17 August 2008

Welcome to Ngunnawal, Ngamberri or Wiradjuri Country/Nation? (Now with added Ngambri Kamberri)

| Jonathon Reynolds
Join the conversation
27

Back in December 2005 I posted this story: Canberra: Welcome to Ngunnawal, Ngamberri or Wiradjuri Country/Nation?

Over on “The Word” (a similar sort of local user contributed news site to the RiotACT – but in a somewhat different class altogether, being far more refined when it comes to individuals slagging off at each other [ED – next time save your slagging of us for your own sites JR, in fact if this other forum is so superior perhaps take your stories there?]), there is an article by Shane Mortimer “Ngambri Kamberri Canberra.” In the article Mr Mortimer makes several assertions as regard to who the traditional owners of the local area are and whom should be officially “recognised”.

I would suggest that with our newly elected ACT Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Elected Body recently installed I’m predicting that we may see some interesting action on the Indigenous front regarding this and similar issues soon.

Join the conversation

27
All Comments
  • All Comments
  • Website Comments
LatestOldest
Comic_and_Gamer_Nerd5:46 pm 19 Jan 13

saraphine said :

gosh…i am new to canberra (or is it kamberri?) and i know the posts i read are from 2008 (response to “welcome to ngunnawal, ngamberri or wiradjuri country?)…but….i am ashamed to be a white fella. with all the disrespect, belittling and ignorance shown toward our “first australians”. ACT whiteys really are sanitized…i feared this when i arrived and noticed their dress, their haircuts (all the same like a uniform)..but it is as i get to know their attitudes i see that our “capital” is frighteningly colonialist and parochial. goddess help our country…(the pollies thinking the same!)…although it actually isn’t our (whiteys) country is it. “think global act local” is my motto…so i am attending “survival day” at the tent embassy. out of respect for aboriginal peoples ongoing, mostly non-violent protest at their country being written in to the constitution as “terra nullius”.
no treaty-no sovereignty i suspect. again…i am ashamed.

Troll???

Haha I like the mostly part.

Whitworth Spanner4:50 pm 19 Jan 13

What a bizarre thing to say “ACT whiteys really are sanitized…i feared this when i arrived and noticed their dress, their haircuts (all the same like a uniform)..”

saraphine said :

gosh…i am new to canberra (or is it kamberri?) and i know the posts i read are from 2008 (response to “welcome to ngunnawal, ngamberri or wiradjuri country?)…but….i am ashamed to be a white fella. with all the disrespect, belittling and ignorance shown toward our “first australians”. ACT whiteys really are sanitized…i feared this when i arrived and noticed their dress, their haircuts (all the same like a uniform)..but it is as i get to know their attitudes i see that our “capital” is frighteningly colonialist and parochial. goddess help our country…(the pollies thinking the same!)…although it actually isn’t our (whiteys) country is it. “think global act local” is my motto…so i am attending “survival day” at the tent embassy. out of respect for aboriginal peoples ongoing, mostly non-violent protest at their country being written in to the constitution as “terra nullius”.
no treaty-no sovereignty i suspect. again…i am ashamed.

Yawn.

If Canberrans are so horrid, why don’t you leave and go somewhere much more open-minded, accepting and tolerant, like Sydney, Darwin, Melbourne, Adelaide, Perth or Brisbane? No ‘sanitised whitey’ issues in any of those places, no sireee!

gosh…i am new to canberra (or is it kamberri?) and i know the posts i read are from 2008 (response to “welcome to ngunnawal, ngamberri or wiradjuri country?)…but….i am ashamed to be a white fella. with all the disrespect, belittling and ignorance shown toward our “first australians”. ACT whiteys really are sanitized…i feared this when i arrived and noticed their dress, their haircuts (all the same like a uniform)..but it is as i get to know their attitudes i see that our “capital” is frighteningly colonialist and parochial. goddess help our country…(the pollies thinking the same!)…although it actually isn’t our (whiteys) country is it. “think global act local” is my motto…so i am attending “survival day” at the tent embassy. out of respect for aboriginal peoples ongoing, mostly non-violent protest at their country being written in to the constitution as “terra nullius”.
no treaty-no sovereignty i suspect. again…i am ashamed.

