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Bonita Mabo speaks about being a South Sea Islander, 2008

Audio Bonita Mabo speaks about being a South Sea Islander, 2008

TLF ID R9397

This is an edited sound recording of Bonita Mabo, widow of Indigenous land rights activist Eddie Mabo. She discusses being of South Sea Islander descent and talks about how South Sea Islanders were officially recognised as a distinct ethnic group. She states a belief that Islanders such as her ancestors who were brought to Australia from the south Pacific were part of the Stolen Generations. Mabo also states that there has been a cover-up about past mistreatment of the South Sea Islanders. The recording was made in June 2008.

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Educational details

Educational value
  • This recording illustrates the views of a woman who has become prominent in attempts to raise awareness about South Sea Islanders in Australia. The recording makes it clear she is proud of her heritage as a descendant of South Sea Islanders but disappointed at the level of knowledge about them and their achievements.
  • Bonita Mabo (1943-) kept a relatively low public profile as the wife of Edward 'Eddie' Koiki Mabo (1936-92), a Torres Strait Islander whose fight for land rights culminated in a historic decision by the High Court of Australia in 1992 to recognise native title as a form of land ownership. Bonita Mabo's campaign on behalf of South Sea Islanders began after the death of her husband.
  • From the 1860s to the early 1900s European colonisers 'recruited' thousands of South Pacific Islanders to be low-paid workers in the region. Some worked as divers, searching for pearl shells or sea cucumbers, but most were recruited for labour-intensive plantations, farms and mines in Queensland, Fiji, Samoa and New Caledonia. More than 62,000 Islanders, including some of Bonita Mabo's ancestors, were taken to Qld from parts of Melanesia.
  • In this recording, Mabo refers to South Sea Islanders being 'in ball and chain', being sold and being part of the Stolen Generations. Contemporary critics called the South Pacific labour trade 'blackbirding', and said that it was the same as slavery, which had been abolished under British law since 1833. Reports of coercion or deception were common, and some Islanders were simply kidnapped.
  • South Sea Islanders were taken to Qld as 'indentured labourers' under contracts to work for three years, after which they were supposed to be returned home. However, many stayed and in the 2006 census, 4,099 people described themselves as having 'Australian South Sea Islander' ancestry. Of those, 3,048 lived in Qld.
  • In this recording, Bonita Mabo refers to a trip to Brisbane for an event that marked the recognition of South Sea Islanders as a distinct ethnic group. The federal government formally recognised South Sea Islanders in 1994. The Qld Parliament followed suit in 2000. A recognition statement acknowledged past injustices against members of the community, as well as significant contributions made by them to Qld's social, cultural and economic development.
Topics Stolen Generations Colonies Genocide Torres Strait Islander history

Other details

Contributors
  • Author
  • Person: Bonita Mabo
  • Description: Author
  • Contributor
  • Name: Education Services Australia Ltd
  • Organization: Education Services Australia Ltd
  • Description: Content provider
  • Address: VIC, AUSTRALIA
  • URL: http://www.esa.edu.au/
  • Name: Education Services Australia
  • Organization: Education Services Australia
  • Description: Data manager
  • Person: Bonita Mabo
  • Description: Author
  • Copyright Holder
  • Name: Education Services Australia Ltd
  • Organization: Education Services Australia Ltd
  • Address: VIC, AUSTRALIA
  • URL: http://www.esa.edu.au/
  • Publisher
  • Name: Education Services Australia Ltd
  • Organization: Education Services Australia Ltd
  • Description: Publisher
  • Address: VIC, AUSTRALIA
  • URL: http://www.esa.edu.au/
  • Resource metadata contributed by
  • Name: Education Services Australia Ltd
  • Organisation: Education Services Australia Ltd
  • Address: AUSTRALIA
  • URL: www.esa.edu.au
Access profile
  • Colour independence
  • Device independence
Learning Resource Type
  • Audio
Rights
  • © Education Services Australia Ltd, 2013, except where indicated under Acknowledgements.