MEMBERS STATEMENT: NAIDOC WEEK

Mr GEPP (Northern Victoria) (10:26): This week is NAIDOC Week, as has been acknowledged by a number of other speakers, giving our country the opportunity to celebrate our First Nations people, the oldest living culture on this planet, dating back some 65 000 years. But unfortunately that spirit of celebration was diminished somewhat this week by the members of the Morrison government in the Australian Senate. You see, three Indigenous senators—Senator McCarthy, Senator Dodson and Senator Thorpe, who is a former member of this place—moved a motion to have the national Indigenous flag fly in the Australian Senate during NAIDOC Week, next to the Australian flag. Importantly both of these flags are recognised as national flags under the Flags Act 1953. But the Morrison government just could not bring themselves to show leadership in this area, and they shamefully knocked off the motion. Indeed they even tried to stop Senator McCarthy speaking on the motion. Instead of these sorts of actions, we should be taking every opportunity to display the pride we as a country have in our Indigenous heritage, the oldest living culture in this world. True reconciliation can only happen when this country and its leaders show genuine leadership. This land always was Aboriginal land and always will be.