By Ethan Benedicto
Despite unfolding in the latter part of 2024, there is no question that the events that transpired around Guru Nanak Lake, formerly Berwick Springs Lake, have shaken the grounds of the local and wider community.
After what many residents of Berwick Springs considered to be a shock announcement on Saturday 9 November, it wasn’t long before eyebrows were raised on consultation, and if there had been any.
While local MPs and official responses from State authorities and a 2018 release state that the wider Victorian Sikh community had been consulted over a period of two years, as well as approval from Indigenous leaders, residents of the Springs were appalled that they had simply been left out.
The Minister for Multicultural Affairs, Ingrid Stitt, announced $600,000 in funding for Langar celebration events across Victoria, as well as Berwick Springs Lake’s change of name.
“I’m delighted to be recognising the significant contributions of our Sikh community in Victoria by naming a landmark after the founder of the Sikh faith, Guru Nanak,” Stitt said.
Criticisms from the local residents have been strong, with a petition to change the name amassing roughly 700 signatures as of Tuesday 12 November.
That petition, started by local resident Aldonio Ferrera quickly gained traction, amassing roughly 1700 votes by Wednesday 13 November, with 500 in the first 24 hours.
Head petitioner Michael Ball, also a resident and frequent goer of the Lake Walk, has asked the question of, “why” the renaming, and more importantly, “why” the lack of consultation.
“Obviously this has been done without any local community consultation and the residents are frustrated, this is Berwick Springs, the lake is called Berwick Springs and the local area derives its name from the lake,” he said at the time.
The State Government noted at that point that the name Berwick Springs Lake was not a formally recognised name under Geographic Names Victoria, making ‘Berwick Springs Wetland Reserve’ – or lake – essentially serve as an ‘interim’ name for the area.
The change has been more than welcome to members of the Sikh community however, with Dya Singh, a renowned musical figure in the global Sikh community who has lived in Australia for over 45 years and a Casey resident, saying that he is “tremendously proud of the change”.
“The backlash is something we expected, change is something very hard to take, the opposition is there but I hope that in time it will get smoothed over,” he said.
The new name and the turmoils around the lack of community consultation didn’t take long to hit Parliamentary discussions, with the community-wide meeting on Tuesday 19 November organised not long after the renaming/naming.
According to the Hansard from Thursday 14 November, the Minister for Multicultural Affairs Ingrid Stitt, emphasised her initial statement of support for the change.
“Guru Nanak’s message and values of unity, equality and selfless service continue to resonate through the contributions of the Sikh community to all Victorians,” she said.
A Victorian Government spokesperson told Star News that Guru Nanak Lake in Berwick Springs “was identified as a suitable landmark due to its positioning in [Casey], which is home to a large Sikh population”.
“The lake did not previously have an official, gazetted name – this is the first time it has been officially named,” they said in 2024.
However, Stitt’s point was countered by both Berwick MP Brad Battin and the Shadow Minister for Public Transport Matthew Guy, with Guy specifically pointing out the play on politics, the contradiction around barbecues and the Sikh faith.
Nevertheless, consultation remained one of the biggest issues residents have with the renaming, with the relevant naming department addressing key stakeholders such as the Bunurong Land Council, Victorian Multicultural Commission, City of Casey, Melbourne Water, Emergency Management Victoria and Geographic Names Victoria.
On 19 November, the gathering, which was organised by Berwick MP Brad Battin and South Eastern Metropolitan MP Ann-Marie Hermans, as well as petition heads Michael Ball and Aldonio Ferreira, was attended by over 600 people.
Widespread cheers and claps echoed throughout the streets as the people called for a repeal of the renaming.
Ball said that Berwick Springs is “standing up for all Victorians”.
He remained resolute that due process should have still been followed regarding the renaming of the lake, adding that the state is now trying to “backtrack” on their initial statement of renaming Berwick Springs Lake to Guru Nanak Lake.
In response to the widespread reception of the call for repealing the name, a counter-petition in support of Guru Nanak Lake emerged, gathering around 2,800 signatures by 18 November. Advocates emphasised the importance of embracing multiculturalism and the values Guru Nanak represents, such as love and compassion.
“Regardless of how they’ve done it, whether it’s through Engage Victoria or whatever, they still have to follow the same requirements, they still have to consult us, they still have to have an objections process, an appeals process,” Ball said.
“I feel on their behalf that this is a joyous occasion for them, they should be celebrating what’s happening, and yet the State Government’s created this division just because they didn’t follow their own process.”
Monique Davis, whose family had lived in the Berwick Springs Estate for generations, highlighted the historical significance of the lake’s name when she addressed the crowd.
Likewise, both Battin and Hermans acknowledged the contributions of the Sikh community to the state, but both argued against naming government assets after religious figures, both emphasising its potential to be divisive.
Events after the gathering took a sharp turn however, with a number of men dressed in black who attended the event confirmed to have been neo-Nazis.
At the time of the meeting, both Battin and Hermans immediately left the meeting once they were notified of the extremists’ attendance, with VicPol quickly arriving on the scene.
Ball denounced the extremists’ participation of the event, adding that they had neither made attempts to communicate their attendance with the Liberal Party nor the residents that organised the event.
Despite this, the conversation once more hit State Government discussions, with Victorian Premier, Jacinta Allan MP on Tuesday 26 November called out the neo-Nazis for their attendance as a move to “stoke division and hate”.
“When you divide communities, you create a void and extremists rush to fill it.
“We on this side of the house [Speaker], we stand with the Sikh community, we recognise the Sikh community, we name Guru Nanak Lake in honour of the Sikh community,” she said.
The Liberal Party, specifically Battin, was targeted by other Labor MPs, including Cranbourne MP Pauline Richards and Narre Warren South MP Gary Maas, for allegedly failing to denounce the neo-Nazis.
Bass MP Jordan Crugnale accused the Liberal Party of enabling hate, highlighting a neo-Nazi post referring to the event as a “Liberal Party Klan rally.”
Battin then defended his position, stating that the protest was never about religion or the Sikh community but solely about the lack of consultation.
Narracan MP Wayne Farnham came to Battin’s defence, accusing Labor of engaging in “grubby politics” to divert attention from their failure to consult residents, which had been the original basis of the community meeting.
As of early December, petitions both supporting and opposing the renaming have garnered thousands of signatures, reflecting a deeply divided community sentiment that has evolved from not informing residents on change.
The debate continues to evoke discussions on the balance between honouring multicultural contributions and ensuring adequate community engagement in decision-making processes.
In a rather tumultuous end of the year for Berwick Springs, the situation remains dynamic, with ongoing dialogues among residents, community leaders, and government officials aimed at addressing the concerns raised and fostering a cohesive resolution.
