Rainforests and Rights

Published on Dec 24, 2023 by Luke Hunt

Suwanna Gauntlett arrived in Cambodia in 2000 and through Wildlife Alliance has sought to protect the rainforests in the pristine Cardamom National Park, where she has trained rangers for the Special Forestry Task Forces and the Royale Gendarmerie Khmer.Lately, however, her work has attracted controversy amid reports of bullying and intimidation of local farmers by wildlife officers, resulting in at least eight complaints to officials and a human rights NGO detailing alleged abuses since 2019.Those complaints have been attributed to an as yet unpublished report by Human Rights Watch, which is expected to be released early next year.Gauntlett says there has been no bullying by her rangers in the Cardamom National Park but adds that outsiders had moved into the....

Australia Votes No

Published on Oct 14, 2023 by Luke Hunt

Australians failed to deliver its indigenous people a Voice to Parliament after a constitution referendum was defeated on Oct. 14, prompting Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islanders to call for a week’s silence to reflect on a “devastating” outcome.At the last count, 60.3 percent of Australians voted no at the national level. Similar results were counted among the six states. Constitutional change requires a double majority — approval at the national level of at least 50 percent and from at least four states.“For more than six years, we have explained to our nation why the Voice was our great hope to achieve real change for our families and communities,” the Aboriginal Land Council said.Click here to Read more from UCA News..

An Aboriginal Voice

Published on Oct 11, 2023 by Luke Hunt

Jill Gallagher is a senior elder from the Gunditjmara nation, a spokeswoman for the Aboriginal community in the southeast Australian state of Victoria and a key advocate for the yes campaign and the Voice to Parliament, which will be decided through a referendum this Saturday.She says non-indigenous Australians should not feel any guilt about past atrocities committed against Aboriginals and Torres Strait Islanders who inhabited the continent for 60,000 years before European settlement.Click here to listen to the podcast with The Diplomat. .

An Australian Vote

Published on Oct 10, 2023 by Luke Hunt

MELBOURNE, AUSTRALIA — Australians go to the polls Saturday in a vote for a constitutional change that, if successful, would guarantee Indigenous people a say in parliament, after a campaign that has been widely criticized for dividing the country through racist undertones.The latest opinion polls indicate the ‘yes’ campaign is struggling to win over a majority of Australians and four of the six states required to change the constitution, a major setback for Prime Minister Anthony Albanese who initially put forward the proposal in March.Back then more than 60% of the population favored constitutional change but one poll by RedBridge, conducted in late July, found that support has fallen to just 39%.Surveys by pollsters Morgan and Essential during late September....

Yes Vote Struggles

Published on Oct 4, 2023 by Luke Hunt

Artwork: Corrobore on Emerald Hill (South Melbourne) painted by W.F.E. Liardet 1840.Supporters of constitutional change that will guarantee Australia’s indigenous people a say in parliament are ramping up their efforts to win over a dubious middle ground after the latest opinion polls put the no campaign slightly in front.Tens of thousands of people are staging weekend rallies in cities and towns across the country — and as far away as New York — with millions of dollars being poured into campaigning to stave off what many say is “hysterical scaremongering” by opposing conservatives.“I’m frightened,” said Nicole, who works in a high-end fashion boutique in Melbourne.Read more from UCAN by clicking here..