Reconciliation

Council uses the term First Nations peoples to collectively describe peoples who identify as Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander. The only time we defer from this term is when it is used in a title or in a name.

Our vision for reconciliation

Council is proud to share our organisation’s Reflect Reconciliation Action Plan (RAP) January 2023 – June 2024. Council is committed to continue our journey of reconciliation and we are undertaking the planning phase of our next RAP.

A Reflect RAP is a plan designed for organisations beginning their reconciliation journey with First Nations peoples. 

Council’s Reflect RAP is an inward-facing document that focuses on how we, as an organisation, can develop positive relationships with First Nations peoples that are built on a mutual foundation of respect. 

The development of this plan has encouraged Council to reflect on our past actions. It has encouraged us to look towards how we can work together to create culturally safe and welcoming environments for First Nations peoples. As a Council, we support individual and collective journeys to self-determination and independence. 

The identified Traditional Owners of the Alpine region include, in alphabetical order: 

• Bpangerang Aboriginal Corporation; 
• Dalka Warra Mittung Aboriginal Corporation;
• Dhuduroa Waywurru Nations Aboriginal Corporation;
• Duduroa Dhargal Aboriginal Corporation;
• Gunaikurnai Land and Waters Aboriginal Corporation;
• Jaithmathang Traditional Ancestral Bloodline Original Owners (TABOO) First Nation Aboriginal Corporation;
• Taungurung Land and Waters Council; and 
• Waywurru (Pallanganmiddang)

We acknowledge all the First Nations peoples who offered their time and expertise as we developed Council’s Reflect RAP, including all Traditional Owners of Country and First Nations peoples living off-Country across the Alpine Shire. We thank you for being so generous with your knowledge and for sharing it with us in the spirit of reconciliation. 

The development of Council’s Reflect RAP and all associated activities has been jointly funded by the Commonwealth Government and Victorian Government under the Commonwealth-State Disaster Recovery Funding Arrangements in response to the Black Summer Bushfires which impacted Victorian communities across the Alpine Shire. 

NGATANWARR, WATA WALOONG, WATA POORAY

The artwork for Council’s Reflect RAP - NGATANWARR, WATA WALOONG, WATA POORAY (Welcome, come near, come far) - was created by proud Gunditjimara woman and local Myrtleford young person, Ava Brock. 

NGATANWARR, WATA WALOONG, WATA POORAY (Welcome, come near, come far)

by Ava Brock

NGATANWARR, WATA WALOONG, WATA POORAY means welcome, come near, come far when spoken in Gunditjmara language. 

Overall, ten different languages were spoken across Gunditjmara Country, yet communication through core words was how they all stayed connected. 

My name is Ava Brock and I am a proud Gunditjimara woman of the Kerrupjmara clan. I am 16 years of age and go to school at Myrtleford P-12, where my family have all gone. I was raised within the Alpine Shire and have learnt to appreciate the beautiful place I call home. Having never lived anywhere else, being given the opportunity to be involved is truly an honour. 

This painting represents the coming together of all as we reconcile as one from near, from far, or from here. 

The middle meeting place represents the Alpine Shire, surrounded by symbols of man, woman, and person. This acknowledges every member within our Shire as one and how we are all equal. 

The connected waterholes to the left and below of the meeting place appreciate our connections all over Country through our waterways and the way in which the river will always lead you somewhere, as historically mob stayed in places where water was running fresh. 

Along the bottom of the painting lies our mountain ranges, those which border the place we call home. These hills offer a natural beauty only found here, attracting people from all over to the Alpine Shire. 

The top left and right corners show us those hardships we may face as a community and how the blooming support to the right of both corners from surrounding communities brings us all together, to overcome that which can’t take us down. 

As a whole, reconciliation is such an important step for the future of our community. No matter your background, we are all in this together.

Acknowledgement of Country and Welcome to Country protocols

Protocols for welcoming visitors to Country has been a part of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander cultures for thousands of years.

When is an Acknowledgement of Country appropriate?

An Acknowledgement of Country is an opportunity for anyone to show respect for Traditional Owners and the continuing connection of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples to Country. This may be given at the beginning of a meeting, speech, or event.

There is no specific wording for an Acknowledgement of Country, just be sincere, or speak from the heart. If possible, do some research on the Country you are acknowledging.

An Acknowledgement of Country is important because of the long history of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people's exclusion from Australian history books, the Australian flag, the Australian anthem and for many years, Australian democracy. Therefore, recognising Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples in events, meetings and national symbols contributes to ending the exclusion that has been so damaging.

