer people to income management, which is an initiative that reduces the amount of discretionary funds that can be spent on harmful substances such as drugs or alcohol and ensures that money is spent on basic needs such as food and shelter. ==Reaction==

Criticism In response to the Stronger Futures legislation, Amnesty International called on the Australian Government to collaborate with the Indigenous communities of the Northern Territory and construct appropriate approaches that "respect the rights of those affected." Rodney Dillon, the Amnesty International Campaigner of Australian Indigenous Rights, referring to the Northern Territory National Emergency Response Act, states "The Government must recognise that local issues need local solutions rather than the failed one-size-fits-all Intervention policies that were imposed upon communities four years ago." A group of Aboriginal Elders of the Northern Territory released a statement in a response to the Stronger Futures legislation which was titled, "No More! Enough is Enough!". The statement discussed their rejection of their Stronger Futures legislation and called on the Australian Government to issue an apology for the "hurt, embarrassment, shame and stigma" that Aboriginals in the Northern Territory experienced because of the measures within the Intervention. The Elders accused the Australian government of being in breach of its international treaty obligations to the First Nations people, due to its membership to the United Nations, through its inability to eliminate racial discrimination. The Elders identified several measures which would help ensure a strong future for their children, including: bilingualism in schools, rewards for attendance, leadership roles in localised school programs, a reflection of traditional knowledge in the curriculum, and the fair treatment of Aboriginal teachers in a culturally sensitive manner. The individuals asserted that the policy violates the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child and the Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples and breaches the Racial Discrimination Act 1975. The individuals called on the Government to abandon the legislation and set up appropriate mechanisms to involve Aboriginals leaders and Elders of the Northern Territory in the decision-making processes that define their future. Support The Stronger Futures policy is regarded by the Government as an important initiative to improve the quality and access of education for children in the Northern Territory through a $583 million investment, as discussed by Jenny Macklin, Peter Garrett MP, the Minister for School Education, Warren Snowdon MP, the Minister for Indigenous Health, and Senator Trish Crossin, Senator for the Northern Territory, in a joint media release. The officials detail how the policy provides for the retainment of teaching positions in remote Northern Territory schools and investment of teaching initiatives. In addition the policy will supply funding for the creation of teacher housing in remote Northern Territory communities and provide assistance to the Northern Territory Government for the professional development of Aboriginal workers in the education system. In addition, the releases states how the Stronger Futures policy will continue funding of a nutrition program that provides meals to 5,000 students in 67 schools every day. This funding will support sixteen women's safe houses and allow for the expansion of a number of Communities for Children sites, which offer various services such as early learning and literacy programs and child nutrition advice. The input of community members will help define what services are offered. In addition, the policy funds Mobile Child Protection teams, the employment of twelve remote Aboriginal family and community workers, and the Youth in Communities Program, which help keep youth connected to school and away from substance abuse. The funding will support the employment of sixty full-time Northern Territory police officers and help build four police complexes in the Northern Territory. The funding will provide Substance Abuse Intelligence Desks, which are intended to help bust drug distribution from other states into the Northern Territory and reduce substance abuse in remote communities of the Northern Territory as revealed by an independent review in 2012. In response to strong community support, the Australian Government will continue funding of night patrols. In addition, the funding will support the Northern Territory Child Abuse Taskforce. Furthermore, the Stronger Futures policy includes 76 million dollars in funding to tackle alcohol abuse in terms of extending current restrictions, developing alcohol management plans and increasing penalties for grog running. The Australian Government claims that through the funding provided by the Stronger Futures policy, the safety of Aboriginal communities in the Northern Territory will increase and the degree of alcohol abuse will decline. ==2022 review==

The alcohol restrictions are due to end in July 2022, with the communities and town camps having the option to continue the bans for a further two years in order to further consider what the community wishes to do. The NT Government has said that some communities have opted to apply for a licence for a local venue, but that any application would have to follow the usual processes for approval. Not all NT communities fall under the Stronger Futures legislation, and some will remain dry regardless, under existing NT laws. A 2019 report showed that the Northern Territory has the highest consumption of alcohol per capita of all states and territories of Australia, and that much crime is driven by alcohol. ==See also==