By Pemulwuy

Guest writer for Wake Up World

When you think of dream destinations and places you would like to live, many people think of Australia. A beautiful country indeed with a clean image, no wars and a stable society. But scratch the surface and what you will find will shock you. Here are just 10 of Australia’s darkest secrets.

Australia’s Dark Secrets

Highest rates of child suicide in the world

Australia is home to the highest rates of child suicide in the world. Please don’t be confused, this is not the national rate. I am talking about rates inside Aboriginal communities. 20 years ago, suicide in Aboriginal communities was literally unheard of, but with increased government pressure on remote communities it became more prevalent since the year 2000 and the numbers went off the charts after the governments military backed intervention (that breached human rights) started in 2007.

It was found that child suicide increased by 500% in 12 months after the intervention started. The Intervention is still happening now after the government decided it was worthwhile to extend it for 10 years.

Worlds lowest life expectancy rates

Similarly, life expectancy in some Australian Aboriginal communities is less than or equal to 3rd world countries in sub-Saharan west Africa (around 37-40 years).

Black Imprisonment rates higher than in South Africa during Apartheid

Incarceration rates of Black Australians are higher than the rate of incarceration for Blacks in South Africa during the last 10 years of Apartheid. This is the most complicated topic to explain. Of course there are some Indigenous Australians who should be locked up. However there are thousands of men and women who are in jail for breaking laws that only apply to Indigenous Australians (such as drinking laws). Many are also affected by mandatory sentencing laws which sees the power of discretion taken away from the judge and subsequently forces many first time offenders straight to jail. Other reasons include simply missing a court date due to travel requirements or ill health.

First attempt at Genocide

By 1911, 123 years after the British Illegal Arrival, the Indigenous population had dropped from 750,000 to just 31,000! The official explanation is “disease” but when you dig deeper you will learn of the frontier wars and massacres, many of which are documented but strangely denied and not recognized by the government to this very day.

Second attempt at Genocide (breeding us out)

In 1997, the Australian Government found itself guilty of Genocide. See: Bringing Them Home – the Stolen Generation Report 1997. The report focused on the policy known as the “stolen generation”, referring to the forced removal of Aboriginal children from their families. After the report went public, all that was offered to victims and their families was an apology with no chance for compensation of any kind. And right now, in 2014, the Government is taking more children from black families than ever before!

The belief was and still remains that if a child is brought up in a white family they will go on to marry a white partner and the colour of their children and grandchildren will be lost within 2 or 3 generations.

War and Massacres

Most Australians will tell you that Australia has never been home to any wars. That is what is taught In Australian schools, but it is simply not true. From the late 18th century until the mid 20th century many wars and massacres have occurred. Some conflicts lasted no more than a week while other conflicts lasted for over 5 years. Australians are proud of their recent war history overseas and it is commemorated each year, but when we try to honor our own black warriors who died on home soil, we are stopped by a line of police every year!

Australia Day is Invasion Day

Australia’s national day (Australia Day) is on the anniversary date of the illegal arrival of the English settlers. When you think of what this arrival meant to Indigenous Australians you know it’s not a day to celebrate, but the Australian government refuses to change the date of its national day and at the same time claims to be working towards reconciliation!

No Democracy for Blacks

Even today, when we try to have our voices heard by the world we are continually met by resistance, from walls of police who together with the nation’s media, systematically silence us. What is the problem with peacefully marching through a park on Australia day to remind people of the insensitivity it promotes? In May, when Prince William and Kate came to Australia many Indigenous Australians were removed from crowds and denied the chance to communicate (with protest signs) against the illegal occupation.

Don’t preach democracy if you can’t let me be Aboriginal — and speak my truth.

The Final Attempt at Genocide is Happening Right Now

Lets see the facts: an excerpt from the Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of Genocide.

“Article II: In the present Convention, genocide means any of the following acts committed with intent to destroy, in whole or in part, a national, ethnical, racial or religious group, as such: (a) Killing members of the group; (b) Causing serious bodily or mental harm to members of the group; (c) Deliberately inflicting on the group conditions of life calculated to bring about its physical destruction in whole or in part; (d) Imposing measures intended to prevent births within the group; (e) Forcibly transferring children of the group to another group.

