From left: Royal Botanic Gardens Cranbourne director Chris Russell, Wurundjeri elders Winifred Bridges and Vicki Nicholson Brown, Dandenong and District Aboriginal Co-op CEO Andrew Gardiner, Casey mayor Colin Butler and Atef Youssef from the Access and Equity Committee help raise the Aboriginal flag for Reconciliation Week.RECONCILIATION Week hit off in Casey with a traditional Aboriginal flag raising ceremony.
Mayor Colin Butler joined indigenous speaker Vicki Nicholson Brown and local Aboriginal elders in raising the Aboriginal flag and talking about what reconciliation meant to them.
Cr Butler said the week gave people the opportunity to focus on reconciliation, learn about the culture and history of Australia’s indigenous people, and to explore new and better ways of meeting challenges in the community surrounding reconciliation.
Under the theme ‘Their Spirit Still Shines’, the week also highlighted the 40th anniversary of the referendum to count Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islanders in the national population census and to give the Commonwealth Government power to make specific laws in respect to indigenous people.
“The 1967 referendum was Australia’s most successful referendum and a defining event in our nation’s history. It is often referred to as the first stage of the reconciliation movement in Australia,” Cr Butler said.
“In the City of Casey we join in the celebration of Reconciliation Week. We also strive towards reconciliation in the design and delivery of services every day.
“This is evident in our support for projects and policies that address the challenges facing the Aboriginal community in Casey and recognise their culture as a valued part of the life of our community.”
Projects include the Tartu-nganyin Bopop – meaning ‘We are caring for Children’ – Casey-Dandenong Aboriginal Best Start project, a prevention and early intervention project that aims to improve the health, development, learning and wellbeing of all Victorian children from birth through to school age.
Cr Butler also highlighted the recently adopted Aboriginal Cultural Heritage Policy, promoting the identification, protection and management of places in Casey that have Aboriginal cultural heritage value, which he said had helped strengthen the trust between council and the Aboriginal community.
“This relationship will assist us to move forward in the important steps towards reconciliation in our own community,” he said.
