Reconciliation in Australia
Reconciliation in Australia is a process which officially began in 1991, focused on the improvement of relations between the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples of Australia and the rest of the population. The Council for Aboriginal Reconciliation (CAR), created by the government for a term of ten years, laid the foundations for the process, and created the peak body for implementation of reconciliation as a government policy, Reconciliation Australia, in 2001.
Background[edit]
Guugu Yimithirr and James Cook[edit]
The first act of reconciliation between Indigenous Australians and non-Indigenous people followed Lieutenant James Cook's 1770 landing at the site of modern Cooktown. Cook and his crew had developed a friendly relationship with the local people, recording more than 130 words of their language. However, after the crew refused to share 12 green turtles which they had caught, thus violating local customs, the locals became angry. A Guugu Yimithirr elder stepped in, presenting Cook with a broken-tipped spear as a peace offering, thus preventing an escalation which could have ended in bloodshed. The event has been re-enacted every year since 1959 with the support and participation of many of the local Guugu Yimithirr people.[1][2]
Modern day[edit]
The term first entered the language of politics after the election of Bob Hawke as Prime Minister of Australia[3] in 1983. In opposition before his election, his election campaign had focused on a "national reconciliation, national recovery and national reconstruction", under the slogan "Bringing Australia Together". His speech launching Labor's campaign explained what the concept might mean for Australia:[4]
Hawke's time in office brought a policy shift around Indigenous Australian self-determination and Indigenous land rights in Australia.[5]
The final report of the Royal Commission into Aboriginal Deaths in Custody was published in April 1991, with one of its recommendations the initiation of a process of reconciliation between Aboriginal and non-Aboriginal Australians.[6] At the time, there was some criticism of the term and concept as a "politically soft option", a replacement for pursuing more concrete aims for justice for Indigenous peoples, such as land rights and a treaty. Another criticism was that the term implies that there was once a state of peaceful co-existence between settlers and Indigenous peoples which would be restored by re-conciliation.[3]
The concept[edit]
The concept of reconciliation includes both practical and symbolic features. It involves recognising and acknowledging that Indigenous peoples are the traditional owners of the whole of Australia, and that past injustices that have led to present-day consequences for Indigenous peoples, as well as increasing understanding by non-Indigenous people of Aboriginal peoples' cultures and attachment to country and working to reduce racism in Australia. Practical matters include improving health, education and employment prospects for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people.[7]
Growth of public support[edit]
Australians for Native Title and Reconciliation (ANTaR), a mostly non-Indigenous organisation, was founded in 1997. With support from Australian Artists Against Racism, the "Sea of Hands" was created on the lawns in front of Parliament House, Canberra: 50,000 hands, symbolising support for Indigenous Australians against the Wik amendments.[3]
Social research showed that public support for the process of reconciliation had risen from 48% to 75–80% of the population over the decade of CAR's existence, although attitudes remained mixed on other issues, and among Indigenous people there was some scepticism that reconciliation could be of any practical value to improving their lives.[3]
Government response[edit]
Within a few years of the dissolution of CAR, the federal government was criticised for undermining the process of reconciliation by removing support structures and aiming to turn public support against reconciliation. It ignored the more controversial recommendations, such as Constitutional recognition of Indigenous Australians, recognition of Indigenous rights, and setting up structured negotiating processes, instead focusing on the practical aspects,[3] as seen in its Closing the Gap policy framework, which commenced in 2008.[19]
National Reconciliation Week[edit]
Major religious communities in Australia commenced the practice of a Week of Prayer for Reconciliation in 1993,[12] which proved very successful. In 1996 this grew into National Reconciliation Week (NRW), which provides a focus on reconciliation activities across the country.[7] The Week occurs each year between two highly symbolic dates: 27 May, the anniversary of the 1967 referendum, and 3 June, or Mabo Day,[25] the date that The Mabo decision was made in the High Court of Australia.[26]
National Sorry Day, on 26 May, remembers the anniversary of the day that the Bringing Them Home report was tabled in Parliament.[27]
The first Reconciliation Day as a public holiday was held in the Australian Capital Territory on 28 May 2018.[12]