o conceiving the most detailed Aboriginal affairs policy yet adopted up until this period, by a major party. This called for the establishment of a full Aboriginal affairs department. Whitlam guaranteed that a Labor government would not falter to override any State laws which discriminated against Aborigines, or which supervised Aborigines, or which reduced the opportunities for Aborigines to conduct themselves as they wished. Shifting aside assimilation and integration, Labor adopted self-determination, a policy which spoke of Aborigines ultimately being able to decide the pace and nature of their future development, where they would take a real and effective responsibility for their own affairs. After becoming Prime Minister, Whitlam took it further with his talk of restoring to Aborigines their lost power of self-determination in economic, social and political affairs. Within a year of its election, the Whitlam government was discovering that its position among Aborigines was sliding outrageously. There was also indications that advancement on land rights was frustratingly slow. Despite Aboriginal complaints, there is no doubt that the Whitlam government did a lot for the Aboriginal people. Apart from the creation of the Department of Aboriginal Affairs (DAA) and the passage of anti-discrimination legislation, a lot of money was spent, much of it usefully. During the Fraser years, Labor was proud of the work of the Whitlam government, which, it claimed, had developed achievements and advances, which remain unparalleled in the history of our politics since the British occupation. The Liberal Party was slower than the ALP in devising policies in these areas. However, the party did support the 1967 amendment, and soon after, the Coalition moved to establish the Office of Aboriginal Affairs, an advisory body that was given considerable funds to determine Aboriginal needs so that the Commonwealth could undertake action. The Liberals wer...
