The ''Native Administration Act'', originally titled the ''Aborigines Act'', and later renamed to the ''Native Welfare Act''; was a

legislative act Legislation is the process or result of enrolling, enacting, or promulgating laws by a legislature, parliament, or analogous governing body. Before an item of legislation becomes law it may be known as a bill, and may be broadly referred to a ...

of the Western Australian legislature. Alongside the ''Aborigines Protection Act'' (1905), the act enabled the surveillance and control of

Aboriginal people There is no generally accepted definition of Indigenous peoples, although in the 21st century the focus has been on self-identification, cultural difference from other groups in a state, a special relationship with their traditional territ ...

by agents of the colonial state government in the early 20th century. The act sought to regulate Aboriginal people "more than any other legislation in Western Australia". It was formerly named the ''Aborigines Act'' on its original passage in 1905, and remained in its original form until substantial amendments in 1936. Both forms of the act were passed by the

WA Labor The Western Australian Labor Party, officially known as WA Labor, is the Western Australian branch of the Australian Labor Party (ALP). It is the current governing party of Western Australia since winning the 2017 state election under Mark McGo ...

governments.

Legislative history

The act was originally passed as the ''Aborigines Act'' in 1905. It was renamed and reformed in 1936, with a new short title ''The Native Administration Act 1905–36''. This reform took place under the Willcock ministry of the Labor Government. It followed a report from the Moseley Royal Commission by that recommended upholding the authority of the Aborigines Department under

Chief Protector The Australian colonies in the nineteenth century created offices involved in managing the affairs of Indigenous people in their jurisdictions. The role of Protector of Aborigines was first established in South Australia in 1836. The role becam ...

A. O. Neville Auber Octavius Neville (20 November 1875 – 18 April 1954) was a British-Australian public servant who served as the Protector of Aborigines, Chief Protector of Aborigines and Commissioner of Native Affairs in Western Australia, a total te ...

. It was introduced in the lower house by

Frank Wise Frank Joseph Scott Wise AO (30 May 1897 – 29 June 1986) was a Labor Party politician who was the 16th Premier of Western Australia. He took office on 31 July 1945 in the closing stages of the Second World War, following the resignation of ...

. In the ensuing parliamentary debates, the bill was primarily questioned by members of the Country Party.

Charles Latham Sir Charles George Latham (26 January 1882 – 26 August 1968), often shortened to simply C. G. Latham, was an Australian politician, former leader of the opposition in Western Australia and the 10th President of the Western Australian Legisla ...

described as "farcical" the requirement that all Aboriginal marriages need government consent.

Percy Ferguson Percy Douglas Ferguson (23 January 1880 – 2 June 1952) was an Australian politician. He was a Country Party member of the Western Australian Legislative Assembly from 1927 to 1939, representing Moore until 1930 and Irwin-Moore thereafter. He ...

said of "

half-caste Half-caste is a term used for individuals of Multiracial, multiracial descent. The word ''wikt:caste, caste'' is borrowed from the Portuguese or Spanish word ''casta'', meaning race. Terms such as ''half-caste'', ''caste'', ''quarter-caste'' an ...

" persons: "Is that justified ... ? A number of them are as intelligent as the Chief Protector himself."

William Kitson William Henry Kitson (20 November 1886 – 13 December 1952) was an Australian politician who was a Labor Party member of the Legislative Council of Western Australia from 1924 to 1947. He was a minister in the governments of Philip Collier, Jo ...

delivered the bill's second reading speech in the

WA Legislative Council The Western Australian Legislative Council is the upper house of the Parliament of Western Australia, a state of Australia. It is regarded as a house of review for legislation passed by the Legislative Assembly, the lower house. The two Houses ...

Charles Wittenoom Charles Horne Wittenoon (6 December 1879 – 18 September 1969) was an Australian politician. He was a Member of the Western Australian Legislative Council for twelve years. Born in Geraldton, Western Australia on 6 December 1879, he was the so ...

also spoke in support.

Effects of the act

Noteworthy effects on indigenous Australians from the act included: * The appointment of the Commissioner as the legal guardian of every Aboriginal child until the age of 21, with the ability to alter custody arrangements for the child.{{Cite journal , last=Smith , first=Pamela A , date=2000 , title=Station camps: legislation, labour relations and rations on pastoral leases in the Kimberley region, Western Australia , url=https://press-files.anu.edu.au/downloads/press/p72891/pdf/article0518.pdf , journal=Aboriginal History , volume=24 , pages=78 * Empowerment of the minister to issue a warrant providing for the arrest and imprisonment of any Aboriginal Australian, without process * Creation of a criminal offence for Aboriginal Australians to move north of the 26th parallel * Creation of a criminal offence for Aboriginal Australians to leave their jobs (substantively enabling their

enslavement Slavery is the ownership of a person as property, especially in regards to their labour. Slavery typically involves compulsory work, with the slave's location of work and residence dictated by the party that holds them in bondage. Enslavemen ...

) * Empowerment of police officers to order Aboriginal people to leave towns * The ability to declare a city as a "prohibited area for Aborigines" (substantively enabling

racial segregation Racial segregation is the separation of people into race (human classification), racial or other Ethnicity, ethnic groups in daily life. Segregation can involve the spatial separation of the races, and mandatory use of different institutions, ...

) * Making it an offence for an Aboriginal female to be within two miles of the mouth of a creek or inlet used by

pearler Pearl hunting, also known as pearl fishing or pearling, is the activity of recovering or attempting to recover pearls from wild molluscs, usually oysters or mussels, in the sea or freshwater. Pearl hunting was prevalent in India and Japan for tho ...

s between sunset or sunrise * The ability to banish an Aboriginal person from their country for cattle killing * The requirement for an adult Aboriginal person to obtain the commission's consent to marry The above restrictions were accompanied by those imposed by the ''Aborigines Protection Act'', which did not permit indigenous Australians to travel below the 26th parallel without a permit from the minister, and made it an offence to move from the station on which they resided. The regulations preventing indigenous movement in Western Australia were enforced until the 1960s.

References

History of Indigenous Australians

Legislative history

Effects of the act

See also

References