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Australia's shame

Oxfam Australia is to be congratulated on its report on the plight of Australia's aboriginals. On all counts their health and welfare is well below par - and in comparison to the white community appalling - and certainly highlights that years of neglect and Government inaction has led to a shamefel situation.

Whilst out politicians are quick to trumpet that Australia is first in this or amongst the leaders in that, the state of our aboriginal communities and peoples is shocking indictment on all Australians.

"Australia is ranked bottom of a league table of wealthy nations working to improve the health and wellbeing of Aboriginal peoples, according to a new report published today (April 2) by National Aboriginal Community Controlled Health Organisation (NACCHO) and Oxfam Australia.

‘The Gap Must Be Closed: Solutions to the Indigenous Health Crisis facing Australia,’ presents new research that found New Zealand, Canada and the USA had narrowed the life expectancy gap between non-Indigenous and Indigenous people to approximately seven years. This is in stark contrast to Australia where Aboriginal & Torres Strait Islanders die nearly 20-years younger than most other Australians.

Across a range of key health indicators the report shows that Australia lags behind other wealthy nations working to redress the imbalance in Indigenous health. Aboriginal & Torres Strait Islander infant mortality rates are more than 50 per cent higher than for Indigenous children in the USA and the New Zealand. Low birth weights are more than double the incidence of those in Indigenous populations in Canada and the USA as well as 60 per cent higher than the frequency in New Zealand’s Indigenous population. "

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