8 February 1997 TRANSCRIPT OF THE PRIME MINISTER.
THE HON JOHN HOWARD MP
DOORSTOP ANU, CANBER] RA
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1' m talking to everybody. I expect to have a meeting next week with, a combined
meeting, with representatives of the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people, the
mining industry and the pastoral industry. I'm trying to see if there is some common
ground, there may be there may not be, but I'm prepared to try. And there is a
willingness on the part of everybody to talk together. It's a difficult issue and as I said
in my speech to the conference there is no monopoly of moral righteousness held by
any one group so far as the issue is concerned. Everybody has legitimate concerns.
The Wik decision overturned one of the key bases of the original Native Title
legislation and it's not realistic to pretend that nothing has happened.
JOURNALIST: ( inaudible)
PRIAM MINISTER.
I don't find anything that the National Party has done or said as being unhelpful.
JOURNALIST: Is the Racial Discrimination Act on the table at this stage?
PRIME NMNISTER:.
I couldn't hear that.
JOURNALIST: Is the Racial Discrimination Act on the table? Is it open to negotiation?
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PRIME MINISTER:
There is nothing which is, in terms of legislation, which is absolutely sacrosanct. What
is sacrosanct in this country is racial equality. The way in which we express racial
equality can be a matter of legitimate debate at the margins. But racial equality itself
of course is sacrosanct but I'm not going to rule legislative changes out or in at this
se. What I'm tying to do in a spirit of good will is to see if we can't find some
common ground. I've listened to the Aboriginal people carefully, they have concerns
and rights. The farmers have concerns and rights. If your family has held a pastoral
lease for years on a certain basis and then out of the blue the basis of that is overturned
by the courts, you have a right to say that's not necessarily fair. So there are all points
of view on something like this and people have to show a bit of patience and restraint
and we might be able to get common ground and we may not and if we can then
obviously the Governent will have to take certain decisions.
JOURNALIST: Land is a pivotal religious issue to the Aboriginal commiunities. You're here at a
conference which is about religious values, how does that equate in an economical
rationale about the use of land?
PRIME MINISTER.-
You've got to accommodate all of those concerns and I'm quite certain we can.
JOURNALIST: ( inaudible)
PRIME AMISTER.-
I couldn't hear that I'm sorry.
JOURNALIST: Given the National Party's put such a strong position doesn't that go against what the
Government's been trying to say that there are no options being rule out or ruled in?
PRIME MIINISTER:
No, I don't find anything the National Party's said.. well, I'm not concerned about it. I
understand the view of rank and file National Party members, it's all part of the
richness of the debate.
JOURNALIST: Have you ruled out extinguishment? 2
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PRIME MINISTER:
Look, I'm simply not going to rule things in and out at this stage. I am going to do
what I have persistently said from day one I would do, that is talk to everybody which
I've done. I'm going to convene a meeting next week which brings all of the parties at
a national level together. If something emerges from that, that's terrific. If it doesn't
then an attempt will have been made and the Government will then have to make a
conscientious decision to try and meet its twin objectives ofjustice and certainty.
Thank you.
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