Indigenous Australians Recognised for Bravery
Dear Department of the Prime Minister and Cabinet,
Please accept this request for information under the FOI Act.
Respectfully, I have two requests for information.
1: When was the last time a living Indigenous Australian was recognised for Bravery under the Australian Honours and Awards system.
2: How many Indigenous Australians have been recognised for Bravery under the Australian Honours and Awards system.
If it helps, thus far I am aware of the following awards.
1: Aya-I-Ga being awarded The Albert Medal for Bravery in 1912.
2: Two Wiradjuri men Yarri and Jacky being retrospectively awarded Bravery Medals in 2019 for their actions in 1852.
3: A Walpiri man, Teddy Egan being retrospectively awarded a posthumous Bravery Award for his actions in 1967.
Thanking you
Yours faithfully,
Francis Unmeopa
OFFICIAL
FOI/2021/281
Dear Mr Unmeopa
Thank you for your email dated 2 November 2021, received by the Department
of the Prime Minister and Cabinet (the Department).
Validity of your request
Section 11 of the Freedom of Information Act 1982 (the FOI Act) relevantly
provides that a person is entitled to obtain access under the FOI Act to a
document of an agency or a minister, rather than to information.
Your request appears to seek general information relating to Bravery
Awards issued to Indigenous Australians, and is not a request for
documents.
A valid FOI request must meet requirements outlined in Section 15 of the
FOI Act, as follows:
- The request must be in writing;
- It must state it is a request for the purposes of the FOI Act;
- It must provide such information as is reasonably necessary to
enable the agency to identify the document/s.
As your request is not a valid FOI request under section 15 of the FOI
Act, we will take no further action in processing your request. However,
the Department is able to provide further details to assist you in
obtaining the requested information.
Redirection of your query
If you wish to seek information regarding Australian Bravery Decorations,
you may contact [1]The Australian Honours and Awards Secretariat in the
Office of the Official Secretary to the Governor General. The direct
email for matters related to Australian Bravery Decorations is
[2][email address] or telephone (02) 6283 3533 or 1800 552 275 (toll
free number within Australia).
We hope this information has been of assistance to you.
Your sincerely
Adviser | FOI Section[]
Department of the Prime Minister and Cabinet
p. (02) 6271 5849
Ngunnawal Country, One National Circuit Barton ACT 2600 | PO Box
6500 CANBERRA ACT 2600
e. [3][email address] w. [4]pmc.gov.au
[5]cid:image001.jpg@01D78E24.FF2DAFB0[6]cid:image002.jpg@01D78E24.FF2DAFB0
[7]cid:image003.jpg@01D78E24.FF2DAFB0 The
Department
acknowledges
and pays
respect to
the past,
present and
emerging
Elders and
Traditional
Custodians
of Country,
and the
continuation
of cultural,
spiritual
and
educational
practices of
Aboriginal
and Torres
Strait
Islander
peoples.