Australia endorses the UN Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples

3 April 2009

On this day, Australia formally supported the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples, often called UNDRIP. This anniversary marks Australia’s endorsement in 2009, rather than the United Nations’ adoption of the Declaration on 13 September 2007.

A change in Australia’s position

Australia had initially opposed the Declaration. Its later endorsement recognised an international framework addressing the rights of Indigenous peoples, including self-determination, participation in decisions, cultural rights and equality.

The Declaration is not a treaty and Australia’s endorsement did not automatically make every provision part of domestic law. That distinction is important: support for a framework and its implementation are related, but they are not the same thing.

Rights in everyday decisions

The Australian Human Rights Commission explains the Declaration through principles that include self-determination, participation, respect for culture, equality and non-discrimination. These principles offer a way to examine how governments, organisations and communities make decisions.

For example, participation asks more than whether someone was told about a decision after it had effectively been made. It directs attention to when people are involved, whether they have accessible information and whether their views can genuinely influence the outcome. Self-determination similarly asks who sets priorities, not only who delivers a program.

Reflecting on the anniversary

The anniversary can be used to move a conversation from general goodwill towards practical accountability. What would it mean to respect these rights in the work of a school, business or public institution? How are First Nations peoples involved in decisions that affect them, and how is that involvement evaluated?

Read the Declaration and First Nations commentary rather than treating a short summary as a substitute for the full framework. Different contexts require careful discussion, and the people affected should be central to that discussion.

Remembering the endorsement is therefore both a recognition of a significant public commitment and an invitation to consider the continuing work needed to give that commitment substance.

Continue learning

Finding Our Heart, by Thomas Mayor and illustrated by Blak Douglas, offers a thematic connection through the Uluru Statement and questions of voice and listening. It is not a history of this particular event.

Sources and further reading

Parliamentary Education Office: Australia’s endorsement; Australian Human Rights Commission: UNDRIP guide.