Fed: UNICEF report timely reminder of Aboriginal plight
EDS: Embargoed until 2100 AEDT Wednesday February 25 SYDNEY, Feb 25 AAP - A study finding Australia's Aboriginal
children were amongst those most vulnerable to abuse and early death was a timely reminder of the indigenous plight, the
president of UNICEF Australia said today. The release of the UNICEF report on the rights of indigenous children
worldwide comes a day after the burial of Thomas Hickey, an Aboriginal teenager whose death in Sydney's Redfern ten
days ago sparked a riot. Thomas died after crashing his bicycle and becoming impaled on a fence. NSW police have denied
Aboriginal community claims they chased the 17-year-old to his death. The study found the world's 300 million
indigenous children faced tougher barriers to health and education compared to their non-indigenous counterparts. UNICEF
Australia's President Diana Hill said its release was a timely reminder of the plight of indigenous people in
Australia and throughout the world. "This report is timely because it's been released at a time when
there's been a tragic event within one of our indigenous groups," Ms Hill said. "It brings to the
forefront the needs of every indigenous child, whether they live in Redfern or they live in the most remote part of
Australia." Ms Hill said indigenous issues in Australia never really left the agenda, but they may not always be
top of mind. "I think the issue continues to be on the agenda but I don't know that it's always in the
forefront of people's minds and I think any particular incident causes us to think again about our
commitment." The most telling finding was that no matter what country a child was indigenous to -- from Bolivia to
Siberia to Australia -- they shared the same disadvantage when it came to education, health and nutrition, Ms Hill said.
The report -- produced by UNICEF's research arm the Innocenti Research Centre in Florence -- found indigenous
children had lower vaccination rates, higher mortality rates, lower rates of school enrolment, higher rates of school
drop-outs, and inadequate protection in formal justice systems. It also found in rich and poor countries alike, child
death rates were higher amongst the indigenous populations. AAP swe/jo/jnb/de
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