Blankets, brass tags and bungalows: the role of population data systems in historical Aboriginal affairs in Northern Territory, Australia

Government policy and administration concerning indigenous peoples in early Commonwealth Australia encompassed many human rights abuses and population control including removal of children from families, forced migration, oversight of marriage and family life, regulation of employment and wages and access to natural resources. This paper documents the role of population data and information systems in these policy and administrative domains in early Commonwealth Australia using the Northern Territory as a case study. In focusing on the role of demographic data in Australian Aboriginal affairs this paper contributes to the construction of a comprehensive historical record regarding the use of population data systems as well as the promotion of discourse among demographers and social statisticians concerning the ethical dimensions of the collection, analysis and use of population data in social programs and policy formation. The specific goals are to document the existence of population data and information systems in Aboriginal administration, and to reveal, where possible, the connections between the collection and use of data and demographic information that contribute to human rights violations of Indigenous Australian persons, families and communities in the Territory.