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Meera Atkinson  In its 30th year the Uniting Church in Australia (UCA) renewed its focus on reconciliation with Indigenous Australians. The Church has therefore wholeheartedly welcomed the new Prime Minister, Kevin Rudd’s announcement that he would offer up the long awaited formal apology to the Stolen Generations.
“It’s a good, important step and I don’t think it’s just a symbolic step either,” says Rev Elenie Poulos, national director of UnitingJustice, which has long advocated for an apology. “I think the best symbolic actions always have an effect on lived experience and that’s what makes them rich and powerful symbols. The previous government… showed a complete lack of understanding of the power of symbol and ritual, which is something the Church knows about. We understand that when you do that properly, it affects people’s lives in a very practical way.” Elenie says that, to be truly meaningful, the apology will need to be backed up – fast – with action. This could include the establishment of a national representative Indigenous body and a commitment to finding local solutions for local problems in consultation with Indigenous communities. Vince Ross, national chairperson of the Uniting Aboriginal Islander Christian Congress, believes compensation is important but doesn’t think giving a large amount of money to anyone is going to solve anything. “Aboriginal people need to be invited to the table so we are participants rather than just recipients,” he says. “Compensation is a small part of the restoration that needs to take place for us, as Indigenous people, to grow and move forward. It’s getting a balance between infrastructure and compensation to individuals. “The sorry business is about what has happened to this nation,” says Vince. “I think February 13 is going to be a good day.” The Uniting Church is bipartisan and works with whichever government is in power but Elenie anticipates some differences in the ways the Church will work with Labor, compared to the coalition. “This Government has indicated it will be more open to dialogue with civil society organisations and the non-government sector,” she says. “That’s a very different approach to the previous government. They didn’t like being criticised by churches and community groups, and they worked hard to reduce the amount of public criticism they faced by, for example, putting gag orders in the contracts of community service providers. If the Rudd government holds true to those promises we should be able to develop an open and constructive working relationship with the government.” UnitingJustice will continue to advocate for policies that ensure a just and peaceful society, keeping a close watch on policy development in such areas as asylum seekers, citizenship, climate change, and human rights. And so a new era begins and only one thing is certain: no matter what political party is in power, the work of those dedicated to helping transform the world through Christ’s message of love and equality is never done.
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