The Sydney Morning Herald from Sydney, New South Wales, Australia • 16

THE SYDNEY MORNING HERALD TUESDAY APRIL 8 1997 16 Opinion SCICNTIflC- ''V CRflSTIONHSM a AGav Txnw a 2- a fou Kcct Tuva ts fipM -nta flu iso jwn-Cjttij) Spotlight ongay harassment As a now 24-year-old man who experienced such severe homo-phobic harassment at high school in the late 1980s that I was forced to complete my HSC at TAFE I have of course been interested in the Tsakalos case My own experiences at a Wollongong high school included being constantly punched kicked and spat on as well as the usual barrage of verbal abuse Each day I would plan the most direct path between classes no as to minimise the rid of attack I was told by one teacher I on myself by being too flamboyant" while staff as a whole did nothing The deputy principal refused to punish the people who were go'buolhenSndl I am glad the dire situation of many lesbian and cay students in our high schools is finally receiving proper coverage Lindsay April 3 Cronalln Anger at ramshackle traffic solution mare of examining the proposal know that the minister is mistaken Mien he believes Eastern Distributor is a major proposal that addresses the serious traffic problems in eastern Sydney" Like communities throughout Sydney we agree that a solution to the traffic chaos is needed However the solution must not come at a price which will scar this city forever and result in further traffic chaos Jeanette Brokmaa Eastern Distributor Taskforce Limited March 5 Sydney accept the verdict jSjjbncg JHonunj) ralb Native tide in NSW THE Dunghutti native title cue the first to determine that native tide exists in a part of mainland Australia is of greater significance than might at first seem the case The payment of $778000 to the Dunghutti Elders Council in compensation for three small parcels of land at Crescent Head might not seem to be a great triumph for the cause of Aboriginal land rights nor much of a vindication for the 1993 Native Tide Act There has been no reunion except formally and fleetingly of the Dunghutti community with their land no spiritual healing of that kind Indeed the community has agreed to surrender native title almost soon it hu been recognised by the Federal Court and to accept monetary compensation instead But there is no gainsaying the triumph of determination on the part of Ms Mary-Lou Buck the native title claimant and her community The precise nature of the settlement of the case depended on its circumstances If the land in question Crown land at Crescent Head which the town had sought to have subdivided to allow the town to expand had not already been committed to the needs of Crescent Head occupation of the land by the Dunghutti community might have been feasible As it is the agreement on compensation is a sensible compromise The NSW Attorney-General Mr Shaw hu rightly emphasised the historic importance case illustrates the workability of native title and the Native Title Act the Federal legislation" he said yesterday it illustrates that if people negotiate in good faith if they co-operate and talk through these things then a workable solution is able to be reached" The NSW Government deserves credit for showing leadership in this respect In other States notably in Queensland under the Borbidge Government the prospects of implementing the High decision in the Mabo case under the Native Title Act still seem bleak This is not only because of complicating factors such as the existence of pastoral leases over some land as in the the yet-to-be-determined Wik case It is also because the workability of the Native Title Act depends very much on the approach to it by parties which will usually include State governments when Crown land'is involved In the Crescent Head case the parties including the Shire of Kempsey have managed to negotiate successfully and in good faith The previous State Government after the Mabo judgment stopped the further sale of subdivisions in the land at Crescent Head and made a application" under the Native Title Act to clarify whether the Crown land it was dealing with was subject to native title claims Ms Buck came forward and hu now satisfied the Federal Court that native title did indeed exist over the land in question There are 84 other native title claims now being negotiated in NSW Some deal with small parcels of land like those at Crescent Head others affect much larger areas Not all will be resolved as this one hu been But in all the controversy over native title especially that stirred up by the more intemperate comments of politicians such as Mr Borbidge and organisations such as the National Federation it is easy to lose sight of reality That reality is that local councils mining companies and government departments are now never before deeply wigagwi in consultation and negotiation with Aboriginal communities There is no reason why the Dunghutti successful conduskm of a native tide claim should not be the first of many similar cases under the Native Title Act In session THE Opposition Leader Mr Peter Collins hu a point with his accusation that the Carr Government hu enforced an extremely long Christmas break to evade the scrutiny of State Parliament He nominates the blowout in the hospital waiting lists and the McGaw Report on the HSC as two topics which the State Government hu by keeping the State Parliament from being in session But the more valid and problematic consideration is