Aboriginal elder says City of Melbourne should not try to shift Australia Day

An Aboriginal elder has lashed Melbourne City Council’s move to campaign for a date change for Australia Day celebrations.

An Aboriginal elder has lashed out at Melbourne City Council’s move to campaign to change Australia Day from January 26.

Wurundjeri man Ian Hunter said council management’s recommendation to join the change the date campaign was not supported by all Aboriginal people.

“If they change the date, what else are the white Indigenous people going to have to complain about,” he said.

“It’s urban people with some Indigenous heritage jumping up and down, it’s not traditional people.”

Mr Hunter, who performs cultural ceremonies and gives talks, said that unlike special Indigenous days like Sorry Day, Australia Day was an opportunity for mainstream Australians to connect with Aboriginal people.

“Australia Day is a time we can talk about our history and culture, we have the opportunity to teach and tell stories,” he said.

Ian Hunter says Australia Day iss an opportunity for mainstream Australians to connect with Aboriginal people. Picture: Jason Edwards

City councillors will consider the change the date proposal at a meeting on Tuesday.

If endorsed, council will continue to hold citizenship ceremonies with “First Nations elements” on Australia Day, and support Indigenous events on the day, including the Morning of Mourning.

A separate council report said a recent survey revealed low levels of understanding of Melbourne’s Aboriginal heritage and culture.

This was partly because many people didn’t know the names of the two traditional owner groups in the municipality.

However, more than 90 per cent of respondents agreed the relationship with Aboriginal people was important.

The report said that in 2021--22, traditional owners were consulted at least 66 times on projects, not including welcome to country ceremonies.

Over the next year, the council has pledged to “deliver opportunities for ‘truth-telling’ to facilitate learning, healing, and change within Melbourne and beyond”.

Participants take part in the Australia Day parade celebrations in Melbourne. Picture: James Ross

“This will be an opportunity to impart knowledge of thousands of years of rich history, language and stories, as well as provide a form of restorative justice by acknowledging Aboriginal peoples’ experiences of dispossession and inequity,” said the report tabled at a council meeting.

It said that three potential sites in the City of Melbourne had been identified for a “stolen generations” memorial, and work was continuing with state agency Aboriginal Victoria on a” First Nations Cultural Precinct” in the city.

Mr Hunter questioned the cultural precinct process.

“Who’s going to run and establish this thing?” he said.

”“Why are we allowing non-Indigenous people to establish things within our own country, it’s wrong.”