'Secrecy shrouds' recovery of Indigenous remains

In the decades following European settlement of Australia, thousands of bones of Indigenous people were taken to museums overseas for scientific research, many in Britain.

Over the past 20 years, many have been returned, but government funding for repatriation ceremonies and reburial has fluctuated.

To try to make the process more consistent, in 2011, the federal government released its first official policy paper on how it would negotiate and carry out repatriations in the future.

But critics of the policy say it hasn't helped much.

Dr Michael Pickering is a senior curatorial fellow at the Australian National Museum.

He says while the formal government encouragement is welcome, the process is often slow, not properly funded and shrouded in secrecy.

He spoke about the issue with Kate Stowell.