The crown government today is still committing acts of Genocide under parts C and E of the Convention on the Prevention of Genocide. ‘Dark Secret #5’ above highlighted how the government is now stealing more Aboriginal children than ever before. Now I want to shed some light on how the government is guilty of part C – inflicting on the group conditions of life calculated to bring about its physical destruction.

[For more, see: Australia’s Assimilation Shame: Indigenous Children Still Being Stolen]

The government can no longer chain us up or contain us in concentration camps like in years gone by. So now they are trying to destroy our communities in a variety of different ways, in the hope that we will relocate to major towns. Here are some examples in point form:

Removing children from their families.

Cutting off basic medical needs.

Ignoring needs for basic infrastructure such as public transport.

Labelling remote communities as pedophile breeding grounds (In the media, and with suggestive warning signs at the entrance of remote communities).

Taking away community work programs.

Neglecting aboriginal housing programs.

Withholding and freezing bank accounts.

All of the measures have been implemented for one main goal. The government wants to completely put an end to Indigenous Australians living on our traditional home lands. They want us in larger towns, living, working and following their western values. Reports show that we are far more healthier and happier when we live traditionally on our home lands, however the government does not respect our desires for health and happiness as that would mean, letting us stand in the way of their quest to mine our mineral rich land that we never ever want taken away.

[For more, see: Original Elder Arrested in Parliament as Constitutional Challenge Gathers]

What the government fails to understand is that our connection to our country is real and strong. No matter how dire our communities become we will never leave, but unfortunately the younger generation is failing to cope under the current neglectful measures now in place. Even children from war torn countries have more hope for the future.

This is truly the final attempt at Genocide on my people and, as I see it, it can only end in two ways:

An intervention to stop the illegal freeloading government.

Allowing the illegal government to win and let our race die out completely.

Government censorship

Australia is a huge land and it has always been impossible to communicate and unite with all Indigenous Australians.

The world never heard our screams in the early days of invasion and up until now, most of the world has been unaware of the history and plight of indigenous Australians. Many people believe that white people naturally come from Australia or they don’t even know that we (Aboriginals) still exist.

But now social media has given us a way to have our voices heard. In the last 2 years many indigenous Australians have gained access to social media and I recognized that this would be a great way to bring our people together, from all the different tribal estates, share our stories and unite against oppressive governments and restore hope for our collective future.

Unfortunately the government also sees the potential for us to be successful in this way and subsequently blocks our efforts, without any explanation. Also, social media pages that I run have continually been attacked with racist posts and pictures, while death threats have also been “In-boxed” on many occasions.

[Also see: Australian Government Media Caught In Censorship of Historical Archaeological Findings]

Nothing can stand against the truth

Finally I want to show you how and why this all started!

To this very day Australia remains the only commonwealth country not to have signed a treaty with the native population whose land it occupies. So how can Australia be a legally recognized country? It isn’t! And we will prove it in international courts, with your support.

Without a treaty, proof of purchase or a declaration of war, the Australian government has no legal standing over Indigenous Australians. Ever since the early days of invasion the European settlers have been calculating to wipe out our race or completely assimilate it into their western way of living. But my people will never break. We have the oldest continuing surviving culture in the world, we survived the last ice age and we will never give away our most sacred possession, our land!

Within our culture we hold the key to world sustainability. If the world can restore human rights of self determination and independence for my people we will in turn, restore hope for the survival of our planet.

If you wish to learn more, check out the recent documentaries “Utopia” and “Our Generation” – below. If you want to follow our mission on Facebook, check out the newest (and not yet censored) Facebook page, Blackfulla Revolution – Facebook.com/OurCountryOurChoice. Also check out the Aboriginal tent embassy which has been up and running for over 40 years.

Essential viewing

Our Generation (2010)

Also see:

The Secret Country – The First Australians Fight Back (1985)

Utopia (2013)

Resources for this article include:

About the author:

Pemulwuy is an Aboriginal freedom fighter.

Want to Support the Aboriginal fight for Independence? Join Blackfulla Revolution on Facebook: Facebook.com/OurCountryOurChoice.