Closing the Gap
The Australian Productivity Commission recently released it’s Closing the Gap Report and Implementation Plan.
Bishop Charles Gauci, chair of the Australian Catholic Bishops Commission for Relations with Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islanders responded to the report, referring to it as ‘the starting point for renewed action’.
Bishop Gauci emphasised the need for Catholics, (and indeed all Christians) “to collaborate with their First Nations counterparts to achieve tangible improvements in their lives.”
“As a Church, we are called to illuminate and enrich Australian society, particularly in the realm of Indigenous affairs,” …
“Now more than ever, we must unite, deliberate, and take meaningful action.” Bishop Charles Gauci
The Report in brief
Areas of justice and health have “received little effort”. The report:
- has found that improvement will continue to fail without fundamental changes, adding that successive governments have “failed to fully grasp” the challenges.
- calls for urgent changes to rescue the landmark agreement,
- accuses the federal government of “weak” action on key areas, not fulfilling its promises and a “disregard” for the suggestions of First Nations communities.
- has identiifed that just four of 19 socioeconomic outcomes for Aboriginal Australians were on track to meet their targets, while 11 of 19 were improving.
“This moment urges us to contemplate how our Church entities can better support the health and prosperity of Indigenous communities,” Bishop Charles Gauci
In the ACBC media blog, Bishop Gauci promotes reflection and engagement guided by the Holy Spirit to support a more inclusive future for First Nations peoples.
READ
Closing the Gap report is a wake-up call – ACBC Media Blog (catholic.org.au)
Closing the Gap – Productivity Commission’s Report (apo.org.au)