Latest news with #AcknowledgementofCountry
Daily Mail
03-05-2025
- Politics
- Daily Mail
Jubilant Penny Wong's cryptic swipe at her critics after her Voice gaffe almost derailed Albo's landslide election win
Penny Wong has made a defiant Acknowledgement of Country on election night, after her Voice gaffe caused campaign woes for Labor earlier in the week. Wong sparked a furore on Wednesday by predicting that the Voice - a separate indigenous body with powers to influence government legislation - will still be introduced despite it being voted down 60 per cent to 40 per cent in a 2023 referendum. 'We'll look back on it in 10 years' time and it'll be a bit like marriage equality,' Senator Wong told the Betoota Talks podcast. 'I always used to say, marriage equality, which took us such a bloody fight to get that done, and I thought, all this fuss... It'll become something, it'll be like, people go "did we even have an argument about that?"' Her backing for the indigenous body came just three days after Anthony Albanese ruled out any attempt to bring back the Voice, telling the leaders' debate: 'It's gone... I respect the outcome (of the referendum), we live in a democracy.' Albanese was forced to respond to Wong's comments and reassure voters that he was not planning another referendum, while the foreign minister made an apparent backflip, telling SBS, 'the Voice is gone... the prime minister has made that clear, and the Australian people have made their position clear, and we respect the result of the referendum.' After Labor swept to victory in Saturday night's election, Wong took the stage at a Labor party in Sydney to introduce Albanese. She made a point of performing a brief Acknowledgement of Country in her speech. 'The power in our 26 million people from more than 300 ancestries... from the oldest continuing civilisation on the planet and I acknowledge the traditional owners, friends we love this country,' she said. Albanese then performed another Acknowledgement of Country in his own speech. 'I acknowledge the traditional owners of the land on which we meet,' the Prime Minister said to cheers from supporters. 'And I acknowledge the traditional owners of the land on which we meet.' The Voice campaign was a major blow for the Labor government and Albanese, who hitched his legacy to the proposal. He went to the 2022 federal election with the referendum promise, spoke about it in his first speech as the PM and campaigned tirelessly for most of 2023. Wong's podcast interview earlier this week was seen as a political gift to Peter Dutton, who quickly accused the foreign minister of 'letting the cat out of the bag'. 'Under a Labor-Greens government we see this secret plan to legislate the Voice and Penny Wong has let that cat out of the bag,' Dutton said. 'People will be opposed to that because they thought they sent a very clear message to the Prime Minister that they didn't want the Voice.'
Daily Mail
30-04-2025
- Politics
- Daily Mail
BREAKING NEWS Anthony Albanese delivers an Acknowledgement of Country before one of his final speeches before the election
Anthony Albanese has begun one of his final election pitches by delivering an Acknowledgement of Country before his National Press Club of Australia address. His acknowledgement to traditional owners of the land comes as a debate erupts over the practice, days after Bunurong-Gunditjmara man Uncle Mark Brown was booed and jeered on Anzac Day while performing a Welcome To Country.
News.com.au
30-04-2025
- Politics
- News.com.au
‘Humiliation rituals': Tucker Carlson slams Australian ‘land acknowledgment' ceremonies
Controversial US political commentator Tucker Carlson has taken aim at Australia's 'grotesque' Welcome to Country and Acknowledgement of Country ceremonies, labelling them 'humiliation rituals' in a resurfaced clip. The video of the former Fox News host has resurfaced this week on social media as a national debate rages over the necessity of the ceremonies. The debate comes after a group of protesters – led by known neo-Nazis – booed the Welcome to Country at the traditional Dawn Service in Melbourne's CBD. An Acknowledgement of Country is a statement of respect for the traditional owners of the land where an event or gathering is taking place, and a Welcome to Country is a formal ceremony led by a Traditional Owner, often an Elder, to officially welcome visitors to their land. In the video, Carlson, who visited Australia last June on a speaking tour as a guest of billionaire Clive Palmer, slammed 'land acknowledgment' ceremonies, questioning if they help Indigenous Australians. 'When I was in Australia, the thing that shocked me the most was, your, I think it's called your land acknowledgment,' he said. 'I found it one of the most grotesque things I've ever seen. One of the most profound humiliation rituals I've ever witnessed in my life.' Carlson pointed out flights operated by Qantas – which broadcasts the Acknowledgement of Country to passengers on every plane that lands in Australia – as one of the incidents when the acknowledgment is heard. 