AustLit

' I will never forget the day ten years ago when the Howard government announced the Northern Territory Emergency Response (NTER, or Intervention). A group of senior Aboriginal women from Central Australia were visiting me in Canberra, and they sat in my office with tears streaming down their faces. They were devastated because they dreaded the destruction the NTER would bring to their people. I feel a deep sense of anger and sadness at the ten precious years the Intervention has cost us and the billions of dollars that have been wasted on ineffective, punitive measures - money that could have been invested and time that could have been spent building on the strengths of Aboriginal people, and developing the Aboriginal services and workforce we need to close the gaps on health, education and life outcomes.'  (Publication abstract)