Australia: Mundine to insist on language skills

[Harold Schiffman]

Mundine to insist on language skills
 Patricia Karvelas, Political correspondent | April 19, 2008

INDIGENOUS leader Warren Mundine will demand that federal and state
governments force all indigenous children to learn English, and that a
second language become compulsory for all Australians across the
nation. Mr Mundine will use today's 2020 Summit to argue that
indigenous people need to start talking directly to the Chinese and
other developing economies so as to "change the dialogue" with the
international community from one of complaining about domestic human
rights to one of making money.
Mr Mundine wants indigenous contingents to be part of delegations to
China and other big developing economies to create business
opportunities with indigenous landowners.

"We need to do more of that direct dealing if we are going to help our
communities develop, and I think that is a positive thing for us," he
said.  "We need to get in those pinstripe suits and have those
conversations.  "In the area of education, we've got to get fair
dinkum about it - we have got to learn English. Every Aboriginal kid
has to learn English, has to read and write and speak in English."
But first, he said, schools had to adopt programs to help traumatised
indigenous children heal so they were capable of learning.
"Kids are not going to get educated while they are in trauma, so we
have to have schools dealing with trauma issues first so they can
learn.

"We need kids who can go into the education system and function
properly. We are not going to do that while they are suffering trauma.
They need help healing.  "We need a real English focus. The states and
the territories and the federal Government have to be committed with
money and resources to getting standard English taught so we can speak
to the world."  Mr Mundine said he found it amazing that China had a
huge English language program and was "training millions of people in
English", while in indigenous Australia "we run away from it".

"It is quite bizarre," he said. "If we are really going to compete for
jobs and play a role in the economy, if we don't have that (a
proficiency in English) we are not going to be able to do that."  He
said it should be compulsory for all Australians to learn a second
language. "I find it embarrassing going overseas and realising they
are learning all these languages and we are not," he said.
He is also calling for an "audit" of all Aboriginal policy to get rid
of "regulations" that lock indigenous people out of the mainstream.

"There needs to be an audit of all the regulations in Aboriginal
affairs and all the rules and all the controls and (we need to) start
pulling the ones down that ... are restricting our communities from
developing."  A large number of Aboriginal leaders will attend the
weekend summit in Canberra, not only dominating the segment dealing
with "the future of indigenous Australia", but also taking part in
discussions on future directions for health, education and the
economy. Two prominent indigenous leaders who had been left off
theinvitation list - Lowitja O'Donoghue and Sue Gordon - have now been
included. It is understood Ms O'Donoghue received rejection and
acceptance letters sent on the same day.

Summit organisers said it was initially believed that neither Ms
O'Donoghue nor Ms Gordon wanted to attend, but this was "rectified"
when they made their wishes known. Some indigenous leaders will gather
today at the Australian Institute of Aboriginal and Torres Strait
Islander Studies for a meeting chaired by Mick Dodson.

http://www.theaustralian.news.com.au/story/0,25197,23563372-5013172,00.html
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