Communities must drive Closing the Gap: Greens Senator

WA Greens Senator Dorinda Cox has called for greater grassroots community involvement in the $842m government partnership agreement to support Closing the Gap in the Northern Territory.

Senator Cox, a proud Yamatji Noongar woman, who holds the Greens portfolio for First Nations and for Northern Australia in Canberra, said real change can only come if grassroots communities can co-design and shape initiatives and responses.

Leaving this to governments at State and Territories levels especially during election cycles is a battleground where we end up as the pawn in their hunger games – only then can we have true self determination and close the gap,” she said.

“I know from the inquiry into Missing and murdered First Nations women and children that the Albanese Labor Government and the NT LNP Government are still not funding the issues of violence to which it is currently occurring; they must be doing this as a bare minimum.

“Having worked at the coalface of communities in regional and remote locations for most of my career, these models can only truly be successful if they have buy-in from grassroots communities who are talking about their priorities.

“These must be grounded in truth telling about the systems failing people every day like the recent punitive changes to the lowering the age of criminal responsibility and the new draft legislation for child protection.”

NT Greens Member for Nightcliff, Kat McNamara.

“As the chair of the new Select Committee on Measuring Outcomes for First Nations communities I will be asking where our grassroots communities have a seat at the decision making table or directly involved in the planning, including how to invest into priorities to meet people where they are at and how we are properly measuring progress.”

“Central Australia and in fact the whole of the Northern Territory has a rich and ancient history and life in remote Australia is very different, so we need to provide opportunities for First Nations communities in industries such as tourism and renewable energy projects to protect culture, country and people.”

NT Greens Member for Nightcliff, Kat McNamara, said First Nations communities in the Territory were being neglected.

“Affirming communities’ rights and ability to take control over decision making is vital to seeing increased outcomes under the close the gap initiative,” she said.

“Under the current CLP Government we are seeing First Nations communities neglected, with funding predominantly directed towards responding to crime rather than investing into greater community led health, education and support programs.”

• The latest Closing the Gap data report is set to be released on Monday and the Select Committee on Measuring Outcomes for First Nations Communities – Parliament of Australia will be chaired by Greens Senator Dorinda Cox.