Liberal senator Michaelia Cash says Welcome to Country ceremonies ‘tokenistic'
The view, which differs from the position held by Sussan Ley, comes as the contentious motion was debated at the WA Liberal Party council on Saturday.
State members called on the Opposition Leader to state that 'Welcome to Country ceremonies and acknowledgments should not hold official status as they are tokenistic at best and do nothing to improve the lives of our most disadvantaged Australians'.
Practically, this means the rituals would not be performed during sporting matches, and official functions like Anzac Day Dawn Services and the opening of parliament.
A second motion also called on the federal party to only give 'formal Commonwealth recognition' to the Australian national, and state flags.
'Overdone'
Speaking to Sky, Senator Cash stood by her strong support of the motions, stating its been her 'fundamental belief for a very long time'.
'They have now become so overdone, they are tokenistic. But more than this, as a Western Australian, and we live in a big state and there are large Indigenous communities, the one thing I want Australians focused on is not tokenistic gestures that make us feel good whilst we turn and a blind eye to the realities faced in Indigenous communities on the ground.'
She said she 'stood with' Indigenous Country Liberal Party senator Jacinta Nampijinpa Price, and would do so 'any day of the week,' and called for 'practical' policies.
'We want to see all Australians unite and focus on the practical policy outcomes that will make a difference … in the lives of the most disadvantaged in this country,' she said.
'The one thing we should unite under is making a practical difference, a positive difference in their lives. It's my focus … I can be judged for that.'
On Tuesday, One Nation senators fuelled debate after Pauline Hanson, Malcolm Roberts, Tyron Whitten and Warwick Stacey turned their backs on the chamber during a Welcome to Country ceremony.
Later speaking to Sky, Senator Hanson said she 'had a gutful' of the rituals.
'I have had enough, and I do not want a Welcome to Country and to be disenfranchised from my own country that I was born here,' she said.
Minister for Indigenous Australias Malarndirri McCarthy said the act was 'disrespectful' and 'unacceptable' given senators 'represent millions of Australians and that includes First Nations people'.
While she said it was improper parliamentary conduct, Senator McCarthy acknowledged that there will 'always be differing opinions' on the matter.
'I expect that people will bring their own personal opinions and views into it, but it really was about the conduct of the Senate and senators, and it was important that we put on the record that all senators in there are there to represent Australians and to do so with dignity and respect,' she told the ABC.
Originally published as Liberal senator Michaelia Cash says Welcome to Country ceremonies 'tokenistic,' don't improve lives of First Nations
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Perth Now
24 minutes ago
- Perth Now
Green light for cable, but premier's path to power dims
A "transformative, nation-building" energy project has been given the environmental green light to proceed, but risks dimming a premier's electoral hopes. The multi-billion-dollar Marinus Link cable will boost electricity transmission between Tasmania and Victoria and is seen as pivotal in increasing green energy investment. Tasmanian Premier Jeremy Rockliff signed up to the joint Victoria and Commonwealth investment contract on Friday, while in caretaker mode and a day before the deadline. The federal government on Sunday lifted another hurdle for the construction and operation of the 1500 megawatt undersea electricity and fibre optics cable. "The Albanese government has given environmental approval to a transformative, nation-building project which will generate jobs and investment for Tasmania and Victoria while unlocking clean and reliable energy," Environment Minister Murray Watt said in a statement. Construction of stage one, a 750-megawatt undersea cable, is expected to start in 2026 and finish in 2030. It will have enough power to supply 750,000 homes and enhance internet connectivity. It comes as the final makeup of Tasmania's parliament was decided after a snap election, with 14 Liberals, 10 Labor, five Greens, one Shooters, Fishers and Farmers MP and five independents elected. Major parties are intensifying negotiations with the crossbench to form another minority government as they attempt to secure the required 18 parliamentary votes needed to govern. But Labor, the Greens and several independents have lashed Mr Rockliff over what they say was a "sham" process to green-light the Marinus Link. Non-Liberal MPs were given a confidential briefing on the project on Tuesday, while the whole-of-state business case was not released before the deal was signed. Craig Garland, one of four independents on the cross bench, has ruled out supporting a Liberal government over their "secret" rushed decision. Independents Kristie Johnston and Peter George were also critical of the process, with the latter saying Mr Rockliff was undermining the prospect of a full-term, well-run minority government. Greens leader Rosalie Woodruff said the premier's decision to proceed with one of the nation's biggest projects with little consultation showed he was incapable of genuinely working across the parliament. Labor's Sarah Lovell said the decision was at odds with the premier's promise of transparency. Mr Rockliff said the deal had capped Tasmania's equity share at $103.5 million - 4.27 per cent of the project's cost. However, the business case forecasts an increase in state net debt to $19 billion in 2031/32 as a result of the project.
