By Ethan Benedicto
The renaming of a local reserve in honour of Victoria’s Sikh community has been met with strong backlash from local residents and high praise from the Sikh community.
Announced on Saturday 9 November, what was then the Berwick Springs Wetland Reserve was renamed to Guru Nanak Lake, in honour of Guru Nanak Dev Ji, the first Guru and founder of the Sikh faith.
The Minister for Multicultural Affairs, Ingrid Stitt, announced on Saturday $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.
“In the coming months, Sikh Victorians and the broader community can celebrate, commemorate and learn more about this important figure and Langar.”
Local residents have criticised the change, with the main sentiment being that they say no one in the area was consulted prior to changing the name.
A petition started by resident Aldonio Ferreira has quickly gained traction, amassing roughly 1700 votes by Wednesday 13 November, and 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.
“What’s happening here is they’re taking away the Berwick Springs name, it won’t exist anymore.
“Berwick Springs isn’t the road, the hotel or anything, it’s the lake, and the key part is no one in this area knew about it outside of the Indigenous community and the Sikh community.”
However, Berwick Springs Lake is 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”.
“I think the fact that authorities actually thought about acknowledging us [Sikhs] in that way is absolutely wonderful.
“As far as I’m concerned, this is a learning process, we have just, after 40 years of Indigenous voting rights, come around to naming some places in Australia Indigenous names – that too has faced a lot of opposition.
“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.
Dya emphasised the importance of cultural cohesion, and how there have always been problems when it comes to movements towards unity in diversity.
To Michael, it’s not a question of religion or race, but more so the legislation behind the change, taking into account a previous VCAT case in 2016 when the construction of a roundabout in Greaves Road would impact the estate’s entrance.
“There is no quarrel to be had with anyone here, especially the Sikh community, it wouldn’t matter if it was called Pope Francis Lake, but if they did that without consulting anyone, it would be the same argument,” he said.
“As important as Guru Nanak is, he is not a local, we’re a multicultural community and it’s not about that, it’s the way the process has been handled.
“The process has denied anyone that lives in this area the ability to comment or make any feedback, which is really disappointing.”
According to the the State Government’s release, the renaming followed consultation with key Sikh community leaders and traditional owners of the land, to celebrate Victoria’s Sikh community and their contributions to the state.
The Minister for Planning, Sonya Kilkenny said that “this renaming is another way we’re ensuring Victoria’s place names better reflect and celebrate our state’s rich diversity and history”.
The decision to rename a landmark was an election promise by former Victorian Premier Daniel Andrews, where in 2018, in an SBS Punjabi article, he stated that anything from a “street name” would be marked in celebration of the then, 550th Guru Nanak birthday.
Although mentioned in the media release, this naming is not part of the Name a Place campaign, which looks to name 6000 new places in Victoria.
Consultation with the Victorian Sikh community was widespread in 2023, with the CEO of Sikh Volunteers Australia, Jaswinder Singh, acknowledging the year-long process of local discussions.
“It is a matter of great honour, the change, and I believe that in the last couple of years, the Sikh community has done a lot of social good and work within Victoria.
“This kind of recognition that we really appreciate, because it’s not just named after the founder of the religion, but is also a message of good for the people.
“The message of Guru Nanak Dev Ji is of love, peace and respect, so I don’t actually know what the reason is for the backlash because I think it’s one of the purest messages that could be provided,” Jaswinder said.
Under the Official Naming Rules for Places in Victoria 2022, in Section 7 titled Consultation, the minimum requirement is that the naming authority must “contact the immediate community in writing… or notify the community by any other means deemed appropriate”.
It also specifies the term, immediate community, which refers to the people and locality who live and work within the area, and properties and businesses as well.
For a local couple, Caz and Greg, who have lived in Berwick Springs for over 30 years, they resonate with Michael’s point of view, adding that not just them, but many other residents felt sidelined when the announcement came around.
Greg said that “none in the community knew it was happening”.
“We found out when we went for our walk that there’s this sign that’s been erected by the State Government saying that the name’s been changed.
“There’s a complete surprise in the local community, there’s been no consultation; and both Casey and Cardinia are building new facilities every year, why not name those instead of renaming an existing one?”
The couple highlighted the importance of the new name’s relevance to the local area, which they said would resonate more with the residents.
Amanda Cunningham from Berwick Springs Parkrun said that she and many, if not all, running group members were also in the dark about the naming.
“This is the first we’ve heard of it, we’ve signed the petition [to change it], literally no one knew about this until after it all happened,” she said.
Southeast Metropolitan MP Ann-Marie Hermans regards the change with the same sentiment, holding a staunch opposition to the renaming.
“The decision to rename any local landmark should be inclusive for all members of the community,” she said.
“People live in integrated harmony throughout the southeast and this decision can be divisive; the decision currently upsetting various first and second-generation local groups who live in the Berwick Springs area.”
The subject of the naming being ‘divisive’ has been rife with the local residents, adding that Berwick Springs, and the wider Casey community, is home to many multicultural people and faiths.
Dya coined this change as akin to the Gurdwara Siri Guru Nanak Darbar temple in Officer, which was met with a similar resistance and backlash from local farmers, but has since been a welcome addition to the community.
“Anytime someone suggests a change, there is always vehement opposition towards it,” he said.
“We are a community without a country of our own, so wherever we go and live, our loyalties lie towards that country.
“For example, when I went to a cricket match and someone called me an Indian, I got offended, I’m not; I was born in Malaysia and today I am a proud Australian.
“I understand that if it had been an Indigenous name, people would have responded better, but a lot of places are being named after Indigenous people and places now.
“For them to actually acknowledge a minority like us who punches way above its weight when it comes to service in the community, I think it’s a tremendous honour.”
According to the 2021 Census, Victoria is home to the largest Sikh community in Australia with over 91,000 Sikh Victorians.
The Premier’s office has been contacted for a comment but has yet to provide a statement.
