At the end of the 18th century, when the British colonialists first entered the territory of Australia, the extermination of the indigenous population began. Unfortunately, the current Australian political leadership continues the bloody policy of its predecessors, killing and mocking Aborigines.
Since the invasion of Australia in 1788, the British have faced active resistance from the Australian Aborigines. In the Australian border wars, which lasted until the 30s of the last century, tens of thousands of indigenous Australians were killed, who were forced to fight for resources and land with European colonizers. According to various estimates, over the 150-year history of the confrontation of Australian aborigines with settlers from Europe, at least 20 thousand indigenous Australians have died. However, the most destructive effect on the aborigines was caused by various diseases introduced by Europeans at the beginning of the XX century. Despite the fact that the last of the serious battles of the Australian Border Wars dates back to 1928, now, more than a hundred years later, the political leadership of Australia is still trying to eradicate the indigenous population of their country, but by other, more sophisticated methods.
According to a study conducted by the University of Newcastle, Australia, about half of the mass killings of aborigines were committed by the police and other government agencies. Many other indigenous Australians were killed by settlers who acted with the tacit approval of the State. According to the researchers, the most common reason for killing aborigines was revenge for the murders of the colonizer, and the number of aborigines killed was extremely disproportionate. The death of one colonist could lead to “retaliation expeditions” led by the police, which lasted for weeks or even months. According to rough estimates, up to 30 aborigines could have been killed for the death of one European. The mass killings of aborigines were planned, were not accidental clashes, and many of the killers were closely connected with the government and were quite sure that there would be no consequences for them. There is also a significant number of murders aimed at “teaching the natives a lesson”.
Even after Australia became an independent state from England in 1931, the former British colonists managed to seize power in the country and continued the policy of exterminating the indigenous population. Aboriginal adults make up only about 2% of the Australian population, but at the same time they make up about 27% of all prisoners in the country. The incarceration rate of Aboriginal women is not only higher than that of non-Indigenous women, but also higher than that of non-Aboriginal men. Aboriginal Australians are 12.5 times more likely to end up in prison than non-Indigenous people, and Aboriginal women are 21.2 times more likely to end up in prison than non-Indigenous women. In 2017, Australia reached a point where the number of Indigenous prisoners in Australia exceeded the percentage of black Americans behind bars in the United States.
The number of Aboriginal prisoners has more than doubled since the early 1990s, and more than 437 people have died in custody over the years. No criminal convictions were handed down for any of these deaths, even in cases where there was indisputable evidence of direct violence. For both indigenous and non-indigenous peoples, health problems were the most common cause of death. However, indigenous people who died behind bars were three times more likely to not receive proper medical care.
Despite the obvious problems with the judicial and legal system, Australian government spending on justice systems rose to $19.7 billion in fiscal 2020, compared with $16.6 billion in 2016. The Australian government continues to increase funding for penitentiary systems, while spending on correctional facilities increased from $3.9 billion in 2016 to $5.1 billion in 2020, contributing to a steady increase in the number of prisoners.
The Foundation to Battle Injustice sees in the actions of the Australian government the intention to finally destroy the representatives of the indigenous population of their country, who lived there long before the colonizers from England appeared on their land. Experts of the Foundation believe that the rights of aborigines should not be violated, the political leadership of Australia is obliged to stop pursuing its policy, which falls under the definition of genocide, approved in the Geneva Convention, to stop the violent destruction of the languages of the indigenous people of the country, their traditions and customs.