In recent times the hard line approach of housing evictions, three-strikes rules, mandatory sentencing, propositions that welfare payments be banned to school ‘dropouts’ have been heavily criticised by rights advocates and community members. Advocates such as Marianne Mackay, Professor Len Collard, Dumbartung Aboriginal Corporation’s Robert and Selena Eggington, Chair of the Narrunga Nation, Tauto Sansbury, and WA Parliamentarian Kija Elder, Josie Farrer, describe how these hard line measures compound social ills and devastates lives. But Noongar Elder Dr Robert Isaacs and Kimberley Elder, WA Indigenous Person of the Year, Ian Trust, believe otherwise – in ‘tough love’.

Dr Isaacs, is the former chairman and administrator of the long-gone Aboriginal Housing Board. Dr Isaacs argues that there has to be a level of responsibility among individuals and families that must be met. But he does warn there must be more done to support families and guide them before any prospect of eviction becomes the probable outcome.

Dr Isaacs said he is concerned for those children who finish up homeless because of evictions. Ms Mackay said so he should be.

“Thousands of our people are evicted at rates that others aren’t. People shouldn’t be evicted period, and we should be doing everything we can for one another, not giving up,” said Ms Mackay.

In 2011, there were 519 evictions of Aboriginal families in Western Australia, that’s the highest rate in the nation. The 519 evictions were double the rest of all remaining evictions but First Nations Peoples make up only less than 3 per cent of the State population but are more than 70 per cent of evictions. The 519 evictions are three-strike policy evictions, the Department of Housing has not released how many Aboriginal families have also been evicted after one or two alleged breaches.

The 519 evictions translate to more than 2000 children evicted, many in their first year of life. Ms Mackay said she does not understand why whole families are being victimised. If there are any issues to be addressed they should be contained on a person by person basis.

“It is like the Intervention (in the Northern Territory) where accusations were made, now proven unfounded, in certain communities but the Government launched a whole of Territory Intervention. It is the same with the Swan Valley Nyungah Community in Perth, accusations against one person saw the State Government overreact and evict all the residents. Most of them now homeless and some of them have died on the street. We are sick to death of the discrimination.”

Under the three-strikes policy, introduced in Western Australia in May 2011, tenants can be evicted after three offences in 12 months, which includes ‘offences’ such as ‘excessive noise.’

Western Australia has the highest homelessness rate in the nation – and Western Australia is the wealthiest jurisdiction in the nation. More than half of WA’s homelessness is First Nations peoples.

Last year, Ms Farrer criticised the Department of Housing for deliberating the eviction of an 86 year old Kimberley woman over a water bill dispute. Ms Farrer remedied this one in favour of the lady.

“Department of Housing are harsh far too often and need to understand they cannot just make judgments. This is about people’s lives.”

In Parliament last week, Parliamentarian Peter Tinley said the three-strikes policy was used without compassion and without any substantive positive recourse. But Government Housing Minister Bill Marmion champions the three-strikes policy “as working”. He points to a recent decrease in second and third strikes as compared to 2011 and when compared to first strikes. In 2012, the Department of Housing issued 941 first strikes, 328 second strikes and 127 third strikes under the policy.

Dr Isaacs runs a scheme helping First Nations People into their own homes and he would like to see more First Nations People in private ownership but most of the people he has assisted were not previously in State Housing. He said in his own time working with the Department of Housing he saw far too many properties in rundown and deplorable condition. Dr Isaacs recommends education programs to assist tenants how best to look after their homes and manage their monies. He said that more Aboriginal staff should be working within the Department of Housing and that it should be they who visit Aboriginal families, not non-Aboriginal workers.

But Department of Housing State General Manager, Steve Parry did not agree with Dr Isaacs. Mr Parry said that the Department has education programs and early intervention is provided. He said the Department does do everything it can.

In recent times families numbering 15, 14, 12, 11 and 9 have been evicted. Most of these families had a number of children under the age of 10 years of age. Australia has a shameful record little written about and that is it has 18,000 children homeless who are under the age of 12 years.

To the north of the State, and WA’s Indigenous Person of the Year, Ian Trust of Wunan Foundation fame, said that radical action is needed to significantly reduce disadvantage. He spoke along the lines of ensuring all children receive an education by attending school at all times.

Mr Trust wants Government support for a welfare reform program he hopes to initiate in the East Kimberley.

“We have to do something we have not done in the past 40 years,” said Mr Trust. He emphasized that the Closing the Gap policies were not bridging the divide in life expectancy and employment. He wants the Wunan Foundation which he Chairs to be supported in trialling a program in Halls Creek where a panel of community leaders would ‘reward’ or ‘penalise’ residents based on whether they meet certain responsibilities – school attendance rates for their children and the regular payment of their rents.

Ms Mackay said we must be wary of more punitive measures. “They only compound problems. Families may not have enough money to go around and that is why people fall behind in rent. School attendance should be achieved by working with families and not with treating them like Pavlov’s dog.”

Ms Farrer said that incentives can assist but punitive actions only add to the problems. “There are many families that can’t cope with cost of living, everything is going up, and where a family is on a Centrelink payment well they are already behind the line of advantage – disadvantaged. How do you think a father feels when he cannot afford to pay for everything his family needs, can’t pay for what his children need to keep up, can’t put all the food on the table. This is why we have breakdowns and suicides, so let us step back and understand the context before coming in with the broom.”

Mr Trust believes that if his program, Living Change, is successful in Halls Creeks it could be rolled out in other remote communities. At this time, the Federal Government has rolled out its compulsory student participation requirement and has engaged Student Attendance Officers (all of them First Nations people and mostly locals) to 40 schools, predominately remote schools across the nation. Andrew Forrest and Professor Marcia Langton have delivered an interim report to the Office of the Prime Minister calling for welfare payments to be prohibited to teenagers who ‘dropout’ out of school if they do not engage with a trade or training activity.

Mr Trust believes the community panel should be a Statutory body so it is not undermined. “We do not make any bones about this. It will be tough love,” he said.

Western Australia has among the lowest school attendance rates in the nation for its First Nation children. Seven per cent of the Kimberley is homeless and 90 per cent of that homelessness are First Nations People. The 25 to 29 years age bracket of First Nations males commit suicide at ten times the overall national rate – they are the nation’s most vulnerable group to suicide.

We need to work with people, stand alongside each other, it is not as simple as sweeping away a crisis or a suite of issues.