An apology to live up to - Elizabeth Pike

‘It is not by might, nor power,
but by my Spirit’, says the Lord.

Following on from the January-February article about the federal government’s intervention in the Northern Territory, we move on to some further issues of importance during 2008.

Many celebrities can be encountered in the media through popular magazines, glitzy television shows and newspaper articles, but are these celebrities of any particular worth and do they leave us with any lasting impressions of value.? On the other hand, some people appear on the public stage and remain long in our memory.

I consider one such person appeared on centre stage on 13 February 2008. He addressed the nation with the announcement of the government’s Apology to the Aboriginal People of Australia for the wrongs committed against them.. This man was Kevin Rudd, the newly elected Prime Minister of Australia. His speech that day was one that had the qualities of a true statesman’s and will certainly make the history books. He is a man who will be remembered by Aboriginal people for many generations to come.

We have recently celebrated the first anniversary of that Apology, so I would like to recall a few of the memories from that day and how some of us were affected..

Being part of the enormous crowd in Melbourne’s Federation Square, along with my daughter and granddaughter, on that historic occasion was an unforgettable moment in time. Our emotions ran high as we witnessed the tears and feelings of everyone around us; the atmosphere was simply electric. Many have voiced the opinion that Federation Square became a sacred place that day and a memorial plaque there would be a fitting remembrance.

The following extract from the heart of an Aboriginal Yorta Yorta man, Ian Hamm from Cummeragunja, is certainly worth recalling.
Today I woke up with a bit of a headache.

Today I woke up as I do on any other day, with a child or a dog jumping on me. Getting ready for work, finding out who was dropping who at childcare, looking for the car keys—has anyone seen my phone? Just like any other day.

But today was also the first day. The first day I woke up knowing my country accepts me for who I am; the first day I woke up secure in the knowledge that there is no longer a debate about my story, my life, about me. Standing by myself at Federation Square during the lunch time concert, just taking it all in, was a very soul pleasing time.

Where we go from here is undiscovered country. Certainly, Kevin Rudd has spoken of vision and I for one am signing up. His words, the construction of the Apology and his speech—surely the gods had blessed me, that I was able to witness it. I heard it, in all its magnificence, at the most important place to me, the Aboriginal Advancement League.

And when he said, ‘Mr Speaker, I commend this motion to the House’, I cried. Today is the first day of the next chapter in the story and path of my people and my country. I want to be part of that journey, to help lead us all to a better place, to build a better future for my children. And it all began this morning. Today I woke up.

What a profound response to the Apology. The words of this Cummeragunja man are also worthy of being be well remembered.

It is still too early to look for any outcomes from the promises that were made. It will take a lot of deep thinking and strong collaboration to put anything long term in place.

Short term quick fixes will not achieve anything practical and lasting. It is very unfortunate that the current global economic situation and global warming crisis are also requiring imperative attention.

This always seems to be our lot, when we look at the gaps between the other great moments in our Aboriginal history. For example, the Referendum, Mabo and the Gurindji land handback. The road ahead has always been long and filled with signs such as wrong way – turn back – detour and so on , but we must never give up. Perhaps we could join in solidarity with another great celebrity who has appeared on the world stage in 2008, Barack Obama, who is displaying sound values for his country. Here is another man who also has the ‘audacity to hope’.

Is it a good sign that these two visionary men, Kevin Rudd and Barack Obama, have appeared as leaders at the same moment in time? Let us all hope, pray and work together with them, that this may indeed be the case. As a wise Aboriginal Barkandji man, when asked how to say ‘better understanding’ in his language, said ‘You would have to say, “Black feller, white feller, keep on talking to each other”.’

This may be God’s Time for us all.

We say sorry

I move:

That today we honour the indigenous peoples of this land, the oldest continuing cultures in human history …

The time has now come for the nation to turn a new page in Australia's history by righting the wrongs of the past and so moving forward with confidence to the future.

We apologise for the laws and policies of successive parliaments and governments that have inflicted profound grief, suffering and loss on these our fellow Australians.

We apologise especially for the removal of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children from their families, their communities and their country.

For the pain, suffering and hurt of these stolen generations, their descendants and for their families left behind, we say sorry.

To the mothers and the fathers, the brothers and the sisters, for the breaking up of families and communities, we say sorry.

And for the indignity and degradation thus inflicted on a proud people and a proud culture, we say sorry.

We the parliament of Australia respectfully request that this apology be received in the spirit in which it is offered as part of the healing of the nation.