'I thought to myself, who is this helping? Is it helping the Indigenous community? If so, tell me how,' Carlson said. 'When you say this doesn't belong to me, is there someone in the Indigenous community getting a job or a government grant? No. No one is benefiting except the people who seek to steal your country. And they're are going to steal your country, and they're telling you so.' The controversial right-wing media figure went so far as to compare the acknowledgment to an armed home invasion. 'When you are forced to say something is not yours, that means someone else is about to take it from you,' Carlson said. 'If you're sitting at home one night and an armed group of people show up at your house with guns and say 'henceforth, we would like you to say, out loud every single day, this is not our house'. 'You say 'but I paid for this house. I've got a mortgage on this house, it's my house'. No, they stick a gun in your face, every day you repeat 'this is not my house'. 'They're asking you to do that so they can steal your house and when they do steal your house, you won't put up a fight because you've been trained to believe it is not your house. That's exactly what a land acknowledgment is.' Dr Jessa Rogers, Wiradjuri woman and Associate Professor of Indigenous Education at the University of Melbourne said Carlson's comments were misleading and came as 'no surprise given the things he stands for in America'. 'Tucker Carlson's dismissal of land acknowledgments reveals a familiar settler anxiety, one rooted in denial and the legacy of dispossession,' Dr Rogers told 'Comparing a peaceful statement to armed invasion is not only misleading but deeply ironic, given how our lands were actually taken. Carlson's comments uphold the violence of colonisation.' Addressing Qantas' involvement in the Acknowledgement of Country, Dr Rogers said: 'Many people travelling in Australia appreciate knowing whose land they're on and who has cared for it for thousands of generations'. 'I know several of my Native/Indigenous American colleagues love it, and only wish the American airlines would do the same thing.' Qantas first introduced the Acknowledgement to Country in November 2021 shortly after international flights resumed from being grounded amid the global pandemic. According to the national carrier, the words intend 'to honour the cultural significance of an Aboriginal mob or language group as the Indigenous inhabitants occupying the area of the modern city's airport'. 'Acknowledgment to Country is one of the things you'll hear our crew doing once we restart as well, which is a new addition and something we're really excited about,' Qantas chief customer officer Stephanie Tully said. Ralph Babet, a senator for the United Australia Party (UAP), said the video of Carlson should not have been released in full. 'This is a private United Australia Party and Trumpet of Patriots video,' he said. 'Tucker live streamed to one of our members events. This shouldn't have been released in full like this.' Dutton calls for Welcome to Country ceremonies to be regulated It comes as Opposition Leader Peter Dutton has proposed Welcome to Country ceremonies should be relegated to only 'major events'. Mr Dutton and Prime Minister Anthony Albanese weighed in on the issue during Sunday night's leaders debate, where both condemned the incident at Melbourne's ANZAC Day Dawn Service. When asked if he will 'acknowledge the traditional owners at your official events', Mr Dutton said there was a sense in the community that they're 'overdone' and 'divide the country' just as the failed Voice referendum did in 2023. Mr Dutton gave two examples where he felt the ritual was no longer needed. 'For the opening of parliament, fair enough, it is respectful to do, but for the start of every meeting at work, or the start of a football game, I think other Australians think it is overdone and cheapens the significance of what it was meant to do,' he said. Nationals MP Barnaby Joyce later echoed Mr Dutton's comments, clashing with Environment Minister Tanya Plibersek on Sunrise on Monday morning. Though Mr Joyce agreed with Ms Plibersek labelling the Dawn Service protesters 'scumbags', he claimed the 'overdone' ceremonies were leading to 'aggravation' among Australians. 'People are starting to feel awkward at them and awkward goes to anger at times. That is something we don't want,' he said. 'I certainly don't want to be welcomed back to my own hometown. I think veterans have a genuine concern, if they've signed on the dotted line to (serve) for this nation, they don't believe they need to be welcomed to it. 'We've got to be a lot more discerning about how we do this because there is an aggravation that's building up in the community. 'The best thing to do to avoid that is to be a lot more discerning about when you do Welcome to Countries.'
