In the final days of the election campaign, the opposition leader, Peter Dutton, has doubled-down on his comments that welcome to country ceremonies are “overdone”
At a press conference on Monday, he listed Qantas’ move to acknowledge traditional owners on flights as an example of unnecessary recognition.
But his comments, and much of the subsequent reporting of them, did not always make the important distinction between a welcome to, and acknowledgment of, country.
And as First Nations people once again become a political football, much of the nuance about the intention behind the custom has been lost in the noise.
What is a welcome to country?
Welcome to country ceremonies are a modern adaptation of cultural protocols that Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people have followed for tens of thousands of years.
When crossing into another group’s country, visitors would seek and be granted safety and welcome, in exchange respecting that group’s protocols and practices.
The contemporary adaptation emerged around the 1970s in the arts sector and has since become commonplace before large events, such as sporting matches or formal gatherings.
A welcome can only be given by a traditional owner authorised to speak for the land on which the event is taking place, and can include a speech, song, dance or smoking ceremony.
Kirstie Parker, co-chair of Reconciliation Australia, points out that traditional owners are not welcoming people to Australia, but rather to the land within their cultural boundaries which their ancestors have cared for, and lived on, for millennia.
What is an acknowledgment of country?
An acknowledgment is typically a brief statement, which anyone can make, to pay respect to the traditional owners of the land on which an event is held. If you are in a setting where non-Indigenous people are making a reference to country, that is an acknowledgment not a welcome.
It can be given in informal settings and is sometimes heard at the beginning of a podcast, news broadcast or – more recently – on Qantas flights.
Sometimes events will open with a formal welcome to country, followed by a brief acknowledgment from other speakers.
Some Indigenous groups say the process for recognising traditional owners – through a welcome or acknowledgment – has become commercialised, overused or strayed from its original purpose. But Parker says this should not be conflated with politically driven calls to cease or reform the practice nationwide.
