Indigenous Data Governance in Australia: Towards a National Framework

Australia's distinctive colonial administrative history has resulted in the generation and capture of large quantities of personal data about Indigenous Peoples in Australia, which is currently controlled and processed by government agencies and departments without coherent regulation. From an...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:International indigenous policy journal 2023, Vol.14 (1), p.1-30
Main Authors: Rose, James, Langton, Marcia, Smith, Kristen, Clinch, Darren
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Aboriginal Australians
Colonialism
Data
Departments
Governance
Government agencies
Indigenous peoples
Intellectual property
Native peoples
Natural resources
Personal information
Policy
Property rights
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Summary:Australia's distinctive colonial administrative history has resulted in the generation and capture of large quantities of personal data about Indigenous Peoples in Australia, which is currently controlled and processed by government agencies and departments without coherent regulation. From an Indigenous standpoint, these data constitute stranded assets. Established legal frameworks for pursuing recovery of other classes of asset alienated by governments from Indigenous Peoples in Australia, including land, natural resources, and unpaid wages, have not yet been extended to the recovery of Indigenous data assets. This legacy scenario has created a disproportionate administrative burden for Indigenous organisations by sustaining their dependency on government for necessary data, while simultaneously suppressing the value of their own contemporary community-owned data assets. In this article, we outline leading international legal, economic, and scientific frameworks by which an equitable arrangement for the governance of Indigenous data might be restored to Indigenous Peoples in Australia.
ISSN:1916-5781
1916-5781
DOI:10.18584/iipj.2023.14.1.10987