I guess they now regret not setting up an immigration booth in the 1700s at Botany Bay stamping the new arrivals’ passports with 30-day visas to enjoy the beaches of Coogee, a kangaroo kebab and a schooner of beer before continuing their cruise on to other Pacific paradises.
Had those new visitors correctly ticked the criminal history box on the arrivals card, most wouldn’t have been allowed off the ship.
For the next 300 years, these ancient nations of people were subjected to some of the worst forms of oppression one version of our human race has ever forced on another. It’s a testament to the power of the blood of the ancestors that flows through every indigenous Australian that they still exist and are fighting back.
This fight is not with sticks or stones, guns or knives, it’s with words. A defining moment was in 2017, when a group of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islanders sat in the shade of Uluru and said they wanted their voice, the voice of their ancestors and of future generations to be heard. The statement is full of power but it is also full of grace — only 440 words long, but a road map to inclusion and prosperity for all Australians.
For 300 years, new Australians have been imposing their will over the ones that have been on the red landmass from the beginning. Now these ancient cultures are pleading for the basic human right of self-determination, by indigenous nations, for indigenous nations, because what is good for them is good for all citizens of that lucky country.
Despite the box jellyfish, road tolls, Australian rugby team and queues at Sea World, Australia truly is the lucky country, full of mineral resources, beautiful beaches, great cricket players and kangaroos. It is time that luck flows back to the people who are part of its DNA.
On Saturday, all Australians have the right to vote on giving voice to the people of the Dreamtime. I hope they do. Kia kaha Australia, do the right thing!
Dave Mollard is a Palmerston North community worker and social commentator.
