Aboriginal Child Welfare, Self-government and the Rights of Indigenous Children ─ Protecting the Vulnerable Under International Law

This volume addresses the contentious and topical issue of aboriginal self-government over child welfare. Using case studies from Australia and Canada, it discusses aboriginal child welfare in historical and comparative perspectives and critically examines recent legal reforms and changes in the design, management and delivery of child welfare services aimed at securing the 'decolonization' of aboriginal children and families. Within this context, the author identifies the limitations of reconciling the conflicting demands of self-determination and sovereignty and suggests that international law can provide more nuanced and culturally sensitive solutions. Referring to the UN Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples, and the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child, it is argued that the effective decolonization of aboriginal child welfare requires a journey well beyond the single issue of child welfare to the heart of the debate over self-government, self-determination and sovereignty in both national and international law.

Sonia Harris-Short holds the position of Reader in Law at Birmingham Law School, University of Birmingham, UK, having previously held the posts of Lecturer and Senior Lecturer at the University of Durham. She is the co-author (with J. Miles, University of Cambridge) of Family Law: Text, Cases and Materials, a major family law text for OUP, and has published extensively in major UK and international journals. Protecting the Vulnerable brings together her research interests in family law, children's rights, indigenous peoples and the accommodation of cultural diversity in international human rights law. Research for this book was carried out during visiting appointments at the University of Victoria, Canada and the University of New South Wales, Australia and was supported by the award of a British Academy small research grant.