Herald Sun
30-04-2025
- Politics
- Herald Sun
Tucker Carlson slams Welcome to Country
Controversial US political commentator Tucker Carlson has taken aim at Australia's 'grotesque' Welcome to Country and Acknowledgement of Country ceremonies, labelling them 'humiliation rituals' in a resurfaced clip. The video of the former Fox News host has resurfaced this week on social media as a national debate rages over the necessity of the ceremonies. The debate comes after a group of protesters – led by known neo-Nazis – booed the Welcome to Country at the traditional Dawn Service in Melbourne's CBD. An Acknowledgement of Country is a statement of respect for the traditional owners of the land where an event or gathering is taking place, and a Welcome to Country is a formal ceremony led by a Traditional Owner, often an Elder, to officially welcome visitors to their land. In the video, Carlson, who visited Australia last June on a speaking tour as a guest of billionaire Clive Palmer, slammed 'land acknowledgment' ceremonies, questioning if they help Indigenous Australians. 'When I was in Australia, the thing that shocked me the most was, your, I think it's called your land acknowledgment,' he said. 'I found it one of the most grotesque things I've ever seen. One of the most profound humiliation rituals I've ever witnessed in my life.' Tucker Carlson said they were the 'most profound humiliation rituals'. Picture: X Carlson pointed out flights operated by Qantas – which broadcasts the Acknowledgement of Country to passengers on every plane that lands in Australia – as one of the incidents when the acknowledgment is heard. 'I thought to myself, who is this helping? Is it helping the Indigenous community? If so, tell me how,' Carlson said. 'When you say this doesn't belong to me, is there someone in the Indigenous community getting a job or a government grant? No. No one is benefiting except the people who seek to steal your country. And they're are going to steal your country, and they're telling you so.' The controversial right-wing media figure went so far as to compare the acknowledgment to an armed home invasion. 'When you are forced to say something is not yours, that means someone else is about to take it from you,' Carlson said. 'If you're sitting at home one night and an armed group of people show up at your house with guns and say 'henceforth, we would like you to say, out loud every single day, this is not our house'. 'You say 'but I paid for this house. I've got a mortgage on this house, it's my house'. No, they stick a gun in your face, every day you repeat 'this is not my house'. Carlson compared the acknowledgment to an armed home invasion. Picture: X 'They're asking you to do that so they can steal your house and when they do steal your house, you won't put up a fight because you've been trained to believe it is not your house. That's exactly what a land acknowledgment is.' Dr Jessa Rogers, Wiradjuri woman and Associate Professor of Indigenous Education at the University of Melbourne said Carlson's comments were misleading and came as 'no surprise given the things he stands for in America'. 'Tucker Carlson's dismissal of land acknowledgments reveals a familiar settler anxiety, one rooted in denial and the legacy of dispossession,' Dr Rogers told 'Comparing a peaceful statement to armed invasion is not only misleading but deeply ironic, given how our lands were actually taken. Carlson's comments uphold the violence of colonisation.' Addressing Qantas' involvement in the Acknowledgement of Country, Dr Rogers said: 'Many people travelling in Australia appreciate knowing whose land they're on and who has cared for it for thousands of generations'. 'I know several of my Native/Indigenous American colleagues love it, and only wish the American airlines would do the same thing.' Qantas first introduced the Acknowledgement to Country in November 2021. Picture: Jenny Evans/Getty\ Qantas first introduced the Acknowledgement to Country in November 2021 shortly after international flights resumed from being grounded amid the global pandemic. According to the national carrier, the words intend 'to honour the cultural significance of an Aboriginal mob or language group as the Indigenous inhabitants occupying the area of the modern city's airport'. 'Acknowledgment to Country is one of the things you'll hear our crew doing once we restart as well, which is a new addition and something we're really excited about,' Qantas chief customer officer Stephanie Tully said. Ralph Babet, a senator for the United Australia Party (UAP), said the video of Carlson should not have been released in full. 'This is a private United Australia Party and Trumpet of Patriots video,' he said. 'Tucker live streamed to one of our members events. This shouldn't have been released in full like this.' Dutton calls for Welcome to Country ceremonies to be regulated It comes as Opposition Leader Peter Dutton has proposed Welcome to Country ceremonies should be relegated to only 'major events'. Mr Dutton and Prime Minister Anthony Albanese weighed in on the issue during Sunday night's leaders debate, where both condemned the incident at Melbourne's ANZAC Day Dawn Service. When asked if he will 'acknowledge the traditional owners at your official events', Mr Dutton said there was a sense in the community that they're 'overdone' and 'divide the country' just as the failed Voice referendum did in 2023. Opposition Leader Peter Dutton proposed Welcome to Country ceremonies should be relegated to only 'major events' during the debate. Picture: Lukas Coch/POOL/ NewsWire Mr Dutton gave two examples where he felt the ritual was no longer needed. 