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Indigenous insider says demands ‘would send the state broke’ if the government agreed to all of them

Jacinta Allan is not ruling out a push to give cash compensation to Indigenous Victorians, despite the proposal being slammed as a “farce” and a “disaster”.

Premier Jacinta Allan has ­refused to publicly rule out tax relief, funding and land grants for Indigenous Victorians after a bombshell report called for compensation to pay for historical wrongs.

The Yoorrook Justice Commission’s final report, tabled in parliament on Tuesday, delivered 100 recommendations to the Allan government after a four-year truth-telling inquiry.

And the radical demands immediately triggered a major divide in the Indigenous community, with some labelling the report a “farce” which would “send the state broke” and others lauding it as the “reckoning” Victoria has to have.

Among the list of findings is the call for a statewide ­redress scheme and for compensation to make amends “for injustice which has occurred during and as a result of the colonial invasion and occupation of First Peoples’ territories”.

There are calls for a statewide ­redress scheme and for compensation to make amends to Indigenous Victorians. Picture: Justin McManus
There are calls for a statewide ­redress scheme and for compensation to make amends to Indigenous Victorians. Picture: Justin McManus

A suite of other radical proposals include that Indigenous groups be seen as separate nations, be given access to revenue from natural resources and Crown land and be exempt from taxes, levies and rates.

Indigenous critics yesterday said the list “read like demands that would send the state broke if they agreed to all of them”.

“At a time when we are negotiating treaty and getting the Victorian people on board it’s just a disaster,” one said.

There has been a suite of radical proposals from the Yoorrook Justice Commission final report. Picture: David Crosling
There has been a suite of radical proposals from the Yoorrook Justice Commission final report. Picture: David Crosling

Others backed the report, saying it was a “reckoning” and time to start “making things right”.

On Wednesday, responding to questions about compensation Ms Allan refused to take anything off the table.

“I’m just not going to rule things in or out through a press conference,” she said.

“I think we can understand the need … for government to take time to consider the recommendations.”

Ms Allan also refused to ­acknowledge that many of the recommendations, including banning school expulsions and suspensions for Indigenous kids, could further divide the Victorian community.

Some Indigenous people say the report is a ‘reckoning’ and time to start ‘making things right’.
Some Indigenous people say the report is a ‘reckoning’ and time to start ‘making things right’.

However, she conceded that “the recommendations and ­indeed the findings, I acknowledge, are incredibly challenging”.

“They are challenging ­because they tell the truth,” Ms Allan said.

The report set a 24-month deadline for a response, but the Victorian government last year officially kicked off statewide treaty negotiations, which have been held behind closed doors, and are likely to be completed by June next year.

The report also recommended that treaty be pursued, permanent funding streams be set up to help future Indigenous generations, and that the First Peoples’ Assembly be made permanent – a move the Herald Sun revealed was already under way with a Victorian version of the Voice to Parliament to be legislated.

The inquiry was originally funded with a $58m investment. This included appointing five commissioners who were paid between $250,000 and $370,000 each.

The report revealed that three of the five Yoorrook commissioners – Maggie Walter, Sue-Anne Hunter and Tony North – “did not approve of the inclusion of the key findings in the final report”.

The Herald Sun could not put questions to the commission or its panel after the report was released, as the inquiry was wound up on Monday – one day before the document was tabled for the public to read.

Opposition Leader Brad Battin said that the Liberals and Nationals would not support a treaty “or a Victorian Voice to parliament”. He said opposition spokeswoman for Aboriginal affairs Melina Bath was reviewing the Yoorrook report in detail and it would be “considered through the proper shadow cabinet process”.

Originally published as Indigenous insider says demands ‘would send the state broke’ if the government agreed to all of them

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Original URL: https://www.goldcoastbulletin.com.au/news/victoria/indigenous-insider-says-demands-would-send-the-state-broke-if-the-government-agreed-to-all-of-them/news-story/e0c7ac76065649333b2aea9b66879f8b