Nala Mansell says Louise Elliot is being ‘honest and open’ on her views on Welcome to Country
Two Tasmanian councils have already rejected moves to abandon Welcome to Country ceremonies. Why a Hobart councillor wants a ban on the ceremonies.
Tasmania
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A Hobart councillor’s move to remove Acknowledgement of Country and Welcome to Country from council meetings and events has the backing of an unusual ally – Aboriginal activist Nala Mansell.
Louise Elliot describes them as “quasi-religious rituals” and argues they should be “optional and voluntary”.
Ms Mansell agreed that for some people they were only words and “tokenistic”.
A Hobart City Council spokesman said there was no formal policy requiring the chair of any committee to deliver an Acknowledgement of Country at the start of council meetings or workshops.
“However, this practice has been consistently observed since 2015 and is observed by all Tasmanian councils and all capital city councils across Australia,” he said.
Ms Elliot says the money spent on Welcome to Country ceremonies should be spent on Indigenous health and housing.
“I’m absolutely not racist, I’m not denying history, I am across the painful and heartbreaking history but it should be about consent and choice,” she said.
“The council stopped the Lord’s Prayer at the beginning of its meetings several years ago, but it’s been replaced with a religious ritual of another kind.
“Imagine if we required people to partake in Holy Communion or threw holy water on people at the start of Council meetings and events.”
Ms Mansell said Ms Elliot was being “open and honest” with Hobart voters.
“I completely agree that offering nothing but words at the beginning of every single meeting, gathering, parliamentary sitting to acknowledge all the horrible things that have happened to Aborigines, and continue to happen to Aborigines, becomes tokenistic,” she said.
“The words end up making the person offering those words feel like they’ve contributed somehow, while offering no benefit whatsoever to Aboriginal people.
“It doesn’t give us back any of our stolen lands, it doesn’t stop Aboriginal incarceration rates from rising.
“I applaud Louise Elliot for standing up and saying ‘I refuse to acknowledge the murders of innocent men, women and children, I refuse to acknowledge that although the land was stolen from Aborigines, they still have a right to it’.
“She’s being open and honest so that when voters go to the polls, they can make informed decisions about who should be elected to lead in Hobart.”
Ms Elliot’s motion, to be debated at Monday night’s council meeting, follows unsuccessful moves recently at the Burnie and Flinders Island councils.
Reconciliation Tasmania has denounced what it says are “continued attacks by those in public office are not only disrespectful but divisive and must end”.
CEO Pauline Cook said keeping acknowledgments “as a visible and routine part of our protocols slowly changes hearts and minds”.
“Regular repetition of an Acknowledgement to Country is a statement of truth to say ‘We know whose land this is. We recognise history. And we are willing to say it out loud’.
“They might sound like a small ritual, but they’re helping build a future where truth, respect, and recognition are normal. And that’s how real change begins.”
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