Represented, but within settler colonialism: Loredana Giarrusso, ‘Contemporary Colonialism, Governmentality and the Pursuit of a Commonwealth Indigenous Body, 1973–2005’, Journal of Australian Studies, 2025 | settler colonial studies blog

Represented, but within settler colonialism: Loredana Giarrusso, ‘Contemporary Colonialism, Governmentality and the Pursuit of a Commonwealth Indigenous Body, 1973–2005’, Journal of Australian Studies, 2025

20Dec25

Abstract: This article examines Indigenous representative bodies in Australian politics from 1973 to 2005 with a particular focus on the National Aboriginal Consultative Committee, the National Aboriginal Conference, the Council for Aboriginal Development and the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Commission. The examples of these Indigenous representative bodies illustrate the pervasive settler colonialism that has underpinned the government’s approach in Indigenous affairs and highlights the problematic nature of relations between the national government and Indigenous peoples. This entrenched settler colonialism reinforces ongoing colonial structures, maintaining the legitimacy of national government at the expense of Indigenous peoples’ political autonomy. The article reflects on the 2023 constitutional referendum proposal of an Indigenous Voice to Parliament as an outcome of the continued underlying settler colonial dynamics underpinning government interactions with Indigenous peoples conducted at the political level.

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