Indigenous People Urged to Engage with Royal Commission

By Natalie Ahmat
SBS
February 14, 2014

http://www.sbs.com.au/news/article/2014/02/14/indigenous-people-urged-engage-royal-commission

Janine Dines. (NITV News)

The Royal Commission into Institutional Responses to Child Sexual Abuse will move to Brisbane next week, the first time its held public hearings outside of Sydney.

The Queensland hearings are scheduled to run for up to two weeks, with others to be held in South Australia, Western Australia and the ACT over the next six months.

NITV spoke to Royal Commission CEO Janette Dines earlier today and asked whether many Indigenous Australians had come forward to share their stories so far.

"We've done a lot of work with local groups in the community and community leaders. We've travelled quite extensively to begin to build those networks in Indigenous communities.

Ms Dines says over 70 per cent of those who have come forward in the past year to give evidence to the commission in a private session, were Indigenous Australians.

"We feel we're really at the start of a journey with Indigenous people and it's all about getting enough information out there for Aboriginal people to decide whether will come and tell their story to the Royal Commission. And feeling that it is safe to do so, and that they will be supported."