Well, you see, Aborigines don’t own the land. They belong to it. It’s like their mother. See those rocks? Been standing there for 600 million years. Still be there when you and I are gone. So arguing over who owns them is like two fleas arguing over who owns the dog they live on.

Woody Mann-Caruso said :

Isn’t the indigenous culture based around all things coming from the land and no one actually owning it.

You’re wrong (and somehow appear to have missed the whole native title / vested rights and interests thing as well). Perhaps you could try learning about Indigenous affairs from a source other than reruns of Crocodile Dundee.

woody, my mate would love to meet you, next time he is down, I am sure. you sound like you know enough about the culture to fit right in.

bit like Maoris – 6-pack and a guitar – 3-day party….

except both he and i drink sparingly these days…

Woody Mann-Caruso10:12 am 18 Aug 08

Isn’t the indigenous culture based around all things coming from the land and no one actually owning it.

You’re wrong (and somehow appear to have missed the whole native title / vested rights and interests thing as well). Perhaps you could try learning about Indigenous affairs from a source other than reruns of Crocodile Dundee.

It’s all getting rather silly isn’t it.

thumper, it is.

most aboriginals that I know just want to be able to be known as australians. as do the malays, vietnamese, ugandan, sth african, german, french, etc,etc…

they may be able to speak another language, but they have accepted australia as their home.

they all have different cultural heritage, but they all chose to live here.

Woody Mann-Caruso10:10 am 18 Aug 08

How much time have you spent in the indigenous communities of the NT, and not the one’s who live in Darwin? They shudder when they hear about crap like this.

13 years, and no, ‘they’ don’t. I also did a couple of years in the Torres Strait if that helps my cred. How about you?

bigfeet said :

Woody Mann-Caruso said :

Genuine aboriginals who embrace their culture daily are ashamed by these idiots

I’m sure you’d know, what with all your ‘genuine aboriginal’ acquaintances.

.

Gotta agree with vg on this one. After living in Aboriginal communities on Cape York for seven years, two years in the Torres Straits and two years in the Pilbara I agree that most really have no time for this crap. I spoke to a couple of mates in Aurukun after the “apology” and they thought the “welcome to country” was the funniest thing they had ever seen, until I told them it was meant to be taken seriously, then they just thought it was an embarrasment.

mate of mine couldn’t stop laughing. every time we took him out on the touristy thing, and he saw a sign or suburb name, he’d crack up.

we had to leave him in the car whilst his wife checked out the Old Parliament house, the tent embassy was far too much. he roared with laughter when they called him “brother”, and to join them at the fire.

Nhulunbuy isn’t a small place, anymore. but he just couldn’t believe the song and dance these people were making about an embassy. we had to leave after he told one of the people at the tent embassy to “grow up and get a life, you loser” (the guy he was speaking to was whiter than me).

Yep – probably for the best that we just stay in our santised world and never have to see of think about Indigenous people.

Woody Mann-Caruso said :

Genuine aboriginals who embrace their culture daily are ashamed by these idiots

I’m sure you’d know, what with all your ‘genuine aboriginal’ acquaintances.

.

Gotta agree with vg on this one. After living in Aboriginal communities on Cape York for seven years, two years in the Torres Straits and two years in the Pilbara I agree that most really have no time for this crap. I spoke to a couple of mates in Aurukun after the “apology” and they thought the “welcome to country” was the funniest thing they had ever seen, until I told them it was meant to be taken seriously, then they just thought it was an embarrasment.

And I thought blackfellas were like chinese – they all look the same! Oops.

I generally find its a racist who is the first to call it.

Apparently if you dare share a contrary view about who ‘owns’ the land, or dare question anything about aboriginality you are a racist

I may be ignorant of such things so maybe WMC can enlighten me. Isn’t the indigenous culture based around all things coming from the land and no one actually owning it. So the whole original owners thing is a load of crap. Correct me if I’m wrong.

