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    Australian councils unelected by the citizens in an Indigenous setting: The case of Nhulunbuy in the Northern Territory

    Access Status
    Fulltext not available
    Authors
    Pearson, Cecil
    Date
    2012
    Type
    Journal Article
    
    Metadata
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    Citation
    Pearson, Cecil A.L. 2012. Australian councils unelected by the citizens in an Indigenous setting: The case of Nhulunbuy in the Northern Territory. Australian Journal of Public Administration. 71 (3): pp. 278-289.
    Source Title
    Australian Journal of Public Administration
    DOI
    10.1111/j.1467-8500.2012.00784.x
    ISSN
    0313-6647
    URI
    http://hdl.handle.net/20.500.11937/3559
    Collection
    • Curtin Research Publications
    Abstract

    Within the Australian democratic nation there are towns where the citizens are governed by administrations that have not been democratically elected by the residents. These unique residential centres are termed ‘special purpose towns’ that can be transformed to a permanent community governed by a democratic structure through a process termed normalisation. This paper examines the special purpose mining town of Nhulunbuy in the Northern Territory of Australia, which is on the cusp of the normalisation process. The paper outlines the similarities and differences of local government roles and responsibilities with Australian towns or shires that have publicly elected executive members. How Indigenous people are facilitating the normalisation of Nhulunbuy, through cultural perceptions of opportunity, is discussed. A concluding focus challenges well established conventional frameworks endorsing the roles of governments and miners in the normalisation phenomenon.

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    Curtin would like to pay respect to the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander members of our community by acknowledging the traditional owners of the land on which the Perth campus is located, the Whadjuk people of the Nyungar Nation; and on our Kalgoorlie campus, the Wongutha people of the North-Eastern Goldfields.