As the State Member for Geelong, I was proud to recently attend NAIDOC week celebrations and events in Geelong.
NAIDOC Week celebrations are held across Australia every July to celebrate the history, culture and achievements of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples. NAIDOC is celebrated by Aboriginal communities, and Australians from all walks of life.
This year’s NAIDOC week theme was Our Language Matters. Significantly, there was once more than 230 Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander language groups across Australia. Today, only 120 are still spoken, and many are at risk of being lost.
I would like to acknowledge the work of the late local Aboriginal elder, Uncle Dave Tournier, for his commitment to the preservation of Aboriginal language and community in the Geelong region.
I’m proud that the Andrews Government has introduced legislation to explicitly protect, by law, Aboriginal heritage, including language, song, and traditional knowledge of flora and fauna. We are the first government to do so in Australia.
Recently, in a rare event, Aboriginal elders stood on the floor of the Victorian parliament to give their response in Indigenous language to the introduction of the Yarra River Protection Bill. This legislation will, for the first time in Australia, include the written language of the elders.
As the Premier’s Ambassador for Closing the Gap, I am working closely with the Minister for Aboriginal Affairs, Natalie Hutchins, on the Closing the Gap Refresh. This is a joint review by the federal and all state and territory governments of progress in Closing the Gap.
We applaud the proposed shift to a strengths-based approach, rather than concentrating solely on deficits, as the focus for Closing the Gap. Change is needed as progress in improving outcomes for Aboriginal people has been slow, and failed to meet targets.
I believe it is important that the Refresh be truly Aboriginal community led, reflecting the importance of self-determination, and ensuring that Aboriginal people are the decision makers when it comes to Aboriginal affairs. Aboriginal prosperity cannot be achieved without recognition of Aboriginal community well-being and culture.
In regards to a Treaty, the Andrews Government has made a $28.5 million budget commitment to treaty and self-determination. A working group, comprising Aboriginal elders, traditional owners, organisations and young Aboriginal people have been guiding this. The next step will be community engagement via a community assembly.
The Aboriginal people must have certainty in this process. The Andrews Government intends to progress the treaty process through to legislation.
However, what is truly needed is a national approach to treaty. Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander delegates, at the recent First Nation Constitutional Convention, made this clear in their heartfelt Uluru Statement which rejected symbolic constitutional recognition.
Christine Couzens MP -Member for Geelong
