In the Yolngu-matha languages of north-east Arnhem land, the character trait rendered in English as 'self-centered' or 'selfish' is translated by gurrutu-miriw, literally 'kin-lacking' - acting as if one had no kin. Kin-based obligations structure the Yolngu moral order: everyone is classified as kin, and how one ought to behave to others is framed in terms of one's kin relationship to them. The complex system of rights and obligations entailed in this kin-based universe transcends the boundaries of the nuclear family - indeed elsewhere I have argued that the nuclear family, which is vested with such moral force in the Anglo-Celtic culture of the Australian mainstream, is not a 'natural' category in Yolngu society. Yet the state, through mechanisms such as the census, insists on representing Indigenous social formations through the lens of mainstream categories. Does this matter? I will argue that it does, because, having rendered Indigenous socio-moral systems invisible through a process of mistranslation, the state then proceeds, in policy directed towards Indigenous people, to act as if these systems do not exist. I will illustrate this from the latest government thinking on 'increasing Indigenous economic opportunity', outlined in a recent discussion paper produced by the Australian Government.

Please note: This seminar is available in both Streaming Audio and MP3 formats.