That the Assembly:

38.1 Towards Reconciliation

noting that during 2000 the Council for Aboriginal Reconciliation has presented to the nation documents for reconciliation:

(a) endorse the Australian Declaration Towards Reconciliation and commend it to all councils of the church for study and endorsement as a further step in covenanting and reconciliation;

(b) endorse the idea of a legislated process of negotiation between the leaders of the Indigenous and non-indigenous peoples of Australia towards a formal agreement (treaty) dealing with the 'unfinished business' of the Council for Aboriginal Reconciliation's process for reconciliation;

Rationale:
As noted in Report C11, the Council for Aboriginal Reconciliation has released its Documents for Reconciliation - the Australian Declaration Towards Reconciliation and the Roadmap for Reconciliation. The Australian Declaration Towards Reconciliation is an inspirational and aspirational statement of the nation's acknowledgment of Indigenous peoples and seeks to further the process of reconciliation. Copies of the Australian Declaration Towards Reconciliation and the Roadmap for Reconciliation have been provided within the working papers of the Assembly. Covenanting is suggesting that the Assembly endorses the statement and suggests other councils of the church also study and, if appropriate, endorse the statement.

The Australian Declaration Towards Reconciliation acknowledges that there has been no treaty and consent has neither been sought or granted. One of the critical points raised by the Mabo Decision is that the doctrine of terra nullius, upon which non-indigenous sovereignty and occupancy is based, is racially discriminatory. In order to approach the question of 'unfinished business' it is essential that the nation provides a non-discriminatory foundation for national identity. A legislative process for creating a treaty is the most appropriate and just way of dealing with the discrimination of the past and the present.

38.2 Action to advance Covenanting and Reconciliation

(a) urge Assembly agencies, synods, presbyteries and congregations to study the Roadmap for Reconciliation, and the Uniting Aboriginal and Islander Christian Congress suggested Strategies for Reconciliation (see section 6.3 of the report);

(b) (i) implement, in partnership with the Uniting Aboriginal and Islander Christian Congress, an Indigenous Employment Program whereby at least 2% of the staff of the Assembly and Assembly agencies are Indigenous people;

(ii) commit to maintaining programs which provide young people with cross-cultural experience of each others' communities;

(c) (i) request each synod to establish a process for monitoring the progress of the UAICC Strategies for Reconciliation, including within their schools and community service agencies, and to report annually to the UAICC and the Covenanting Reference Committee on their progress;

(ii) request each synod to implement, in partnership with the Uniting Aboriginal and Islander Christian Congress, an Indigenous Employment Program whereby at least 2% of the staff of the synod and synod agencies are Indigenous people;

Rationale:
These recommendations address the issue of what the church can do within its own structures. The background for this is explained in report C11. The first stage is for the church to be educated on what the Council for Aboriginal Reconciliation and the Uniting Aboriginal and Islander Christian Congress has identified as areas in which the community can respond to the issues of Indigenous economic empowerment, disadvantage, human rights and maintain reconciliation.

The poverty and disadvantage of Indigenous people is a national scandal. There is much work which needs to be done in consultation with Indigenous peoples and communities to address 212 years of disconnection, dispossession and racism. Covenanting, in consultation with the UAICC, will develop study resources to enable understanding of these issues.

The example and success of the South Australian Synod's 2% Indigenous Employment Program should be closely analysed by the appropriate councils and agencies of the church. The South Australian Synod is a 'corporate leader' in the Commonwealth Government's Indigenous Employment Program and is in the early stages of implementing its 2% Indigenous Employment contract with the Government. The process the South Australian Synod used involved three stages:
· researching and writing a detailed proposal for the approval of the Synod;
· after Synod approval, entering into negotiations with the Government; and
· receiving a contract from the Commonwealth Department of Employment, Workplace Relations and Small Business (DEWRSB).

If such a strategy could be replicated across the nation the effect in terms of the levels of Indigenous employment and the developing of close, trusting relationships between Indigenous people and the church would be revolutionary. We believe that implementing an Indigenous Employment Strategy would provide the UCA with a unique opportunity to be a leader in reconciliation in this nation

Much of the UAICC suggested strategies involves Synods. Some Synods have established task groups to implement the strategies. We are suggesting that in order for these strategies to be co-ordinated and implemented that each Synod establish task groups to implement and monitor the strategies in consultation with regional councils of Congress. By requesting annual reports from Synods, Covenanting will be able to provide a national picture and provide benchmarks for reconciliation.

Exposure programs for young people and young adults, such as About FACE, Interns in Mission and Volunteers in Mission, enable them to grow in their understanding of Indigenous people and their cultures. The last About FACE program involving Indigenous communities was in 1992. A program for 2002 has been put in place. We need to make a commitment to continuing these forms of contextual discipleship formation as a way of building the Covenanting church of the future.

