Keith Windshuttle's attack on the Aboriginal Embassy

Ghillar Michael Anderson (left), the last surviving member of the founding four of the Aboriginal Embassy and Head of State of the Euahlayi Peoples Republic responds to Keith Windschuttle (right) regarding Windschuttle's online 'Quadrant' article. Background image from the 40th Anniversary of the Aboriginal Embassy in 2002.

10 January 2022

Ghillar, Michael Anderson, Convenor of the Sovereign Union, provides an insight into how Mr Keith Windshuttle, Editor-in-Chief of the online Quadrant magazine dated 9 January 2022 professes to know what is in the minds and hearts of First Nations people and their supporters, in his article ‘The violent politics of Australia Day’.

In an open statement Ghillar addresses Mr Windshuttle:

“What is most disappointing Mr Windshuttle about your commentaries is that you fail to understand the depth of the issues associated with First Nations’ continued resistance in this country. I guess it would be impossible to think that you would dare to publish the handwritten journals and witness statements to the mass killings of First Nations Peoples, including the old and children, so as to ‘clear the land’ under a ‘scorched earth policy’ to remove the first occupants and true owners of the lands, part of which you now call ‘home’.

“Mr Windshuttle, you may say, ‘Get over it and let’s move on’, but no-one dares say that to the Jews and we all respect the acknowledgement of those who served in wars at 6pm every night in an RSL club and on every 25 April, Anzac Day.

“Fair is fair, Mr Windshuttle. We all have a history and let’s be respectful of that. Trauma from wars and conflict pervades every part of our community today and there is no exception when it comes to First Nations Peoples. The problem with our situation is that it happened on home soil and the deaths keep going. The grief, trauma and loss truly aggrieve every First Nations family in this country.

“As I said to former Governor of New South Wales, General David Hurley, who is now Governor-General, in our 2018 face-to-face meeting at Government House, Sydney, ‘We cannot reconcile with you until you help us bury our dead.’ And Mr Windshuttle, for your information, read Antigone, the Greek drama. Then you may understand the hatred that the British colonialists’ display towards First Nations Peoples. Or do you represent this continued bitterness and hatred against First Nations Peoples expressing our rights for justice and the respect for our rights to bury our fallen, whose bones remain exposed in many places all over this continent. The genocide in the country continues. Just look at the removal of Aboriginal children from their families as an example.

“Now let me take you back to 26 January 2012 at the Lobby Restaurant adjacent to the Aboriginal Embassy in Canberra. It just so happens that I was the First Nations man standing on the steps of the side door exit, where in their stupid haste the emotionally charged Mr Lucas Atkins, AFP bodyguard to Prime Minister Julia Gillard, dropped her down the stairway where she lost her blue suede shoe. I was shocked by this, because of their haste to protect her from who? There were more police and security officials around the Prime Minister than anyone. I can say this because I was standing right there. After they dropped the Prime Minister to the ground, they panicked and I do recall the wry grin on Federal Opposition Leader, Tony Abbott’s face, for he knew there was no threat of the kind Mr Windshuttle tries to convey in his Quadrant article. Tempers frayed after Prime Minister Julia Gillard and Mr Tony Abbott, were unceremoniously tossed into the back of the waiting Commonwealth vehicle. I do not recall seeing Mr Lucas Atkins throwing himself on top the Prime Minister Gillard on the back seat of the vehicle to protect her.

“My question is, ‘Protect her from whom or what?’ My intention by being at that side exit was to ask both the Prime Minister and Tony Abbott to come and address us at the close-by 40th Anniversary of the Embassy talks, where there were several thousand people waiting. Unfortunately, if one has ever watched the Running of the Bulls in Seville, Spain, then that’s what it was like for me when they came running out of the side exit with the Prime Minister and Tony Abbott. It was drama and chaos that had nothing to do with the protesters other than the fear of confrontation.

“My recommendation to you, Mr Windshuttle, is to ask the former Governor-General, Quentin Bryce, why she made the order for those awards to be presented at that location at that time. Might I also remind you that the Federal Police assigned to the 40th Anniversary were just as shocked as us at the Embassy to know that these awards were being made at the Lobby Restaurant on 26th January.

“I suggest, Mr Windshuttle, that you report facts based on sound research and understanding, not on inflamed and emotional rhetoric as you so often do. There are not many of you true blood colonialists left in this country. The demise of the National Party throughout Australia reflects the fact that there are not many of you left and you are holding on tight to the mantle of the White Australian dream. Sorry mate, the Afrikaans expat rulers and the former all-white-dream of Rhodesia’s control and that exodus from Zimbabwe to Australia did not bolster your numbers. Ironically, when you do an examination of the Western Australian police force there is a significant number of South African Afrikaans, who are gainfully employed to keep the Blacks in check. Just look at the prison population numbers.

