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Greater Shepparton City Council unanimous in call to move Australia Day from January 26
A unanimous decision by Greater Shepparton City Council to advocate for Australia Day to be moved from January 26 was greeted with applause during Thursday night’s meeting.
The decision sees council follow others in Victoria in joining a movement to move celebrations of Australia away from a date associated with the start of colonisation.
“January 26 is not a day of celebration for our people; it is considered by our people as a day of mourning,” Cr Greg James, Yorta Yorta Elder and Greater Shepparton’s first Indigenous councillor, said.
“This recommendation is an opportunity for us to join in with an increasing movement throughout Australia to eliminate the distress and pain, and to make Australia Day a day for me and my people to join in and celebrate with everyone.”
Council also approved changes to how the date will be marked in Greater Shepparton from 2023, and to undertake further community engagement to inform a future decision regarding Australia Day in 2024.
Greater Shepparton has the largest First Nations’ community outside of metropolitan Melbourne, and a Survival Day Dawn Ceremony has been held on January 26 since 2021.
Mayor Shane Sali said it was a good, small step to put forward council’s position.
“We’ve got to be mindful that this is very sensitive and to be cautious how we approach it so we can be inclusive of everyone,” Cr Sali said.
“Over the next 12 months we’ll further enhance that stakeholder engagement and bring in more people, to decide what [Australia Day] looks like in 2024 and beyond.”
Cr Sali said council didn’t have a specific date for Australia Day to be changed to and acknowledged it was a decision for the Federal Government.
He also addressed comments already that the council should be focused on the major flood event the community is still dealing with.
“We had to have our October council meeting at some point and we felt like [Thursday night] was the most appropriate time to do it,” he said.
“Nothing supersedes the current flood event we’re dealing with ... but we also have to have council business still operating and this is one of those decisions we had to make, along with the 15 or 20 other ones we made.”
The recommendations brought before council were based on feedback from a community stakeholder group (CSG), which included representatives from First Nations’ and non-First Nations’ organisations, Australia Day committees and councillors.
Cr Anthony Brophy chaired the meetings of the CSG and said it was a privilege to be part of.
“It was a gathering of truth telling, of understanding, of listening to what various stakeholders feel about January 26, about Australia Day, our citizen awards and citizenship ceremonies,” he said.
“There has been widespread public debate and the rumblings are getting stronger and clearer; a movement is afoot to re-look at the current situation.”
Cr Sam Spinks said the decision not to hold a community-wide consultation was deliberate.
She said key stakeholders were able to share their opinions in a respectfully managed way, rather than a “potential wildfire” being created from an uncontrolled community consultation process.
What Greater Shepparton City Council decided;
That, in relation to Council’s role in January 26 activities for 2023 and beyond, Council endorse:
1.That Greater Shepparton City Council write to the Prime Minister, the Minister for Home Affairs, other relevant Australian Government Ministers, Members of Parliament and Senators to:
a.Change the date for Australia’s National Day from January 26.
b.Remove the Australian Citizenship Ceremonies Code requirement for the local government councils to conduct citizenship ceremonies on January 26.
2.The lowering of the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander flag to half-mast on January 26 at all council-owned facilities to acknowledge this date as a day of mourning for Aboriginal people.
3.Financial and in-kind support for:
a.Greater Shepparton’s Australia Day Committees for 2023
b.‘Survival Day Dawn Ceremony’ and recognition of this event in Council communications
4.A review of the Australia Day grant guidelines to encourage and support grant recipients to reflect on Australia’s full history at events held on January 26
5.Continued community engagement to inform a Council decision about:
a.Australia Day in 2024 and beyond
b.The development of a program proposal for a day of community celebration for 2024, that is not held on 26 January, that is inclusive, reflects the full history of Australia, and is culturally respectful
All councillors spoke in support of the changes, with some pre-empting criticism that they should “stick to roads, rates and rubbish”.
“Councils touch on every aspect of the community’s wellbeing, protection and have a leadership role in standing up and advocating for their communities,” Cr Seema Abdullah said.
“Such advocacy does not necessarily require a lot of resources and can be undertaken simultaneously along with maintaining roads and collecting rubbish.”
As part of the changes, the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander flags will be lowered to half-mast at council-owned facilities on January 26 next year, and Australia Day grant guidelines will be reviewed to encourage recipients to reflect on the nation’s full history at events.
The council will also advocate for the requirement for it to hold citizenship ceremonies on January 26 to be removed.
It’s not the first time a council has advocated for such changes, with multiple Melbourne councils taking a stance in 2017, and more recently the City of Melbourne and Surf Coast Shire.
Cr Fern Summer countered a possible outcry from some who could consider changing the date an “attack on mainstream Australian culture”.
“This decision is not about following trends, not about leaning left, not about being woke, this is a century-long debate that boils down to common decency,” she said.