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It is a very great honour for me to be invited to give this third lecture in commemoration of the great Aboriginal mathematician and scientist, David Unaipon.
It is a very great honour for me to be invited to give this third lecture in commemoration of the great Aboriginal mathematician and scientist, David Unaipon.
International law deals with many matters of importance to everyday life: access to the water of rivers for navigation, irrigation and drinking; transport by sea and air; environmental protection; the arrest and extradition of those accused or convicted of crimes. International law provides protection in international life and locally.
May I begin by acknowledging the Larrakeyah people – the traditional owners of the land where we meet today. I pay my respects to their elders and those who have come before us.
I should add, at this point, that my work over the past few years and my inquiry on children in immigration detention (CIDI), in Australia, the report of which "A last resort?" was tabled in the Australian Federal parliament in May of 2004, has made me even more keenly aware of the fragility of child asylum seekers. But more on that later!
I would like to begin by acknowledging the traditional owners of the land on which we meet, the Wurundjeri People of the Kulin Nation, and pay my respects to their elders past and present.
In September 2001, after a gap of 18 years the United Nations finally held the third World Conference against Racism, Racial Discrimination, Xenophobia and Related Intolerance in Durban, South Africa.
This morning about 20,000 Australians woke up in a prison cell. What will their day bring? Most of you know far more about that than I do and that is precisely why we have called upon your expertise for today's workshop.
Let me also acknowledge that we are meeting on the traditional land of Ngunnawal people. I pay my respects to their elders past and present, and all the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander men and women who have worked so committedly to eliminating sexual assault.
I am pleased to be participating in the opening of the Futures Victorian Rural Health Forum. I would also like to thank Neil Roxburgh and the Country AIDS Network (CAN) for inviting me to speak.
I also want to make mention of the fact that we are 130kn south west of an area of great significance to the Aboriginal communities of western NSW, which is now called Mutawintji National Park - the first park to be handed back to its Traditional Owners under the NSW National Parks and Wildlife Act in 1998. [1] The caves and overhangs in the park have been transformed into expansive galleries of Aboriginal rock art, and it comes as no surprise that they have formed the backdrop for ceremonies for at least 8,000 years.
Thank you Sharron for your introduction, and thank you Uncle Lewis O’Brien for your warm welcome to country. And congratulations to the Taikurtinna Dancers for a great performance and oration.
I'm very pleased to be speaking to you today. I'm especially encouraged that so many young people have put aside a weekend to think about, and talk about, human rights.
May I acknowledge the Gadigal people of the Eora nation, the traditional owners of the land upon which we meet, and pay my respect to their elders past and present.
Firstly, I’d like to begin by paying my respects to the Gadigal peoples of the Eora nation, the traditional owners of the land where we gather today. I pay my respects to your elders, to the ancestors and to those who have come before us.
Today's launch here in Sydney is part of a national program of launches that I have been undertaking in recent weeks in order to bring issues of human rights significance raised by my latest social justice and native title reports to the attention of Indigenous and other interested communities and organisations. So far, launches have been held in Melbourne, Perth and Broome, with launches in the next week in Alice Springs and Adelaide; to be followed by Brisbane and Darwin after that.
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