whether the Opposition Leader together with his frontbench colleagues would have put the State Government under any pressure with their parliamentary attacks One of the interesting aspects of an opinion poll taken after the State Parliament went into recess last year wu that the Opposition made meagre inroads into the credibility of the Carr Government on health and education issues even though the Opposition focused on both these issues throughout 1996 What this poll outcome suggests is that it is not access to the parliamentary forum that is the main consideration in damaging a government The quality intensity and factual merits of the attacks and the way the attacks are developed to create the impression of incompetency are perhaps more critical factors In a sense it is a reflection of Mr disdain for the Opposition that he has given it a handy debating point to hang its other arguments on when the State Parliament finally resumes its deliberations today The figures produced by Mr Collins do in fact show the Carr Government up Not even the Queensland Parliament an institution renowned for its lack of sympathy with parliamentary conventions has dared to stay out longer than the NSW Parliament The 132 days of rest from parliamentary duties that has been granted to NSW politicians far exceeds the 20-year average of 84 days When the argument is put to Mr Collins that the Carr Government can be attacked outside the State Parliament he makes the valid argument that the State Parliament is the designated forum for party debate The formus of the House Question Time the set debates the examination of the Budget together with the necessity that ministers cannot lie to the Parliament make it the appropriate setting for the public scrutiny of the State activities From today therefore Mr Collins gets his chance to match his rhetoric with performance LETTERS thereby inducing traffic from Liverpool via the Eastern Suburbs onto die North Shore Communities will be ravaged by this LA-style urban road jungle Effectively what should be renamed a Distributor" is a motorway designed in 1948 to answer the problems of the past not a solution for the future Drivers will no doubt rub their hands with glee as images of Californian highways glimmering in the sun come to mind Stop hold on The fallacy of the past will not be relived Those who have survived the bureaucratic night refuse to Native title is not about gain about gifts or about the transfer of right- Where native title continues to exist it has existed since 1788 It is an interest in land which the High Court found could survive the grant of a pastoral lease The rights of the pastoralist have precedence over native title rights There are no pastoral leases on the Murray Islands The question was not settled in the Mabo decision It was agreed that the common law would take its course and the courts would decide the question The High Court has done so It is the NSW Farmers' Association and the National Federation which refuse to accept the verdict and to stand by the agreed means of resolving the If Mr Donges had any serious interest in social justice and reconciliation he would celebrate not decry the High Court's decision At the very alternative good quality relevant support services for aU these children If this does not occur the Government should recognise that supporters of children will not go away They will continue to campaign to secure child-centred support services which uphold and protect the human rights of children with disabilities Meaghaa Sweeney Chairperson Institute for Family Advocacy and Leadership Development March 14 Epping The alliance of business leaders who are pushing for the Eastern Distributor (Herald March 13) must have their heads well and truly in the clouds if they think the current RTA scheme is opposed only by a minority" It being opposed by action groups from all over Sydney including 17 different groups from oolloomooloo to Kensington We don't oppose a traffic solution all we oppose is this ramshackle plan by the RTA with its attendant horrors of air pollution health hazards and environmental vandalism Hypocrisy on X-rating I can't help but notice how hard the Australian Capital Territory Liberal Government (with sup- Sfrom the local press) is ing to prevent the Federal Government prohibiting X-rated videos by using the very sound argument that prohibition will result in existing controls being lost as the industry will move underground If this argument is to be taken seriously tkira why was the ACT Government the first in the nation to rush knee-jerk and uninformed legislation through Parliament prohibiting semiautomatic firearms which were already registered in the ACT and the owners licensed thereby encouraging previously law-abiding firearm owners to ignore uqjust and draconian laws Such blatantly hypocritical policy makes a mockery of our political leaders and adds credence to the reasons for the public having such a derogatory perception of politicians The ACT rationale for outlawing my 1920s vintage rabbit rifle which happens to be semi-automatic while openly an industry that based on the sexual exploitation of women is perplexing to say the least Alex Wells April 2 Dealdn West (ACT) Tigpr tale I was initially delighted when I read the News in Brief item (Herald April 4) reporting that two people claim to have seen a thyladne (Tasmanian Tiger) in remote north-western Tasmania My initial delight