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This paper examines key competition and consumer issues faced by Aboriginal people in remote Aboriginal communities, with particular reference to the provisions of the Trade Practices Act 1974 (TPA). The research was commissioned by the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC), and addresses the implications for the operation of the TPA of some specific economic practices of Aboriginal consumers and Aboriginal businesses. The research that informs this paper consisted of a literature review and fieldwork undertaken in 2001 in community stores in four communities and two pastoral station stores. The first part of this paper establishes a conceptual framework, termed the 'frontier economy', through which issues relevant to Aboriginal consumers and businesses can be explored. Part two of the paper reviews the ways in which some Aboriginal consumers engage with the market, as part of a discussion of the 'special characteristics' of Aboriginal consumers that potentially leave them vulnerable to commercial exploitation. It argues that certain transactions may be both commercially exploitative and instances of instrumental Aboriginal action, or agency. Moving from consumers to Aboriginal businesses, part three examines factors which may inhibit the operation of competitive markets in remote Aboriginal communities, with reference to the operation of community stores. Finally, part four of the paper returns to the concepts of the 'frontier economy' and Aboriginal agency, and discusses the implications of these concepts for ACCC compliance and education strategies.

The relationship between customary land tenure and 'modern' forms of landed property has been a major political issue in the 'Spearhead' states of Melanesia since the late colonial period, and is even more pressing today, as the region is subject to its own version of what is described in the international literature as a new 'land rush' or 'land grab' in developing countries. This volume aims to test the application of one particular theoretical framework to the Melanesian version of this phenomenon, which is the framework put forward by Derek Hall, Philip Hirsch and Tania Murray Li in their 2011 book, Powers of Exclusion: Land Dilemmas in Southeast Asia. Since that framework emerged from studies of the agrarian transition in Southeast Asia, the key question addressed in this volume is whether 'land transformations' in Melanesia are proceeding in a similar direction, or whether they take a somewhat different form because of the particular nature of Melanesian political economies or social institutions. The contributors to this volume all deal with this question from the point of view of their own direct engagement with different aspects of the land policy process in particular countries. Aside from discussion of the agrarian transition in Melanesia, particular attention is also paid to the growing problem of land access in urban areas and the gendered nature of landed property relations in this region.

A two-day "publication workshop" was convened by SSGM/ANU and Oxfam Australia as part of the Australian Association for Pacific Studies (AAPS) biennial conference held at Sydney University. The workshop brought together policymakers, academics, NGOs and activists with a shared interest in contemporary land issues in post-colonial Melanesia. It was chaired by Mr Ralph Regenvanu, Vanuatu Minister for Lands and Natural Resources, and involved a number of other distinguished guest participants including Mr Charles Lepani, High Commissioner for Papua New Guinea, Dr James Weiner (ANU) and professors George Curry (Curtin University), John Connell (University of Sydney) and Margaret Jolly (ANU). Highlights The eleven papers and one interview that were presented at the workshop were empirically and theoretically rich, and, though diverse in terms of topics and approaches, there were a number of theoretical and thematic threads that wove them together into an intellectually coherent set (see below). Collectively the papers presented provide a unique set of perspectives on land issues in Melanesia, including from Melanesian researchers and a significant number of women researchers. Many of the authors had not previously written about land and offered their unique "voices" as part of the larger international debate. Some of the empirics that were presented were especially striking, for example that the region"s urban settlements are growing at an average rate of 7 per cent per annum and that 12 per cent of PNG"s land area has come under Special Agricultural and Business Leases (SABLs) since 1995. The stories told of the recent "ministerial land grab" in Vanuatu, PNG"s SABL saga, and the contemporary political economy of land allocation in Honiara were particularly sobering. However, these were tempered by more positive stories, for example, the recent passage of a major land reform programme in Vanuatu, that gave cause for optimism. The diverse array of actors that animated these stories was also striking: from the cleaners and drivers in the Vanuatu Lands Department who had been gifted land titles by the previous Minister, to shady "Asian businessmen" and globalised oil palm corporations. Collectively the workshop participants were challenged, by Minister Regenvanu and other participants from the region, to ensure that the research findings are communicated effectively and made available to those who have the most potential to be empowered by them. Charles Lepani also pointed to the importance of developing collaborative research partnerships between foreign researchers and Pacific Islander researchers and policy-makers. One highlight of the first day was Charles Lepani"s reading aloud of a text message from the Prime Minister of PNG, Peter O"Neill, which announced publically for the first time that SABL"s "that have been abused for forestry" will be cancelled or suspended and that cabinet approval will be required for leases over "large parcels of land" (reported by Radio Australia here). ; AusAID

AbstractIn April 2020 a Group of Eight Taskforce was convened, consisting of over 100 researchers, to provide independent, research‐based recommendations to the Commonwealth Government on a "Roadmap to Recovery" from COVID‐19. The report covered issues ranging from pandemic control and relaxation of social distancing measures, to well‐being and special considerations for vulnerable populations. Our work focused on the critical needs of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander communities; this paper presents an overview of our recommendations to the Roadmap report. In addressing the global challenges posed by pandemics for citizens around the world, Indigenous people are recognised as highly vulnerable. At the time of writing Australia's First Nations Peoples have been largely spared from COVID‐19 in comparison to other Indigenous populations globally. Our recommendations emphasise self‐determination and equitable needs‐based funding to support Indigenous communities to recover from COVID‐19, addressing persistent overcrowded housing, and a focus on workforce, especially for regional and remote communities. These latter two issues have been highlighted as major issues of risk for Indigenous communities in Australia It remains to be seen how governments across Australia take up these recommendations to support Indigenous peoples' health and healing journey through yet another, potentially catastrophic, health crisis.