Media Release: Attacks on Acknowledgements and Welcomes to Country must end  

Attacks on Acknowledgements and Welcomes to Country must end  

Reconciliation Tasmania expresses deep concern and disappointment following calls by Hobart City Councillor Louise Elliot for Acknowledgements of Country at official events to take place before proceedings begin, so they are not “forced on all attendees”.  

This move is yet another inexcusable example of attempts to undermine cultural respect and unity in our state and across Australia. It comes less than two months after an unsuccessful motion, by Councillor Garry Blenkhorn, was put to Flinders Island Council to remove Welcome to Country and Acknowledgement of Country at council events on Flinders Island. This was followed by a similar motion put by Councillor Trent Aitken of Burnie City Council to remove Acknowledgements from council meetings. Both motions were unsuccessful. Louise Elliot has proposed this motion in the same week as the calculated and hurtful stunt by One Nation Senators of turning their backs on the Acknowledgement of Country in Federal Parliament. 

These continued attacks by those in public office are not only disrespectful but divisive and must end. Reconciliation Tasmania stands firmly in support of the Tasmanian Aboriginal community and the cultural protocols that affirm their place as the First Peoples of this state.  

Having a Welcome to Country or Acknowledgement of Country as a standard practice at meetings and events, recognises the place of Aboriginal people as the first custodians of the land, promotes awareness of history and culture and formally acknowledges Aboriginal peoples’ ongoing connection to the land.  

Motions like those put by Councillors Blenkhorn, Aitken and Elliot must be comprehensively rejected. Not only are they shameful attempts to ignite community division, but they also cause hurt and distress and roll back progress towards much-needed healing and justice with and for Aboriginal people in Tasmania.  

Responding to Councillor Elliot’s proposed motion, Reconciliation Tasmania CEO, Pauline Cook:

“Acknowledgements and Welcomes to Country aren’t just religious rituals, they’re small but powerful signals, arising in ancient tradition, which acknowledge the undeniable truths of our history.  

Every time we acknowledge Traditional Owners, we chip away at the lie of Terra Nullius and the mistruths of the history of Tasmania which were perpetuated for so long. We remind each other, again and again, that this land has been cared for by Tasmanian Aboriginal people for tens of thousands of years. It’s a simple, repeated truth-telling that slowly shifts how the broader public sees history, belonging, and identity. 

Keeping Acknowledgements as a visible and routine part of our protocols creates changes slowly changes hearts and minds. Regular repetition of an Acknowledgement to Country is a statement of truth to say ‘We know whose land this is. We recognise history. And we are willing to say it out loud’. They might sound like a small ritual, but they’re helping build a future where truth, respect, and recognition are normal. And that’s how real change begins”.