Could Australia Let Christmas Island Go?

Residents on the Australian territory of Christmas Island say they want a greater say in managing their own affairs. It has been under Australian rule since 1958, but a joint parliamentary inquiry is examining whether Christmas Island should be given a greater say in its own affairs. More than 500km from the Indonesian capital of Jakarta, Christmas Island covers a lot of ground for a small island. It is in the Northern Territory federal electorate of Lingiari. Don’t keep us in the dark: Christmas Island locals Christmas Island locals say they are becoming increasingly concerned about the island’s detention centre, which now also houses foreign criminals awaiting deportation, and the lack of accountability from the federal government. But its laws and most of the services come from Western Australia under an agreement with the Commonwealth. Yet it is Canberra, in particular the Department of Infrastructure and Regional Development, that makes the majority of the decisions on the island. To cap it off, the majority of the residents are from China or have a Chinese background, the rest are Malay and Australians are in the minority. Shire president Gordon Thomson said the island has a “democracy deficit”. “Everybody would put forward the view, I think, that the Commonwealth runs the place for its own interests,” he said. “Whether that's a reasonable view or not, that's the perception. SBS By Ryan Emery 18 DEC 2015 - 8:23 PM UP