A proposal to establish a National Resting Place for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander remains as a new monument in the National Capital has been welcomed by the Chair of the Australian Institute of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Studies (AIATSIS), Michael McDaniel (pictured).
The proposal is contained in the final report of Parliament’s Joint Select Committee on Constitutional Recognition Relating to Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Peoples.
Professor McDaniel said that as the only national institution with an exclusive focus on the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander story of Australia, the recommendations regarding truth-telling were particularly pertinent for the work of AIATSIS.
He said the National Resting Place could be a place of commemoration, healing and reflection.
“Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Australians should be able to care for and visit ancestral remains in a central and more culturally appropriate place than a museum vault,” Professor McDaniel said.
“We strongly believe a national resting place will be a place for pilgrimage, where all Australians can gather for reflection, for education, and for learning.”
He said a national resting place would be a critical component of an iconic and enduring institutional representation of the unique place Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples hold as central to the national story.
“It would provide tangible recognition of Indigenous Australians as a unique and indispensable constituent part of modern Australia.”
He said the first story of this nation – the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander story – was 65,000 years old, Australia being home to the oldest continuing culture in the world.
“This is a story all Australians should feel immense pride in,” Professor McDaniel said.
“Our cultures, histories and knowledge need to be celebrated. At the same time, the turbulence and trauma of the last 250 years cannot be hidden and is not something we should not shy away from.”
“The truth of our experience needs to be brought to the fore and acknowledged meaningfully,” he said.
