维多利亚州五年内121名原住民自杀身亡，疗愈中心资金承诺落空

过去五年间，澳大利亚维多利亚州共有121名原住民死于自杀，该群体的自杀风险达到其他人群的三倍1。为悼念这些逝者，维多利亚州议会外摆放了121把空椅子以示纪念1。

维多利亚州原住民健康组织（VACCHO）指出，2021年3月心理健康皇家委员会最终报告中的关键建议尚未充分落实1。虽然州政府接受了最终报告的65项建议及中期报告的9项建议，但未提供资金1。为此，VACCHO曾两次申请约3620万澳元、为期四年的资金，以建立两个文化疗愈中心，但执政党与反对党均未承诺拨款1。与此同时，联盟党承诺若赢得11月州选举，将在100天内废除维多利亚州条约法律并解散Gellung Warl1。

A total of 121 Indigenous people in Victoria have died by suicide over the past five years, prompting the placement of 121 empty chairs outside the state parliament to honor their memory 1. The Indigenous community currently faces a suicide risk three times higher than that of the general population 1. In response to this crisis, the Victorian Aboriginal Community Controlled Health Organisation (VACCHO) is urging the government to fully implement key recommendations from the final report of the Royal Commission into Mental Health, which was released in March 2021 1. Although the state government accepted all 65 recommendations from the final report and nine from the interim report, VACCHO notes that crucial proposals, including the establishment of two cultural healing centers, remain underfunded and inadequately implemented 1.

To address this gap, VACCHO has applied twice for approximately 36.2 million Australian dollars to fund the two cultural healing centers over a four-year period 1. However, neither the ruling party nor the opposition has committed to providing the necessary funding for these centers 1. Meanwhile, political focus has shifted to other areas, with the Coalition promising to abolish Victoria's treaty laws and disband the Gellung Warl within 100 days if they win the November state election 1.