Perth Now
24 minutes ago
- Perth Now
Garma organiser urges action on 'horrors in statistics'
Political leaders have been warned their attendance at one of Australia's largest cultural festivals is not enough to make progress for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people. Speaking at the annual Garma Festival at Gulkula, in northeast Arnhem Land, to a crowd that included several senior ministers and the prime minister, Yothu Yindi Foundation chief executive Denise Bowden said their presence was a powerful signal. "But don't leave Garma and leave things on endless repeat," she said. "Don't be here to think your attendance here is enough." Prime Minister Anthony Albanese used his time at Garma to announce an economic partnership with Indigenous organisations, which he said built on Closing the Gap commitments and would empower communities to advocate for infrastructure on their lands. In her powerful address to the festival on Saturday, Ms Bowden told the crowd that despite the success of Garma, now in its 25th year, visitors would be leaving behind a "world that remains in crisis mode". "On Tuesday, we will return to a life dominated by the simple fact that Aboriginal people in remote areas of Australia remain the most marginalised people in the country, if not the world," she said. Ms Bowden highlighted high rates of rheumatic heart disease in Arnhem Land, saying the community of Maningrida, in the Northern Territory, has the highest rate of the condition in the world. She also pointed to the over-representation of First Nations people in custody to bring home her point, with the NT second only to El Salvador when it comes to incarceration rates. "We've become numb to this data and immune to the horrors that lie in the statistics," she said. Ms Bowden said the status quo was not acceptable, with recent Closing the Gap statistics showing four targets going backwards - adult incarceration, children in out-of-home care, suicide rates and child development. She said the Yothu Yindi Foundation had long argued the Closing the Gap data reflected a fundamental failure in Australia's governance systems, and that must change to make a real difference. "There are good intentions and what is described as hard work, but without crunching systemic change, there will be no betterment," she said. "People suffer because of these failures of governance that are imposed upon us." 13YARN 13 92 76 Lifeline 13 11 14
West Australian
7 hours ago
- West Australian
Sussan Ley: Opposition Leader tells Anthony Albanese he needs to ‘walk the walk' on Indigenous issues
Opposition Leader Sussan Ley has slammed Prime Minister Anthony Albanese's lack of action for Indigenous Australians since the failed Voice to Parliament, saying he has shied away from the issue since the failed referendum. Speaking from Wyndham in the Kimberley on Saturday, Ms Ley said the Prime Minister needed to walk the walk after talking the talk at successive Garma Festivals — one of the largest gatherings for Indigenous Australians in the country. 'It's so disappointing to see this plan that the Prime Minister calls a plan for economic empowerment is failing in these critical areas,' she said. 'Now he had the same announcement at last year's Garma, I believe there was a plan for economic empowerment released. 'This is the fourth year of an Albanese government and we're seeing these critical indicators go backwards, that is not good enough. 'It's not good enough to be there for the photo op, Australians are expecting the follow up.' Ms Ley said key issues facing Indigenous Australians were not being addressed. 'The scale of the challenges in Indigenous Australia are much bigger than the scale of the response that I have heard from Prime Minister Albanese today,' she said. 'We have 19 indicators in Closing the Gap — four of those are going backwards and what really concerns me is that they are indicating a lack of progress, in fact, a retreat in critical areas relating to children and education and youth incarceration.' While Ms Ley attacked Mr Albanese's approach, she elected not to attend the Garma Festival herself, instead sending shadow Attorney-General Julian Leeser and defended her travel to WA. 'This visit to the Kimberley was planned so that soon after the recent Parliamentary sitting, I could come with two of my senior colleagues and listen to the voices of regional Indigenous Australians here in a really important part of Australia,' she said. 'It's vital that we do that, it's what I said I would do when I became leader.' Ms Ley kicked off her tour of WA's north-west on Friday, landing in Kununurra before heading an hour north-west on Saturday morning to Wyndham. Ms Ley said she was looking to reach Indigenous Australians where they were. 'We've seen programs that work, we've seen job initiatives that are doing well, we've also seen things that are failing,' she said. 'We've heard from so many people about what works and what doesn't work and it's important that we look at the detail, that we listen and that we closely examine how we might construct policies in the future to address the sense of disappointment . . . that is here in so many of the communities that we are visiting now.' Ms Ley spent the first two days of her tour in Kununurra and Wyndham, meeting with local Indigenous groups and businesses. Issues ranged from funding challenges being a border town, needing an on-country incarceration system and housing shortages. Not every meeting took as serious a tone however, with Ms Ley proving a popular figure that evening among the akubra-wearing pub patrons, with multiple people asking for selfies with the politician and she attended a Saturday footy game in Kununurra. The trip also comes a week after a public spat blew into the public sphere between State leader Basil Zempilas and WA Federal frontbencher Andrew Hastie over the party's net zero position. Ms Ley said she wasn't concerned. 'I barely looked at those reports,' she told The Sunday Times before her trip. Ms Ley will also visit Broome, meeting with youth services, health programs and Indigenous-led businesses.
