2006

1. 31 January Stolen wages

   Claims close for Queensland's Indigenous Wages and Savings Reparation scheme. It received less than half the number of claims expected by the government ^[1]. $35.87 million of $55.6 million was unclaimed.

2008

1. January Prison

   Ngaanyatjarra Elder Mr Ward dies in the back of a prison van because the two officers failed to give him water and offer him breaks while driving 320km through 42-degree heat in Western Australia. ⇒ Deaths in custody

2009

1. January Remains repatriation

   Booth Museum of Natural History, Brighton, Britain promises to repatriate two skulls and two thigh bones, donated almost 100 years ago ^[2]. The museum also holds a Ngarrindjeri skull which has been turned into a water carrier and is considered 'extremely rare' ^[3]. The skull is with the museum since 1925 when it was donated by a local collector.

   

2. 1 January Education

   The NT government rules that the first four hours of education in all NT schools will be delivered in English, putting an end to 34 years of bilingual education in the Northern Territory by ending the nine remaining bilingual programs.

3. 9 January Politics

   The Western Australian government announces the formation of the Indigenous Implementation Board to improve social and economic outcomes for Aboriginals. The nine-member board aims to ‘enhance Indigenous involvement in local decision-making and strengthen corporate and non-government contribution to Indigenous affairs’. Members are chosen for their expertise, not as representatives.

4. 26 January Recognition

   Aboriginal law professor Mick Dodson receives the 2009 Australian of the Year award for his lifetime commitment to improving the lives of Aboriginal people and helping to close the gap between Indigenous and non-Indigenous Australians.

5. 30 January Land & land rights

   The Northern Territory government and traditional owners settle one of the longest native title claims over the Cox Peninsula, about 30 kms west of Darwin. 80% of the area will be designated Aboriginal land for the Larrakia people.

2010

1. January Politics

   The Aboriginal Political Party and the Ecological and Social Justice Party unite to become the Western Australia-based Ecological, Social Justice, Aboriginal Party (ESJA) with its inaugural President Glenn Moore.

2. 26 January Arts

   About 12,000 people attend the inaugural Saltwater Freshwater Festival in Coffs Harbour, reclaiming Australia Day as a positive inclusive day for the Gumbaynggirr community.

2011

1. January Land & land rights

   Australia experiences its worst flooding on record affecting Queensland, Victoria, Western Australia and Tasmania. The floods claim the life of at least one Aboriginal person, delay land claim hearings and put further pressure on people on housing waiting lists. Many don’t accept help or play down their loss. Aboriginal musician Troy Cassar-Daley loses his farm near Brisbane.

   Golden Guitars are pretty sturdy, like the artists that get them.

   — Troy Cassar-Daley, commenting about the Golden Guitars he won which were muddied by the floods ^[4]

2. 6 January Politics

   Australia’s First Nations Political Party (AFNPP) is registered with the Australian Electoral Commission, entitling it to elect an executive and pre-select candidates for parliamentary elections. The party was founded by Maurie Japarta Ryan, grandson of Vincent Lingiari.

3. 27 January Politics

   Australia appears before the United Nations Human Rights Council’s first Working Group on the Universal Periodic Review. It receives 145 recommendations covering a wide range of human rights issues including the treatment of asylum seekers, Aboriginal peoples, multiculturalism and racism, and the status of Australia’s obligations under international human rights law.

2012

1. 26 January Protest

   

   The Aboriginal Tent Embassy in Canberra celebrates its 40th anniversary. An incident where the Prime Minister was disturbed by around 50 protesters outside a restaurant makes security guards drag her hurriedly into a car. She loses a shoe, gaining her the nickname ‘Gingerella’ (alluding to Cinderella and PM Julia Gillard’s red hair). Media reports grossly exaggerate the events.

2013

1. January Northern Territory Intervention

   A report by the Australian National Audit Office finds the federal government spends more than $100 million per year to administer income management in the Northern Territory. More than 17,000 people are on income management at the end of June 2012, costing the Commonwealth government between $6,600 and $7,900 dollars per person, per year ^[5].

2014

1. January Treaty

   Chair of the Indigenous Advisory Council, Warren Mundine, and Prime Minister Tony Abbott both express their interest in a treaty. Rather than make a single treaty between the federal government and Australia’s Aboriginal people in general, they suggest individual treaties with each nation or language group.

   [In a]ll of Arnhem Land, we still maintain our law, maintain our language and have our land. We have not been conquered. We need our society recognised.

   — Djiniyini Goṉḏarra, Yolngu Nations Assembly spokesperson ^[6]

2. 25 January Sport

   AFL player Adam Goodes becomes Australian of the Year “for his leadership and advocacy in the fight against racism both on the sporting field and within society”.

3. 26 January Arts Recognition

   The late Dr Yunupingu from Aboriginal band Yothu Yindi posthumously receives the Companion of the Order of Australia, one of Australia’s highest honours. The award recognises the highest degree of service to humanity.

4. 26 January Recognition

   Townsville Council for the first time officially celebrates both Survival Day (on 24 January) and Australia Day (on 26 January).
   

2015

1. 19 January

   The National Indigenous Times newspaper is up for sale due to mounting legal bills in two law suits against the paper.

2016

1. January

   Apple Store and Google Play remove the online game Survival Island 3- Australia Story 3D which told players to “beware of Aborigines” and had them bludgeon Aboriginal people to death to progress through the game. An online petition, started by Aboriginal woman Georgia Mantle, gathered 84,672 signatures in just 5 days.

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References