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Australia: The 'Good' Genocide Perpetrator?

Colin Tatz

    Health and History
    |February 24, 2018
    PubMed
    Summary
    This summary is machine-generated.

    Australian parliamentarians refused to ratify the UN Genocide Convention in 1949, despite evidence of historical genocide against Aboriginal people. This included killings, forced child removals, and policies causing harm.

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    Area of Science:

    • Social Sciences
    • History
    • Law

    Background:

    • In 1949, Australian federal parliamentarians debated ratifying the United Nations Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of the Crime of Genocide.
    • Parliamentarians expressed moral indignation, claiming Australia had a 'clean record' and could not be associated with genocide.

    Observation:

    • Historical records reveal Australian parliamentarians' involvement in policies amounting to genocide against Aboriginal people.
    • These policies included frontier killings justified as 'dispersing kangaroos' and forced child removals framed as being 'in their best interests'.
    • Further actions involved a eugenicist agenda to eliminate Aboriginal populations through intermarriage or forced assimilation.

    Findings:

    • The essay examines the mindset of individuals who committed genocide, defined as killing, child removal, and causing serious bodily and mental harm.
    Keywords:
    AustraliagenocidemedicineAboriginal population

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  • Genocidal acts against Aboriginal people were rationalized through dehumanizing language and claims of benevolent intent.

    • Implications:

    • Subsequent government policies continued to infantilize Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander populations, denying them fundamental human rights.
    • This historical analysis challenges the notion of Australia's 'clean record' and highlights the enduring impact of genocidal policies.