Earlier, Australian authorities had refused to join the declaration, citing that its provisions contradict the state's laws. As Macklin's predecessor in the post of minister, Mal Brough, stated at the time, the government should not allow traditional Aboriginal laws to be more important than national ones. 'All Australians should have only one law,' Brough insisted.
As Lenta.ru notes, the UN declaration is largely a symbolic document. It calls on the governments of countries where indigenous peoples live to grant them greater control over land and natural resources, as well as to return previously confiscated lands or pay compensation.
The struggle for the adoption of the declaration on the rights of indigenous peoples lasted more than 20 years. The document was approved by 143 countries, 11 countries abstained (including Russia), and four - Australia, Canada, New Zealand, and the United States - voted against.
At the time of the landing of the first white settlers in Australia, there were about a million Aboriginal people. Currently, out of 21 million Australians, less than 500,000 are indigenous peoples. The vast majority belong to the poorest segments of the population, with a life expectancy 17 years less than the national average.
Furthermore, the percentage of Aboriginal people among prison inmates greatly exceeds their share of the population, and mortality rates, especially child mortality, are higher among them. Australia's indigenous peoples also urgently need improved healthcare and the provision of suitable living areas.
This is not the first step by Kevin Rudd's government to improve relations with the indigenous population. Shortly after taking office, he made an official apology to Aboriginal people for the legislative acts and policies of all previous governments that 'caused deep pain and suffering to our fellow brothers.'