38.3 Ministerial education

request the Ministerial Education Commission, in partnership with Covenanting and the UAICC, to:

(a) facilitate the further development of cross-cultural awareness and anti-racism programs as compulsory semester units for candidates for the specified ministries of the Uniting Church and as compulsory continuing education programs for ministers in placement;

(b) facilitate the development of theologically based community development training programs to support the ministry of the UAICC;

(c) facilitate the development and recognition of Internships with the UAICC as field education and licensed year placements during education for ministry courses;

(d) continue to foster, support and encourage the ongoing development of Indigenous theology and its contextualisation in each state;

(e) organise a theological educators' conference to explore the above issues with the aim of developing a process for implementation;

Rationale:
Covenanting acknowledges the progress of the MEC and theological colleges in encouraging awareness and understanding of Indigenous and cross-cultural issues as part of education for ministry. We are suggesting some possible ways in which this work can be further advanced. In order to develop a greater consciousness of Indigenous issues and reconciliation needs throughout the church we are recommending that cross-cultural awareness and anti-racism programs become a requirement of education for ministry. A key strategy for reconciliation and indeed Covenanting in the future is to ensure that our ministers, youth workers, pastors, parish workers and elders have an understanding of Indigenous culture and reality. Much of the conscious and sub-conscious racism which exists in the community, including in our churches, is due to cross-cultural misunderstanding and ignorance. Covenanting believes that it is appropriate for the development of future ministry that those undergoing education for ministry study the theological and contextual issues involved in cross-cultural education. We are therefore suggesting that the MEC look at encouraging theological colleges to develop semester courses.

In 1998 the Northern Regional Council of Congress hosted a gathering of Indigenous and non-indigenous Uniting Church leaders which looked at Yolgnu law. At this gathering the Congress made a call for people to train and be appointed as community workers with Congress. This call is for people who are willing to make a long-term commitment, learn language and work with Indigenous communities. We need to balance the issue of resourcing Congress appropriately with the issue of maintaining Indigenous self-determination. Self-determination requires Indigenous control of ministry to Indigenous people but not abandonment by non-indigenous people. What is required is a pool of people with appropriate training in community development who will help resource Congress without taking control or creating dependency. As a first step towards developing such a ministry, Covenanting is suggesting that the MEC should encourage field education and Intern placements with Indigenous communities as accredited placements for ministry or as part of ministerial training. This would lead to the development of appropriate long-term community development ministry with Congress and encourage greater links between theological colleges and Indigenous community development programs.

Covenanting believes that the above ideas would be advanced by convening a conference on mission education which would link the theological institutions with the sections of the church which are involved in mission and community development and particularly the Congress. Given the range of agencies and institutions which would need to be involved, this Assembly meeting is best placed to initiate such a conference through the involvement of the Ministerial Education Commission, Covenanting and the Congress.

38.4 Government action

call on the Federal Government to:

(a) adopt the Australian Declaration Towards Reconciliation;

(b) support and implement the Roadmap for Reconciliation in consultation with Indigenous organisations and communities;

(c) support and fund Reconciliation Australia;

(d) establish a consultative body consisting of equal numbers of Indigenous leaders and non-indigenous leaders which will create a legislated framework agreement (treaty) which will:

(i) provide constitutional acknowledgment and recognition of the status of Indigenous peoples of Australia as 'First Peoples';

(ii) provide constitutional recognition of Indigenous rights and remove aspects of the constitution which can be used to discriminate on the basis of race;

(iii) provide constitutional protection to the Racial Discrimination Act;

(iv) provide for a process of Indigenous representation in the parliament;

(v) affirm and recognise native title, land rights, customary law and indigenous heritage protection;

(vi) respect the right to self-determination for Indigenous peoples within the life of the nation;

(vii) provide the foundation for the co-existence of the Indigenous and non-indigenous systems of land ownership;

(viii) acknowledge traditional Indigenous economies and Indigenous rights as the basis for economic empowerment of Indigenous communities;

(e) ensure that all Australian laws, policies and practices which impact on Indigenous people meet the requirements of relevant UN conventions to which Australia is a signatory;
(f) apologize to Indigenous Australians for the negative consequences of all Australian governments' past laws, policies and practices that led to the separation of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children from their families and establish a reparation and compensation tribunal for those negatively affected.
Rationale:
This recommendation calls on the Federal Government to accept the Australian Declaration Towards Reconciliation, support its declaration and implement strategies to advance reconciliation. Given the wide public consultation on the draft Document for Reconciliation, the CAR has been comprehensive in its attempt to finalise a reconciliation document. If the nation is to take seriously the need for healing and reconciliation Towards Reconciliation needs to not only be accepted but given appropriate policy status so that we can build a truly reconciled nation for all our children, Indigenous and non-indigenous. Hence we are calling for support to and resourcing of the proposed new body for reconciliation - Reconciliation Australia. In terms of addressing the acknowledged 'unfinished business' of the CAR we are suggesting a legislated process of developing a Treaty of Reconciliation which will address issues of Indigenous national status and human rights in line with international human rights standards.

We are also calling on the Federal Government to appropriately deal with the issue of the stolen generations through a national apology and a tribunal process which will, hopefully, enable the real pain and trauma of those effected by Indigenous child removal policies to be addressed in a non-adversarial way. We are particularly concerned that the Commonwealth Government has been unable to deal with this issue in a way which assists the healing process for the nation in general and stolen generations people in particular.

The Federal Parliament has been unable to apologise to the stolen generations due to the Government's position. The Government's decision underscores its failure to acknowledge the past practice of racially based separation of Indigenous children from their families and this process's destructive effects on the people who were removed from their families, those from whom they were removed and the debilitating effect of this process on Indigenous communities in general. The position of the Government has lead to members of the stolen generations seeking redress through the courts. We believe that to leave the issue of compensation to the adversarial court system is inadequate, ineffective and inappropriate. We believe that the Government should begin a process of negotiation with Indigenous communities in order to reach agreement on appropriate measures and processes of reparation.