Aboriginal autonomy

by H. C. Coombs

After more than two hundred years of white colonisation, one of the most important moral issues facing Australian society remains the need for reconciliation with indigenous Australians. In these essays H.C. Coombs reflects on the nature of Aboriginal identity and the ongoing importance of autonomy for contemporary Aboriginal society. He also suggests strategies by which self-determination meaningful to Aboriginal people might be achieved in practice. Some of the chapters have been written especially for this volume, including one in which Dr Coombs makes a thoughtful and provocative contribution to the Mabo debate, linking the High Court's historic decision to prospects for Aboriginal autonomy. Dr Coombs writes with the conviction that 'mainstream' Australia stands to gain as much as Aboriginal people, if not more, from the fulfillment of Aboriginal aspirations. It is a personal and passionate plea for a just society, from one of Australia's most influential and eloquent advocates of