turned to grave concern when I noted the two people were forestry workers I fear their plans for the area may not be conducive to continued thyladne occupation I sincerely hope I am wrong Capeil April 2 Willoughby Shining talent I have just read more letters from the anti-freeway set They knowingly inform us that freeways don't work that the RTA is the source of all evil and that Sydney folk would really rather be travelling by foot bicycle or train if only they weren't being forced against their wills bto cars In reality Sydney folk are totally addicted to their cars and don't want to give them up Left face it: it's the people of Sydney who have turned it into the LA of the south The RTA is following the people not leading them Jones March 16 Bexley would result in the rights of Aboriginal people being taken away in order to give more rights to farmers He also argues that socially uqjust to expect a small section of the community to pay the full price of reconciliation" So why then are farmers in the best NIMBY tradition arguing that indigenous Australians pay the full price of reconciliation? As he says the whole community (including farmers) should be prepared to pay that price Indigenous Australians have already had to pay the full price of reconciliation Farmers are arguing that their Crown leasehold tides should give them the same rights and privileges as freehold title Unless farmers recognise the differences between these two different forms of title reconciliation must surely be doomed Janies April 4 PennaatHD If reducing the rate at which people die by 1 per cent is so important that it justifies turning the roads into a police state why do we do nothing to address an even larger number of suicides and ignore our children being able to obtain cancer sticks without any difficulty? Fixing the problems that shorten the lives of Aborigines 2 per cent of the population by 20 years on average would save more lives every year than those lost on the roads Get it in perspective Chris And get it right The NRMA can supply the figures that prove the roads have been for significantly safer in periods Gordon Drennan Chairman Advocacy and Defence April 3 Sydney Home truths Life expectancy infant mortality Hi'imm and nfiiw mamplny World levels No thanks to Rita Zammit and Joy Burns (Letters April 4) for their understanding of the suffering of gay students in our schools learning better English may have helped you escape the taunts Rita but what must gay students learn to escape persecu- tion which leaves them physically and mentally injured? Perhaps we could them of being gay by the threat of kneecapping? And Joy Bums is offended" by the image" of the gay community Have the student done anything to offend you? Does your injuty compare with the terror of daily beatings? Do you have to closet your faith because those around you are blessed with eyes that are blind to any ill which befalls you? The public image of your faith Joy has given us Mother Teresa and Fred Nile Should we pigeonhole Christians based on these examples? I think not Robert Davidson April 8 Petersham In comparing her own situation as a taunted migrant to that of Christopher Tsakalos Rita Zammit states that treatment dished out to me motivated me to do something about it ie I learned the language much more quickly than possibly I would have but for the taunts" I would like to know how exactly Ms Zammit proposes Christopher Tsakalos something about" his sexuality? i The problem is not homosexuality: it is ignorance Sean Kelly April 4 Wavertoa Whether it be acts of bullying ids gay children (Christopher Tsakalos) or any child branded as different from the mob our schools are Sally bound to provide a duty care Remember Martin Bryant was subjected to constant taunts and bullying at school see how they contributed to personality development Waterman Aprils Bondi Junction Zaimpit seems to have bene-' made to conform when out" a hard time at schooL Does she think that Christopher Tsakalos will also benefit from the treatment common to all openly gay children at school and perhaps be into a heterosexual? She gives little hope for anyone who does not conform rnCr rtgOCt Aprils RSVP Simla Hills India Seeking information on Basil Webb Ivan Marion Neville Archibald and wife who lived Feroze-pore Mhow Barian Murrie hills and Nowshera India Contact Mireille Minet PO Box 456 Kiama 2533 PArer Edward James (b 1846) Ex-Co Offaly Ireland Arr Aust 1862 with three brothers Was a teamster and lived Camooweal Qld from 1886 Seeking information and descendants Contact Greg Darcy PO Box 160 Amberiey Qld 4306 Qtye jfTRj pbnrii jftyA Letters and RSVP addrams: GPO Box 3771 Sydney 2001 Fax for letters 9282 3492 Internet: letteix1unlijcoinau All letters to the Herald should cany the home address and day and evening numbers for verification 1 letters will be a words and may be edited with consultation Letter writers who would like receipt of their letten acknowledged should send a ffnpwiT sea-nddreased i Letter writers please note letters published in tins an die Internet CD-ROM by photocopying and by other methods Responsibility for election com-fMfitt In Am mgat is taken bv the Editor-in-Chief XH Alexander 201 Sussex Street Sydney 2000 For the information of Mr Mr Brown et al Peter Collins has been busy letter-dropping the Eastern Suburbs expressing the Liberal rejection of the and nasty road" But perhaps the Liberal Party is just