“In conclusion, the Aboriginal Embassy has always been a peaceful protest and will remain so. If other groups with hidden agendas turn up then that would be like trying to control the soccer hooliganism in Europe and Britain, not going to happen, Mr Windshuttle. We, like the Federal Police, ask ourselves, ‘How do you control mob mentality?’

Let me assure you that those who are coming to celebrate 50 years of the Aboriginal Embassy will not be the barbarous mob that came with the Tall Ships - Ghillar Michael Anderson“

Let me assure you that those who are coming to celebrate 50 years of the Aboriginal Embassy will not be the barbarous mob that came with the Tall Ships. By the Australian Parliament’s own admission in 1983, this continent is an occupied land by a bunch of illegals. And let me remind you the Full Benches of the Australian High Court have ruled that Aboriginal Law exists and is recognised by the British and Australian common law. Deal with it. In 1995 the Full Bench of the Australian High Court ruled that the establishment of the colonies, then the Executive Councils in the States and later the drafting of the Native Title Act 1993 and its subsequent passage through the Federal Parliament did NOT extinguish Native Title, nor any right First Nations have to their sovereign soil.

“My last comment, Mr Windshuttle, is this: Your Quadrant article quoted from Paul Sheehan’s column in the Sydney Morning Herald: ‘The Australian public will not enshrine special privileges for any group on the basis of race, especially after the events of the past few days.’ May I remind you of your failure to follow the narrative on this very question? For your purposes I will quote what former PM Sir Robert Menzies, a constitutional lawyer, stated on 1 April 1965 to the Federal Parliament as recorded in Hansard No. 13 pages 553-554 that:

' ... the removal of what has been called the "discriminatory provisions" of section 51. On that I would, with great respect, challenge the assumption that is made. May I read the provision to the House in order to refresh its memory? Section 51 states- The Parliament shall, subject to this Constitution, have power to make laws for the peace, order, and good government of the Commonwealth with respect to: - (xxvi.) The people of any race, other than the aboriginal race in any State, for whom it is deemed necessary to make special laws: It has been suggested that that provision discriminates against the Aborigines of Australia.

Liberal Prime Ministers, Robert Menzies 1939-1941 & 1949-1966 (painting), John Howard 1996-2007 (left) and Tony Abbott 2013-2015.

I would have thought that the contrary was the fact. Parliament has been given power to make discriminatory laws in relation to the people of any race-special laws which would relate to them and not to other people; laws which would treat them as people who stood outside the normal grasp of the law, enjoying its benefits and sustaining its burdens in common with all other citizens. I would have thought that the perfect state of affairs in Australia would be that any Aboriginal citizen felt that he did stand equal with every other citizen before the law, enjoyed its benefits and took his own part on a proper basis in sustaining its burdens. I have no doubt whatever that this provision in the Constitution was designed having regard to conditions that existed at that time and the possibility of having to make a special law dealing with, for example, Kanaka labourers - perhaps a special law to deport them from the country or to confine them to some particular area. There was a good deal of discussion about this at the time this provision was framed. Therefore, the framers of the Constitution inserted this provision, but they left out the Aboriginal race because they did not want to discriminate against the people of the aboriginal race. All we have to do now is to cross out this reference "other than the aboriginal race" and we confer on this Parliament a power to make a special law which relates to the Aborigines and to no other people.

Mr Reynolds. - But

Sir ROBERT MENZIES. - If you do not mind I want to pursue this. I do not think it is at all out of place. There is a second point about it, and this does concern me. If the Commonwealth, as one of its heads of power under section 51, has the right to pass special laws with respect to the Aboriginal race, I wonder what limitations will be on that separate head of power. Would this enable the Parliament to set up a separate body of industrial laws relating to Aborigines or some other kind of law- health laws, quarantine laws or laws under any of the other powers of the Parliament? It may well be true that it could because, make no mistake about it; this would be a head of power standing not inferior to any other power contained in section 51. That is a matter that requires a great deal of thought. I do not want honorable members to think that I have arrived at some positive conclusion about it. I am raising it here in order to indicate that it wants a good deal of thought and that we would want to give it a great deal more investigation than we have before we favoured changing the provision in section 51. But we would be very happy to see the end of section 127.'

Contact: Ghillar Michael Anderson
Convenor of the Sovereign Union,
Head of State of the Euahlayi Peoples Republic
Contact Details here