Australians ‘have had an absolute gutful’ of Welcome to Country ceremonies, survey finds

Australians have tired of “divisive and pointless” Welcome to Country ceremonies, new polling data has revealed, amid ongoing debate over the practice.

Australians have tired of “pointless” Welcome to Country ceremonies, new polling data has revealed, amid calls for a “review” of their use at public events.

A survey of 1005 Australians conducted by independent marketing research firm Dynata on behalf of the conservative Institute of Public Affairs last month found that more than half (56 per cent) of participants agreed the practice has “become divisive”.

Only 17 per cent disagreed with the statement, while 27 per cent said they were unsure.

Surprisingly, 48 per cent of those aged 18 to 24 — a demographic often thought to be more progressive than generations past — did not believe the ritual to be a unifying one.

Sentiment around the performance of Welcome to Country before major events like Anzac Day or sporting matches was more mixed — 46 per cent and 49 per cent respectively said they should no longer be performed before either event, versus 34 per cent and 30 per cent who said they should continue.

IPA deputy executive director Daniel Wild said the survey results were proof “Australians have had an absolute gutful” of the “divisive and pointless” tradition.

Aunty Joy Murphy Wandin delivers a Welcome to Country. Picture: Darrian Traynor/Getty Images

“Even younger Australians, who the political class insist are left-wing and woke, by a two-to-one margin believe Welcome to Country performances are divisive,” Mr Wild said in a statement accompanying the findings.

“And they are evenly split on the performances at sporting events and Anzac Day ceremonies, further underscoring how divisive it is.

“Commonsense, working class, mainstream Australians understand something that the highly credentialed elites do not: Australians do not want to be divided by race, and we do not want or need to be welcomed to our own country.”

He also took aim at Opposition Leader Sussan Ley, who opened her National Press Club address on Wednesday by acknowledging the traditional owners of the land and maintained that while it should not become a box-ticking exercise, there is “a time and a place” for the declaration and Welcome to Country ceremonies.

“Look, I think Acknowledgement of Country have their place, but in significant moments like yesterday was one of those places,” Ms Ley told ABC Radio on Thursday, asked if her speech “settled” the ongoing debate over their use.

“And as Environment Minister and Health Minister, I listened carefully and I participated in what I would describe as meaningful Welcome to Country ceremonies that involved the circumstances of Indigenous Australians with respect to our natural environment and their health that were relevant and important.

“I don’t think it should be ticking a box on a Teams meeting. I don’t think it should be at every work meeting, because I think that actually diminishes the value of what it is.

“So there is a time and a place, and it’s about striking the right balance.”

Sussan Ley opened her National Press Club address with an Acknowledgment. Picture: Martin Ollman/NCA NewsWire

Her words were a marked departure from the stance of her predecessor Peter Dutton, who omitted Acknowledgement of Country statements at major events and speeches during his election campaign, said the practice was overdone and went as far as to say he didn’t support Welcome to Country ceremonies on Anzac Day.

Mr Wild argued Ms Ley’s stance was also “at odds with modern Australia”, and accused her of “[failing] to state who the purported traditional owners of the National Press Club are”.

The ceremonies have been a matter of fierce debate in recent months. Picture: Sam Ruttyn

A number of Indigenous community leaders and academics, speaking to The Daily Telegraph, also questioned the frequency with which Welcome to Country ceremonies were being performed, as well as the motives behind them.

“Welcome to Country is overused. It is meant to be a sacred ceremony between tribes, not to be commercialised like a money-making machine,” former South Australian AFL player Tyson Lindsay said.

“I talk to my elders about it and they say it is not acceptable, every time we hear it we cringe now … There are too many real issues facing Aboriginal people to be worrying about these empty symbolic gestures.

“I am looking for real change for the good of rather than symbolic tokenism.”

Warren Mundine. Picture: Thomas Lisson

Former AFL player Tyson Lindsay. Picture: Grant Schwartzkopff

Prominent Indigenous leader and businessman Warren Mundine said he was sick of the practice being hijacked for political purposes.

“A welcome is supposed to be, ‘I’m glad you’re here’,” Mr Mundine explained.

“It’s like welcoming someone into your house.”

Speaking to news.com.au earlier this year, Wiradjuri woman and University of Melbourne Associate Professor of Indigenous Education, Dr Jessa Rogers, said the misconception the tradition is “about welcoming you to Australia” was “completely ridiculous”.

“People think that a Welcome to Country is welcoming them to Australia, when in fact it is welcoming them to the specific Country of that local Aboriginal nation,” Dr Rogers said.

Simply put, Dr Rogers explained, Welcome to Country is a formal welcome by the traditional owners and custodians of a particular place, to their country.

“Country is not the same as ‘Australia’,” she said.

“It is a spiritual concept as well as a physical one — it encompasses landmarks but also people, skies, waterways and beings. Country is what we belong to as Aboriginal people.”

Originally published as Australians ‘have had an absolute gutful’ of Welcome to Country ceremonies, survey finds