another John Bell March 14 Surry Hills Carl Scully the Minister for Roads needs to consider the feeling of a city held to ransom The Eastern Distributor-Airport Motorway proposal will be directly linked to the M3 Farmers I refer to the letter of Ian Donges President of the NSW Association victims of social injustice" (Letters April 4)l There is- only one accurate statement in the entire letter: that many Australians view the issue of co-existence of native title and pastoral interest as one of social justice I am one of those Australians Mr Donges is not His views are based on a potent combination of ignorance self-interest that cannot see past the end of its own nose and a historical perspective that is just as shortsighted He speaks about Aboriginal people should gain native title" and sees it as an act of communism take away some of the rights of one part of the community to give more rights to another part of the community" That throws an interesting light on the history of Australia: founded by communist revolution Internet access angry about Telstra's planned introduction of a timed rate for local data calls From July 1 they will be able to charge all businesses a timed call rate for Internet access and faxes and this win present them with an opportunity to destabilise their Internet business competitors in Australia Senator Alston is to be condemned for his weakness on this He indicated that receiver-only charges would not happen if he could help it Obviously he help himself His treachery means the loss of affordable Internet access Geoff Friend Bondi March 29 Unhappy ending Thanks Mike Reddy (Letters April 3)l Now those of us who have not yet seen The English Patient know that the nurse did it not the butler Marie Dyer oubra April 4 Child support Like others in the article shut down after damning report" (Herald March 14) this organisation applauds the decision of the NSW Minister for Disability Services to order the closure a the Hall for Children It should be recognised however that this dednon came about as a result of action over time by many people andorganisations There are of -course another 500 children -living in large congregate care non-government facilities in this State Is it going to take report after report by the Community Services Commission to get similar decisions on a one-by-one basis? Surely it is time for the Government to take a leadership role develop and make available resources for a proper plan and get on with the job of i least he should get out of the road with his disinformation and let the Australian people deal with the facts Michael Dodson Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Social Justice Commissioner'' Human Rights nnd Equal Opportunity Commission April 4 Sydney So Ian Donges President of the NSW Association is a self-confessed communist and NIMBY This is the only reasonable conclusion to be gained from reading his letter He argues that socially uqiust to take away some of the rights of one part of the community to give more rights to another part of the community That's communism" But this if exactly what farmer associations are arguing for when they say that native tide should be extinguished on pastoral leases This Holiday toll Chris Green (Letters April 3) is sure he alone knows how to reduce the road tolL But does he know by how much the number of Australians who died over the four-day Easter weekend would have been reduced even if his measures were totally effective? That weekend about 1400 died of a whole range of causes heart disease cancer alcohol suicide eta Only one person out of every hundred who died did so on the roads the man- most appropriate to open it Senator Colston Gwyn Watkins April 7 Manly Senator Keraot says that tor Colston's actions have confidence in the poUti-cal What confidence? Keith Smith April 4 Leichhardt AM Colston was bought Telstra was sold John silence Bob Horne Aprils Heatherbrae HOW 16 A HfifioNoFqmuON Jo PVT UP WITH os mKeiutTWwtuansHBEd was gobsmacked in fact by the attributed to John Mere- Herald March 27) the Aus Film representative in Los Angeles: here have not traditionally expected to encounter interesting acting talent working in our industry" Does this mean that our actors can only bloom when they are recognised by the Americans? Haven't they heard of Errol Flynn? Peter Finch? Mel Gibson? One of the world's biggest box office stars Judy Davis? Bryan Brown? The list endless in all areas of the business What is Mr Meredith doing one might ask to promote past and present workers from the Australian film industry? Very little by the sound of it Robert Davis March 27 1 St Peters We are reluctant to return a little of their stolen land We lock them in jail and still take their children from their families at a massively higher rate than for non-indigenous people And our Prime Minister has the gall to lecture the Chinese on Tinman rights David Thurlow April 3 Birekgrove World of our own How appropriate that those clean-cut Seekers should re-form during the Howard iHmiiiHirftiffl ki to the late 1960s is not quite 1935 but getting there I'm starting to fed relaxed and AprB4 Not so confident Will our srif-righteous senators allow a conscience vote on terminating William Lloyd Aprfl7 Deaistoue It despite the pn opposition to that monstrority of a baildiag near the Opera House need prevails and the building completed! trust the Premier and the Lord Mayor will invite I.