Indigenous speakers addressed a reception following a National Reconciliation Week service at the Baha’i Temple in Sydney on 27 May.
An indigenous member of the Baha’i community, Bettina King, opened the reception on behalf of the Australian Baha’i Community.
“In 1993 we were among the faith communities that started the Week of Prayer for Reconciliation, which was expanded in 1996 to become the National Reconciliation week,” said Ms King, a Narrungga woman from the Yorke Penninsula on her mother’s side and a Wardaman from the Northern Territory on her father’s side.
As chair of the reception, Ms King introduced keynote speaker, Dominic Wy Kanak a board member for the New South Wales Reconciliation Council and a Waverley City Councillor.
Cr Wy Kanak said the Reconciliation Council was working to help achieve a “reconciled Australia” and that reconciliation had as many meanings as the number of people gathered before him.
Aspirations aligned to actions for reconciliation would help achieve a better society, one with greater respect and acknowledgement for Aboriginal people and Torres Strait Islanders, said Cr Wy Kanak, a Torres Strait Islander.
Cr Wy Kanak said indigenous people had often banded together in response to the challenging conditions they have had to endure.
He also spoke about respecting the natural environment and the obligation of each human being to respect the country.
Following his presentation, participants in the forum discussed topics including deaths in custody, relationships with the police, the need for education and cultural awareness, and community responses aimed at overcoming alcohol use.
In summing up, Ms King said how positive it is that the Baha’i community are having a dialogue about reconciliation.
“One of the most important factors of Cr Wy Kanak’s presentation was about how individuals can take action on a local level,” she said.
“Cr Wy Kanak showed us information from ANTaR (Australians for Native Title and Reconciliation) and Reconciliation Australia that provides ideas on how people can support reconciliation and social change for indigenous Australians.”
The service in the Temple included prayers and readings, as well as chanting from scripture by the Temple choir.