Page 244 - Week 01 - Thursday, 9 December 2004
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went through for recognition as Australian citizens. It serves further to recognise the ongoing struggle of Australia’s indigenous people.
Remembrance Day offers us all the opportunity to reflect on the horrors of war and to remember all of those who have fallen in the wars and conflicts we have experienced as a nation. This day is not one of celebration, but a collective reflection on the tragedy of the loss of those lives. Its commemoration makes space in our lives to recognise that those of others have been lost in war and conflict. It encourages us to look behind with sadness and regret and forward with hope for peace. Mabo day commemorates our longest struggle, that of seeking recognition of the indigenous people’s sovereignty and their struggle for justice.
These days, in their own way, are symbolic of our commitment to engagement with the process of democracy and themselves arose out of the processes of debate and struggle for recognition, commemoration and commitment to progressive change. In the same manner as Eureka, all demand reflection and engagement with the ideas and the debates surrounding these special occasions.
This is the purpose of a commemorative calendar note—to continue the work begun this year, the 150th anniversary of Eureka, and that of teachers and parents across Australia and throughout our territory of instilling in our children a willingness and an interest in engaging with the process of our democracy.
I hope that, through the introduction of such a note and the future commemoration of the Eureka rebellion, we shall continue to inspire the passion and the debate which are the foundation of and the process of our democracy. As participants in the democracy of the Australian Capital Territory, I urge members to support this motion.
MR SMYTH (Brindabella-Leader of the Opposition) (12.09): I thank Mr Gentleman for bringing on the motion concerning the Eureka Stockade. I had relatives in the area at the time, which I will speak a little bit about later, but I want to concentrate now on the twisted telling of the story by the ALP, which hijacked, as it always does, an Australian event to suit its political purpose at the time. To say that Eureka is about the spirit of Australian independence and fledgling democracy and that therefore we should be supporting the refugees and then to invite Mr Hicks’s father to lead the march so that an Australian icon can be used for a political purpose is pretty cynical.
If we go back to what happened at Eureka, we will find that, essentially, it was a tax revolt. Miners who were paying taxes for their mining rights were revolting against what was basically an unresponsive, big taxing, arrogant government. Perhaps we will see Canberra business people demonstrating on City Hill because we have a big taxing, unresponsive, arrogant government as well. I would like to see Mr Gentleman there on the barricades with small businessmen.
Let’s face it, the miners were small businessmen who were struggling as they were setting out to do something to further their own ends in the interest of the community. By about 1871, Victoria had the most profitable economy in the world and the highest living standard in the world as a result of their efforts, but let’s not hijack these events. Let’s tell the truth about the story.
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