Woody Mann-Caruso said :

Genuine aboriginals who embrace their culture daily are ashamed by these idiots

I’m sure you’d know, what with all your ‘genuine aboriginal’ acquaintances.

Disputes over borders and land ownership are common to all cultures. But hey, feel free to use it as an excuse to legitimize your racist views.

Dear WMC

How much time have you spent in the indigenous communities of the NT, and not the one’s who live in Darwin? They shudder when they hear about crap like this.

I am far from racist, just realist. Grow up a bit

It’s all bollocks. My land is mine. Simple. I don’t care who was there before and as much as I would prefer it to stay in the hands of my kids when I am gone I have no say in it.

Ngunnawal country? Ceremonies? All bollocks in my opinion – I’ve seen too many 40,000 year old fires started with a bic lighter by indigenous blokes who are off their faces on ice and beer.

Woody Mann-Caruso said :

Genuine aboriginals who embrace their culture daily are ashamed by these idiots

I’m sure you’d know, what with all your ‘genuine aboriginal’ acquaintances.

Disputes over borders and land ownership are common to all cultures. But hey, feel free to use it as an excuse to legitimize your racist views.

and to think, the communities in the NT and WA didn’t even know we had a tent embassy – prompting comments like: “who lives at the tent embassy? why don’t they get their country to pay for a real one?

aboriginals are just like me. they work hard, they pay taxes and they raise their kids.

start worrying about the idiots who don’t or steal from us all. they are in all races IMO.

Woody Mann-Caruso12:59 pm 17 Aug 08

Genuine aboriginals who embrace their culture daily are ashamed by these idiots

I’m sure you’d know, what with all your ‘genuine aboriginal’ acquaintances.

Disputes over borders and land ownership are common to all cultures. But hey, feel free to use it as an excuse to legitimize your racist views.

They are as much a tribe or clan as I am a celtic warrior with my lineage.

I’ve never seen such sh1t in my life as some of these ‘ceremonies’. Some of the highlights of them being the traditional board shorts some of them wear.

Genuine aboriginals who embrace their culture daily are ashamed by these idiots

I would who’s country it is this week?

Jonathon Reynolds10:26 am 17 Aug 08

The comments in Shane Mortimer’s story make more sense after reading this media release from the Chief Minister: http://www.chiefminister.act.gov.au/media.php?v=7273&m=51

Matilda House gets to welcome everyone to ‘her” land.

Guys at work have been offended about this mis-calling for oh around 10 years or so.

OK the question to you JR, why does Stanhope persit in calling it Ngunnawal country? maybe the most easily tamed group?

Interesting comments, JR. The Canberra region was travelled by various groups, not just one “tribe” (and it’s down to more than “tribe” anyway, family lines and clans, linked clans etc), and to have signs up proclaiming this area to be the land of one tribe is wrong. It must be pretty offensive to people from other clans.

There are plenty of aboriginal people quietly doing good work for their people, who don’t get their names in every news report and claim to represent everyone, and who don’t claim repeated benefits for their family and friends. People need to harden up and start to question things like this. Just because it’s aboriginal, doesn’t mean it can’t be queried.

Secrt Women’s Business, Smoking Ceremonies, Didgeridoo playing…..in the end it will al be about the money.

Mary Whitehouse4:14 am 17 Aug 08

PS It’s 4.05 am and I can’t sleep, but after visiting the site Jonathon mentioned I recon I’ll be out like a light. It’s so dull and worthy it would put anyone to sleep.

Mary Whitehouse4:07 am 17 Aug 08

I have the suspicion that since the election of the Rudd government members of one local family have been making a mint doing “welcome to country” ceremonies. I seem to see them at every other day.

Daily Digest

Want the best Canberra news delivered daily? Every day we package the most popular Riotact stories and send them straight to your inbox. Sign-up now for trusted local news that will never be behind a paywall.

By submitting your email address you are agreeing to Region Group's terms and conditions and privacy policy.