'For the opening of parliament, fair enough, it is respectful to do, but for the start of every meeting at work, or the start of a football game, I think other Australians think it is overdone and cheapens the significance of what it was meant to do,' he said. Nationals MP Barnaby Joyce later echoed Mr Dutton's comments, clashing with Environment Minister Tanya Plibersek on Sunrise on Monday morning. Though Mr Joyce agreed with Ms Plibersek labelling the Dawn Service protesters 'scumbags', he claimed the 'overdone' ceremonies were leading to 'aggravation' among Australians. 'People are starting to feel awkward at them and awkward goes to anger at times. That is something we don't want,' he said. 'I certainly don't want to be welcomed back to my own hometown. I think veterans have a genuine concern, if they've signed on the dotted line to (serve) for this nation, they don't believe they need to be welcomed to it. 'We've got to be a lot more discerning about how we do this because there is an aggravation that's building up in the community. 'The best thing to do to avoid that is to be a lot more discerning about when you do Welcome to Countries.' Originally published as 'Humiliation rituals': Tucker Carlson slams Australian 'land acknowledgment' ceremonies
The Age
29-04-2025
- Entertainment
- The Age
‘Sorrento is not your town': Writers festival fallout deepens
This was a further contrast with the SWF, which had Lionel Lauch of Indigenous organisation Living Culture perform a Welcome to Country on behalf of the Bunurong community, while moderators gave an Acknowledgement of Country at the start of other sessions. The festival has several First Nations writers and publishers who are part of its program. But during an impromptu speech at the garden literary gabfest, local Liberal MP Zoe McKenzie, a supporter of SWF, made a light-hearted joke comparing Advance Australia Fair to a Welcome to Country. This further upset some in Sorrento. Now, it emerges there is yet more beef. Turns out Baillieu couldn't attend several SWF events because either the time or venue had changed since his tickets were issued. SWF said it had updated ticket holders via email. Baillieu said that was news to him, and he was seeking either an apology or explanation from Perkin, plus $60 for his unusable tickets. Changing allegiances Congratulations to Paul Guerra, the new chief executive of the Melbourne Football Club, replacing Gary Pert. Guerra, one of the few people in Melbourne to attend more events than CBD, has been chief executive of the Victorian Chamber of Commerce and Industry for five years. He's also a director at Racing Victoria and previously was the boss at the Royal Agricultural Society of Victoria, which runs the Melbourne Royal Show. The Age quoted competition sources saying the exec was a strong strategic thinker with good people skills, and the Demons believed it could 'bring him up to speed on football'. It will also have to bring him up to speed on being a Dees supporter, given Guerra is a lifelong Bombers tragic. We guess his re-education started yesterday. 'I'm moving from the business with politics to the business with sport, and with that, I'm trading the black and red of the Bombers to the red and blue of the Demons,' he told CBD. And as for the soon-to-be vacant VECCI post, CBD is sure that chief of staff Chanelle Pearson would love the job. Other contenders might include failed Melbourne lord mayoral candidate Arron Wood, or Victorian executive director of the Property Council of Australia, Cath Evans. No doubt it will be the hot topic at the chamber's inaugural Melbourne Winter Ball, to be held in Southbank on May 29. Bennelong matters For the Liberals to have a hope on Saturday, they need to reclaim John Howard 's old stomping ground now held by Labor on a wafer-thin margin, the Sydney seat of Bennelong. The party's candidate, Scott Yung, has spent much of the campaign firmly in the 'embattled' camp due to reports outlining his ties to a Chinese Communist Party-linked casino high roller. He also copped heat for handing out Easter eggs to primary school students, an election sweetener gone awry. Yung was evasive when confronted with media questions, even fleeing his own campaign launch, but he found a softer landing on the podcast of his former boss, Mark Bouris, founder of mortgage-lender Yellow Brick Road. 'I just want to clarify for the sake of this conversation: you're not a communist are you?' Bouris asked. Loading 'I think it's borderline racism. Just because I've got an Asian face, my parents have come from China and Hong Kong, they call me a communist,' Yung responded. The fine-print on the podcast disclosed that it was authorised by Yung's campaign – often a tell-tale sign of a paid post. Nothing fishy, we hear. Due to an Australian Electoral Commission crackdown on influencer content, the authorisation was added to avoid any further damaging headlines. Winning ways The scion of one of Australia's grandest, faded media dynasties has got the green light for a renovation at his $22 million mansion to build a new, er, wall. Charles Fairfax, son of the late Lady (Mary) Fairfax, AC, OBE, and heir to the family that once published this masthead, lodged a development application with local Sydney Woollahra Council last year, but it was rejected. The resort-style property, which Charles and wife Kate picked up in 2022, is just 10 minutes down the road from his fabled childhood home, Fairwater, in Double Bay, now owned by billionaire tech baron Mike Cannon-Brookes. Fairfax appealed against the council's rejection to the Land and Environment Court. After a conciliation conference, a revised plan kept everyone happy … and out of court.
