NAIDOC 2019: Voice. Treaty. Truth. Let’s work together for a shared future
The National NAIDOC Committee invites all Australians to walk with Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people in a movement of the nation for a better future.
Under the theme – Voice. Treaty. Truth. Let’s work together for a shared future - NAIDOC Week 2019 will be held nationally from Sunday 7 July and continue through to Sunday 14 July.
Voice. Treaty. Truth. were three key elements to the reforms set out in the Uluru Statement from the Heart. These reforms represent the unified position of First Nations Australians.
National NAIDOC Co-Chair Pat Thompson says that for generations, Indigenous Australians have sought recognition of their unique place in Australian history and society today.
“For generations, Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples have looked for significant and lasting change. We need our fellow Australians to join us on this journey – to finish the unfinished business of this country.”
“The 2017 Uluru Statement from the Heart built on generations of consultation and discussions among Indigenous people - we need to be the architects of our lives and futures,” she concluded.
National NAIDOC Co Chair John Paul Janke believes 2019 is also a unique opportunity to hear this nation’s Indigenous voice with the year being celebrated as the UN’s International Year of Indigenous Languages.
“It’s time for our knowledge to be heard through our voice. – an Indigenous voice of this country that is over 65,000 plus years old.”
“They are the first words spoken on this continent. Languages that passed down lore, culture and knowledge for over millennia.”
“They are precious to our nation and need to be celebrated but it’s our voice that needs to be listened too,” he said.
The 2019 theme acknowledges that Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples have always wanted an enhanced role in decision-making in Australia’s democracy.
The theme also aims at highlighting our various First Nations’ desires for lasting and effective agreements such as Treaties- which cannot be achieved unless we have a shared, truthful understanding of the nature of the dispute, of the history, of how we got to where we stand.
“The history of our First Peoples is the history of all of us, of all of Australia, and we need to own it - hearing this history is necessary before we can come to some true reconciliation, some genuine healing for both sides.”
“Then we can move forward together.”
“So, Let’s work together for a shared future,” the Co-Chairs concluded.
Find out more about the 2019 theme on the NAIDOC website.