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2014 Redfern ANZAC Day March and Commemorative Service
by Beau Beckman 20 April 2014
T
he Redfern ANZAC Day March and Commemorative Service is held each year by Redfern’s Aboriginal community to honour Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander servicemen, servicewomen and those who served in non-military support roles. Honouring Our Unknown Warrior is the main focus of this year’s Redfern event. This year we honour our Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Diggers who fought bravely alongside their mates and now lie overseas and unknown -far from their own Country. Respect is also paid every year to the women and other family members who kept our families and communities together while loved ones were away and after they returned. The event starts at 1345 in Redfern Park and concludes at 1630 near Redfern Community Centre. Local roads are closed during the march along Redfern St. Notable attendees - Her Excellency Professor The Honourable Marie Bashir AC CVO and Sir Nicholas Shehadie AC OBE - Lord Mayor Clover Moore, Lord Mayor of the City of Sydney - The Hon Tanya Plibersek MP – Federal Member for Sydney - The Hon Victor Dominello MP – NSW Minister for Aboriginal Affairs - Prof John Maynard – National Centre for Indigenous Studies, ANU - BRIG Peter Clay and AIRCDRE Robert Rodgers – Australian Defence Force About the event - The Redfern ANZAC Day March and Commemorative Service is a culturally appropriate
Veteran David Williams (L) and Pastor Ray Minniecon (C) lead a parade honouring Aboriginal war veterans through the streets of Redfern on ANZAC Day. by Reuters
remembrance service. It affirms community, family and mateship. Aboriginal, Torres Strait Islander and non-Indigenous people come together at this event, which is held in the early afternoon to give people an opportunity to participate in the main Sydney march and other local ANZAC Day events. The Redfern ANZAC Day March and Commemorative Service started in 2007 with a small group of 30-40 people. In 2014, the organisers, Babana Aboriginal Men’s group, expect over 3000 people to attend the ceremony and march from the memorial in Redfern Park to the Redfern Community Centre. The event is a community driven event with community leaders, NSW Police (Redfern LAC), City of Sydney Council, Department of Defence and local businesses coming together. The original concept for the Coloured Digger project is a poem of this name written by Burt Beros. Details are available on the Babana Facebook page.
The 2014 Redfern ANZAC Day March and Commemorative Service allows all Australians to honour, recognise and respect Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander service men and women in the defence of Australia. The event pays tribute those past and present from around Australia. This follows the remembrance of Lest We Forget. The 2014 Redfern ANZAC Day March and Commemorative Service seeks to promote the discovery and acknowledgement of histories that are unknown and yet to be discovered. This event brings many current and former service people, as well as their families, together to share their stories. Each year, the Redfern ANZAC Day March and Commemorative Service follows a theme. The 2014 event is themed ‘Honouring our unknown warrior’, a tribute to those that served the defence of Australia and fell in conflicts in foreign countries. Many of these people are yet to be identified as Aboriginal and
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Torres Strait Islander people due to the nature of record keeping at the time. Many people never returned from historic wars. Returning home is especially important for many Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people because of the spiritual connections to country. Those remaining overseas are mourned as those we left we left behind – ‘Honouring our unknown warrior’. “Honouring our people at ANZAC Day is vital to continuing the recognition and remembrance of the sacrifices they made. “There is increasing community awareness and this community event is a tangible product of the respect that Australians have for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people in defence of this country,” Mark Spinks - Chairperson of Babana Aboriginal Men’s Group said. “Babana Aboriginal Men’s Group is proud to have the support of Her Excellency Professor The Honorable Marie Bashir over these years. “Her understanding of our work has greatly contributed to being here today. “This is a place for community to come together to pay respects to our Elders past and present, to share their stories and recognise their and their families sacrifice. ” Ray Minniecon – Director of Babana Aboriginal Men’s Group. “This ceremony is an opportunity for all Australians to commemorate this part of the history of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people in an inclusive service,” Ray Minniecon, Director of Babana Aboriginal Men’s Group said. “As a former serviceman, I am honoured that Babana Aboriginal Men’s Group is able to bring the community together in honour of all Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people that have served,”
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Indigenous prisoners of war were honoured in the annual indigenous Anzac March from Redfern Park to the Block. by The Age
Warrant Officer Harry Allie (retired) – Former RAAF Airman said. “It’s great that the event has such strong community support and the turn out of the Lord Mayor and Governor of NSW shows that this is an event for everyone. It’s something that was missing when we returned,” Corporal Barry Gissell (retired) – Former Army soldier and Vietnam Veteran said. Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people served in foreign wars in the defence of Australia from as early as 1890. Prior to federation in 1901, British colonies in Australia provided support to British forces, most notably in South Africa during the second Boer War 1899-1902. These people are due respect, particularly in light of the political and social systems that governed Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people at the time. In 1902, the Commonwealth Franchise Act specifically prohibited Aboriginal people from being eligible to vote in Commonwealth elections. Indigenous people were prohibited from service in the Australian Imperial Forces (AIF) until 1917, at which point volunteers were low and ‘half- castes’ with one European parent were allowed to enlist.
Despite this, many voluntarily enlisted and served the Commonwealth without identifying as Aboriginal or Torres Strait Islander. They were treated as equals and paid the same as other soldiers and generally accepted without prejudice. In 1949, the Commonwealth government provided a right to vote to Aboriginal people who were serving, or who had served, in the defence forces through an amendment to the Commonwealth Electoral Act 1918. The Australian Aborigines League (AAL) led this movement from as early as 1932. In 1962, the Commonwealth Electoral Act was amended to provide the right to vote to all Aboriginal people. It wasn’t until 1967 that a referendum passed which included Indigenous people to be counted in the population statistics. This is more than 50 years after they served the Commonwealth of Australia. The National Centre for Indigenous Studies (NCIS) at the Australian National University is conducting a four year research study on Aboriginal or Torres Strait Islander service in defence of Australia. For more information see http:// www.ourmobserved.com.