Thank you Premier for participating in the gift exchange.
All the Assembly Members and I were up in Shepparton last week and we met with Timmy Church, a proud Gunditjmara man of the Kerrupmara clan and Dhauwurd Wurrung language group.
He’s who created the spears and Woomera.
Timmy explained that the artwork on the woomera wasn’t representative of any one mob in particular, but of all of us mob in Victoria. Just like the Assembly.
The woomera is an extension of us, an extra joint for our arm, to propel the spears forward.
Notice also the spears around this circle – they are important pairings for the Woomera.
You’ll see there’s a variety of spear heads – different tools for the different terrains and creatures that can be found in this beautiful place now called Victoria.
We’ll be sending each of these spears back to communities in different regions. And we have presented the Woomera to you for safe keeping.
Spears and a Woomera. Two things that get better outcomes when they are used together.
We hope the Woomera will remind you and all the MPs of the commitment to conduct the negotiations with respect – with an open mind – with a genuine willingness to listen to our people.
To listen and to trust that we know what we need.
When an agreement is reached, we hope these items will be kept in Parliament and serve as an ongoing reminder to all Victorians of what Treaty is all about.
So what is Treaty all about?
We know that everyone understands that people thrive when they can set their own course in life.
When we can make choices about what works best for us and our families.
Most Victorians also recognise that when it comes to Aboriginal communities, cultures and lands – the experts are Aboriginal people.
That’s why we want Treaty to ensure Aboriginal communities will always have the freedom and power to come up with solutions at a local level.
Past Governments have tried to take that right away from us – along with so much more. But we have resisted. We have survived.
And now Treaty is about striking a fairer deal.
Treaty is about better lives for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people in Victoria.
And by committing to having these conversations with respect and with an open mind, Treaty will also spark many opportunities for everyone who calls Victoria home to come closer together.
I want to pay thanks to the tens of thousands of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people who have come to our events, or enrolled with us, or voted in elections, or helped decide each step on the way, or are here today – thank you.
This will be your Treaty.
You are all deadly, and you’re helping deliver something that will improve the lives of our people for generations to come.
To the diverse Traditional Owner groups across Victoria that hold so much of our cultural knowledge and stories – thank you.
To the amazing Aboriginal community-controlled organisations serving our communities so well – thank you.
To the mob on the other side of the negotiations, working in Government and the public service – thank you.
To our allies here to witness and mark the day, and who are walking alongside us on this journey – thank you.
To the Members of the Treaty Authority – thank you.
To the Yoorrook Commissioners – thank you.
To Aunty Jill who, alongside many others helped get the Assembly started – thank you.
To all previous Members who served on the Assembly – thank you.
To every single person that has contributed in one way or another to getting us to this point in time – thank you.
This point in time, where we start the large job, the difficult job, of negotiating Treaty.
And I want to assure all within our communities that we will get this job done!
Treaty will deliver meaningful and practical reforms.
Treaty will enable us to close the gap.
Treaty will create meaningful opportunities for our people.
Treaty will ensure the next generation can grow up proud and strong in culture.
This first agreement we are striving for will not mark the closing of a chapter, it will be the beginning of a new one.
And that chapter doesn’t start in 10 years. Doesn’t start in 1 year. Doesn’t start in 1 month. Treaty is no longer an idea off in the distance.
The negotiations of the First Statewide Treaty, between the Victorian Government and the First Peoples’ Assembly of Victoria start here. They start today.
It is an honour to share this moment with all of you.
Thank you.
Rueben Berg,
Proud Gunditjmara
Co-chair of the First Peoples’ Assembly of Victoria
This speech was given at the ceremonial opening of Treaty negotiations. (Please check against delivery). You can also read Assembly Co-chair Ngarra Murray’s speech.
