Topic 3: Indigenous peoples

The response of Indigenous peoples to contact, invasion, and migration from outside has varied according to historical and cultural contexts. However, dispossession, alienation, recognition, and reconciliation are some of the ongoing experiences of Indigenous societies.

Students undertake a study of the recognition and rights of Indigenous peoples. The study may focus on, but is not limited to, the recognition and rights of Indigenous peoples in one or more of the following places or regions:

• Australia
• the Basque region
• Canada
• Chile
• Fiji
• Indonesia
• Malaysia
• Myanmar
• New Zealand
• Scotland
• Southern Africa
• Sri Lanka
• Tibet
• United States.

The following are focus areas for study in this topic: 

• An overview of:
  • the relationship of Indigenous peoples with their land
  • the relationship of Indigenous peoples with their languages and cultures
  • the experiences and responses of displaced peoples in relation to their dispossession.
• The impact of colonisation and decolonisation in terms of:
  • the control of Indigenous peoples through treaty or doctrine, such as ‘terra nullius’
  • the legal status and land rights of Indigenous peoples.
• The nature of government policies and their impact on Indigenous peoples.

               Examples include:

               –    protection, assimilation, the forced removal of Indigenous children, and self determination
               –    native title/land title legislation
               –    changes to social and cultural structures.

• The responses of Indigenous peoples to government policies.
• Significant individuals and groups who led, participated in, and supported the movement for Indigenous recognition and rights, including methods used and resistance encountered. Examples include the role of women activists.
• Ongoing efforts to achieve greater recognition, reconciliation, and civil rights, and to close the gap in access to and outcomes for education, health, justice, and well-being.