Self-determination

For over two centuries, the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people of Australia have had to endure brutal agression against their societies. Every year on Australia Day, Australians celebrate the arrival of the First British Fleet, on 26 January 1788, on the coast of Eora Country. But today, the first peoples of Australia still call it « Invasion Day ». This difference in perceptions bears witness to the political and cultural gap which separates Aboriginal people from other Australians. [node:read-more:link]

 Elders Report into Preventing Indigenous Self-harm and Youth Suicide pdf

We end up with ideas on suicide prevention that come from Canberra and bear no semblance to what is needed in the community and on the ground

Reduce the extreme poverty and in addition send in a crack team of experts to identify trusted Elders and community leaders to work psychosocially with youth, families and communities to restore their right to hope. Fund this support, now ... it’s not rocket science.

From 2001 to 2010, the Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS) confirmed 996 suicides of First Nations people. That is 1 in every 24 of First Nations deaths by suicide. But my research argues that if we include estimates for unreported suicides and other unnatural deaths that should be identified as suicides, that the tragic tally is closer to 2000 suicides for the ten year period.