I happened upon an article in Stuff written by Political Reporter Jo Moir and relating to an open letter sent to Tony Abbot by NZ’s race based Maori political party.

The letter complains that the Federal Govt has told the West Australian govt that it will not be providing taxpayer funding to remote Aborigine communities as the govt struggles with a $123 billion budget deficit.

The remote communities receive millions in taxpayer money each year and are also facing claims of serious sexual abuse of young children.

The letter written by co-leaders Te Ururoa Flavell and Marama Fox makes no distinction between the funding cut and “forced closing”, or of any other relevant issue. The article says-

The comments came on the back of Abbott supporting a plan by the West Australian government to close up to 150 remote Aboriginal communities.

Flavell and Fox penned the letter to voice their “condemnation at the forced closure of Aboriginal communities in Australia” as a result of the Australian government policies.

“These actions violate Australia’s obligations to the UNDRIP (United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples),” the letter said.

“Mr Abbott, your government’s actions constitute a return to the flawed policies of the past and will result in the loss of basic human rights such as access to clean water and the right to choose where to live.

These actions violated Australia’s obligations to the UNDRIP, the letter said.

The UNDRIP was signed in 2009 and Article 8 declares “indigenous peoples and individuals have the right not to be subjected to force assimilation or destruction of their culture”.

I have said this so many times before. The Aborigines will be able to live just as they have always lived, before European settlement, in the same locations, in a situation they frequently state they were quite content with. Its just that the rest of Australia won’t be picking up the tab.

It is estimated that every Aborigine in Australia already receives around $50,000 per annum spread across the indigenous population.

I would have liked to see Jo write a bit more on the other side of the story, such as why the funding was being cut and the matter of the sexual assault issue, rather than let the Maori party have it all their own way, and portray Abbot as some kind of cold hearted despot taking away people’s rights.

He’s not. He’s looking after the rights of every taxpayer in Australia by not spending money unnecessarily and unproductively. Money that they don’t have anyway.