Kathryn Trees

In the conclusion to The Rise of the Network Society, the distinguished professor of sociology and communications Manuel Castells wrote: Our exploration of emergent social structures across domains of human activity and experience leads to an over-arching conclusion: as an historical trend, dominant functions and processes in the Information Age are increasingly organized around networks. Networks constitute the new social morphology of our societies, and the diffusion of networking logic substantially modifies the operation and outcomes in processes of production, experience, power, and culture. While the networking form of social organization has existed in other times and spaces, the new information technology paradigm provides the material basis for its pervasive expansion throughout the entire social structure (Castells, 2000: 500)...

The Law Reform Commission is currently enquiring into and reporting on Aboriginal customary laws in Western Australia. Because I have a strong relationship with many people in Roebourne I have been asked to discuss with them Aboriginal customary law and how it functions in their lives today, and report on their responses. My report on the people's responses is included in Parts II and III of this paper. Respectively, these parts deal with customary law in Roebourne today and the role of customary law in dealing with current issues. So as to provide a background of understanding to these responses, in the first Part of this paper I have given a brief description of Roebourne and of customary law. I have also outlined four key factors relevant to a discussion of the role of customary law, as identified by the people I have spoken with. In preparing this report I have been conscious that it is not my role to critique the responses made to me. Therefore, in Parts II and III of this paper I have attempted to present the information as it was given to me. I have, however, included some of my own observations of these discussions in the conclusion. People in Roebourne have had similar discussions with Commissioners and researchers who are also reporting to the Law Reform Commission on the role of customary law, so this paper forms only a part of their response. Further, for many reasons, including the demands on people's lives, the nature of the issues discussed, the nature of relationships between men and women and the time it takes for people to give their accounts, all the people who could speak on this issue have not had the opportunity to do so. The views expressed here therefore necessarily come from a selection of people.