Decolonisation and the Pacific

Abstract

This book charts the previously untold story of decolonisation in the oceanic world of the Pacific, Australia and New Zealand, presenting it both as an indigenous and an international phenomenon. Tracey Banivanua Mar reveals how the inherent limits of decolonisation were laid bare by the historical peculiarities of colonialism in the region, and demonstrates the way imperial powers conceived of decolonisation as a new form of imperialism. She shows how Indigenous peoples responded to these limits by developing rich intellectual, political and cultural networks transcending colonial and national borders, with localised traditions of protest and dialogue connected to the global ferment of the twentieth century. The individual stories told here shed new light on the forces that shaped twentieth-century global history, and reconfigure the history of decolonisation, presenting it not as an historic event, but as a fragile, contingent and ongoing process continuing well into the postcolonial era.

Realising Māori Children’s Rights

“…As noted above, the conventional international human rights law understanding of decolonisation is the process by which previously colonised nations achieve freedom. In the Pasific region, Samoa, Fiji and Vanuatu fit this model (Banivanua-Mar, 2016). Decolonisation in Aotearoa New Zealand is not concerned with the "independence" or "freedom" model of decolonisation:…”

Thinking with and beyond settler colonial studies: new histories after the postcolonial

“…First elucidated in Manuel's 1974 book, The Fourth World: An Indian Reality, the term described 'the condition of Indigenous peoples in settler statesdecolonisation's forgotten people'. 38 Manuel was also the leading figure in the establishment of the World Council of Indigenous Peoples the following year. His work highlighted the limitations of the 'Three Worlds' schema, and, more particularly, the severe limitations of the UN framework for achieving decolonisation.…”

Taking control: Aboriginal organisations and self‑determination in Redfern in the 1970s

“…20 In establishing their organisations, Aboriginal activists adopted ideas of Black Power, which for Indigenous peoples in the Pacific embodied a form of decolonisation. 21 Gary Williams, co-founder of the Tent Embassy and the first vice-president of the Aboriginal Legal Service, emphasised that Black Power was not about violence, but about reclaiming power to pressure the government to meet demands from Aboriginal people. He further explained Black Power as 'a statement that we are finding our own feet and want to control our own lives in our own way'.…”