Submission – Victorian Aboriginal Community Controlled Health Organisation (VACCHO) – Political Life

The Victorian Aboriginal Community Controlled Health Organisation (VACCHO) is the peak body for Aboriginal health and wellbeing in Victoria, with 33 Aboriginal Community Controlled Organisations as Members. VACCHO Members support over 25,000 Aboriginal people in Victoria, and combined are the largest employers of Aboriginal people in the state.

The submission focuses on the following themes:

• The current political structure and mechanisms for political representation within Victoria and Aboriginal Victoria’s absence from political life
• Opportunities for and barriers to Aboriginal engagement with political parties and Parliament within Victoria with a particular focus on:
  • The political influence on social and emotional wellbeing of First Peoples
  • Lack of resources as a barrier to accessing the political system
• VACCHO’s experience and progress in political advocacy including our experience engaging in Victorians Governance Forums and key barriers to self-determination such as the convention of Cabinet-in-confidence