Aboriginal And Torres Strait Islander People Essay

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Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people comprise the Indigenous native population of Australia. These cultures date back 50 000 years and are believed to be the longest surviving cultures in the world. The extensive survival rates of the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander community are primarily due to their ability to adapt to changes in their surroundings due to their close affinity with the land (Hampton, R., Toombs, M. 2013, p. 1). Currently, the health status of Indigenous Australians remains far below that of the general population. It has been noted by the Australian Bureau of Statistics that the life expectancy of an Indigenous male is estimated at 10.6 years lower than that of a non-Indigenous man, with similar figures for the female gender (ABS, 2010). It is believed that there is an indisputable connection between the impact of Colonial History and the current health status of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people and this paper aims to cover the various contributing factors as to why this is the case.

Historical and Contemporary Factors:
Prior to colonisation, Indigenous Australians were in control of their own health care, they lived fit, healthy lives due to their ‘hunter gatherer lifestyle’ and maintained balanced and nutritional diets (Aboriginal Heritage Office, 2007). …show more content…

On arrival in Australia, the European’s declared the land as ‘Terra Nullius’ (belonging to no one) claiming it as their own and selling it off to other settlers who were migrating. The annexation often involved forced removal or dispossession of Aboriginal Peoples from traditional lands via compelling means such as massacres, poisonings and murder (Hampton, R., Toombs, M. 2013, p. 33). Along with this, colonisation introduced several

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