Aaron Bunch Journalist with Australian Associated Press | Collection of published work | + 61 484 008 119 | abunch@aap.com.au
Australia Day celebrations kick off in NSW
NSW’s governor has acknowledged past injustices against Aborigines at an Australia Day event at Sydney Harbour.
January 25, 2018
NSW Governor David Hurley has helped kick-off Australia Day celebrations in the state with a speech acknowledging the controversy surrounding the holiday to mark the arrival of the First Fleet in Sydney harbour.
He urged Australians to unite and celebrate whilst also tackling past injustices perpetrated on indigenous populations.
“I’m proud of my country, its people and its achievements but I also want it to be better,” the former army chief said in Sydney on Friday.
The governor was joined by NSW Premier Gladys Berejiklian and about a 1000 people at Barangaroo on the harbour to watch the indigenous WugulOra ceremony.
It included dancers, a smoking ceremony, the singing of the national anthem and the raising of the Australian flag next to an indigenous flag on the Sydney Harbour Bridge.