When is a Welcome to Country appropriate?

A Welcome to Country ceremony should be arranged for major public events, forums and functions in locations where Traditional Owners have been formally recognised. A welcoming ceremony is also appropriate if the event has broad impact on, or is significant to, Aboriginal people. A Welcome is to be performed by an appropriate person such as a recognised Elder or an Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander person who has been given permission from Traditional Owners to perform a Welcome.

Traditionally, a Welcome to Country was performed when entering another’s Country to signify welcome and spiritual safe passage and protection. Visitors in return respected the protocols and rules of the traditional custodians on the land they entered.

Registered Aboriginal Parties

Registered Aboriginal Parties (RAPs) are Traditional Owner groups legally recognised under the Aboriginal Heritage Act 2006 as having responsibility for managing and protecting cultural heritage.

Dates of significance

26 January | Day of Mourning

The arrival of the First Fleet is not seen as a day to celebrate by many due to the massacres and treatment First Nations peoples experienced at the hands of the British settlers. Opposition to celebrating 26 January is not new and First Nations activists declared it a Day of Mourning as early as 1938.

In recent years, the National Australia Day Committee has also broadened the focus of the day to be more inclusive of First Nations peoples and new migrants, calling on Australians to "gather with friends, family and their community to reflect, respect and celebrate."

“In contemporary Australia we see racism manifest when non-indigenous Australians fail to know Australian history in its entirety.” 

The events that followed the arrival of the First Fleet were informed by the idea of race and therefore the mass murder of First Nations peoples during this period was all about race. There is benefit in changing the date because it will signal to First Nations peoples, as well as all Australians, that we, as citizens of this country, understand the significant negative impact of the First Fleet and the actions that continue to flow on from this event.

13 February | Anniversary of the National Apology to the Stolen Generations

On Wednesday, 13 February 2008, a historical national apology was delivered by the Australian Parliament to the Stolen Generations.

27 May | Anniversary of the 1967 Referendum

The 1967 Referendum saw more than 90 per cent of eligible Australians vote yes to two changes in the Australian Referendum – to include First Nations peoples in the national census of the population and to give the Australian Government the power to make uniform, specific laws about First Nations peoples (rather than individual states making their own laws). 

Legislation reflecting the referendum was enacted on Thursday, 10 August 1967.

27 May to 3 June | National Reconciliation Week

National Reconciliation Week celebrates the rich culture and history of First Nations peoples. It's an ideal time for everyone to join the reconciliation conversation and to think about how we can help turn around the disadvantage experienced by many First Nations peoples as a direct result of colonisation.

3 June | Mabo Day

On Wednesday, 3 June 1992, the High Court of Australia handed down its decision on Mabo v the State of Queensland (No. 2), a native title claim by Eddie Mabo and others on behalf of the Meriam People of Murray Island, Queensland. The High Court's decision rejected the notion of Australia as terra nullius, meaning empty land or land belonging to nobody, at the time of European arrival and colonisation.

The term Native Title was used to describe and recognise that First Nations peoples may have existing rights and interests in the land and waters, according to traditional laws and customs that have survived beyond European arrival; and that these rights can be recognised by the common law. In the Torres Strait region, Mabo Day is recognised as a public holiday. 

The case can be viewed on the website of the Australasian Legal Information Institute. 

1–7 Sunday July | NAIDOC Week

NAIDOC stands for National Aborigines and Islanders Day Observance Committee. Its origins can be traced to the emergence of First Nations groups in the 1920s that sought to increase awareness in the wider community of the status and treatment of First Nations peoples.

Learn more about the history of NAIDOC Week by visiting the National NAIDOC Committee.

4 August | National Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Children's Day

National Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Children’s Day (Children’s Day) is a time to for First Nations families to celebrate the strengths and culture of their children. The day is an opportunity for everybody to show their support for First Nations children, as well as learn about the crucial impact that community, culture, and family play in the life of every First Nations child.

Children’s Day is held on 4 August each year and is coordinated by SNAICC - a national peak body Aboriginal community-controlled organisation that works to improve outcomes and opportunities for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children and strengthen the capacities of families across Australia.  

Learn more by visiting SNAICC. 

9 August | International Day of the World's Indigenous People

9 August is observed each year to raise awareness of the needs of the world’s Indigenous peoples. This date, adopted in December 1994 by UN General Assembly resolution, marks the date of the first meeting of the UN Working Group on Indigenous Populations of the Sub-Commission on the Promotion and Protection of Human Rights held in Geneva in 1982.