Jean O’Reeri, Henry Lockyer and Amanda King were selected to fill vacancies on the committee, which provides cultural advice and guidance on justice issues relevant to the Aboriginal community.
Ms O’Reeri is a Wilinggin woman from the East Kimberley region who has specialised in Aboriginal education. She is an Aboriginal Education Liaison in Wyndham for Catholic Education Western Australia and has held directorships with Aboriginal corporations.
“We deal with issues every minute of the day in our communities,” she said. “All these kids that are affected by the law now - it affects me as an Aboriginal person. Hopefully, I will make a change, I’m passionate about getting things right for my people.”
Mr Lockyer was born and raised in the Port Hedland area and is connected to the Banjima and Ngarluma peoples. He works in human resources and Indigenous affairs in the mining industry, is closely aligned to the cultural leaders in the area and maintains respectful relationships within the community.
“One of the key aspirations for me is to see how I can implement some systemic change so that we can prevent some of the experiences of my family and our community,” he said.
“By having more Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people involved, it allows for us to be a part of that change that needs to happen.”
Ms King is a Noongar and Barkandji-Ngiyampaa woman from Perth. She has worked for the State Government in native title matters and Aboriginal empowerment, along with board and committee experience.
Department Director General and AJAC Chair Dr Adam Tomison said the new members brought a strong mix of community leadership and professional skills to AJAC.
“They are well-respected people who are culturally connected to their communities and will play a valuable role in helping us achieve better justice outcomes for Aboriginal people,” Dr Tomison said.
“I also wish to thank outgoing inaugural AJAC members Merle Carter, Mitchell Drage and Jacob Collard for their valuable contributions.”
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