Workplace experts condemn Dutton's 'overdone' remark as divisive, dangerous
Opposition leader Peter Dutton has drawn criticism after saying that Australians believe Welcome to Country ceremonies are "overdone."
Dutton recently made the remarks during the final leaders' election debate, where he and Anthony Albanese were asked about their view of Welcome to Country ceremonies.
"For the opening of parliament, fair enough, it is respectful to do, but for the start of every meeting at work, or the start of a football game, I think other Australians think it is overdone and cheapens the significance of what it was meant to do," Dutton said as quoted by The Guardian.
Karlie Cremin, workplace inclusion expert and managing director of DLPA, called out Dutton's remarks as divisive and dangerous.
"Calling cultural recognition 'overdone' risks framing inclusion as something excessive when really it's about showing respect for First Nations peoples on whose land we live and work," Cremin said in a statement to HRD.
"This is not about mandating what every workplace or footy game should do. It is about allowing organisations and individuals to choose respectful practices that reflect their values."
Welcome to Country is a form of Aboriginal ceremony that is used to welcome other people from other areas and as a cultural exchange.
Reconciliation Australia said these protocols have been adapted to contemporary circumstances, still with the essential elements of welcoming visitors and respect for Country.
"Incorporating Acknowledgement of Country and Welcome to Country into meetings, gatherings, and events shows respect by upholding Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander cultural protocols," Reconciliation Australia said on its website.
According to Cremin, Welcomes and Acknowledgements of Country can help organisations signal that Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples and cultures are seen, respected, and valued.
"Employees have told us that hearing an Acknowledgement at the start of a meeting makes them feel prouder of their workplace. It shows leadership that is mindful, inclusive and willing to engage meaningfully with Australia's history," Cremin said.
"We have seen throughout history how targeting cultural practices as divisive is a slippery slope. The tone of this conversation matters, especially when it is led by someone who could soon be Prime Minister."
Cremin has urged leaders to focus on fostering unity and respect instead of using cultural practices as wedge issues during a campaign.
"To reduce a gesture of cultural respect to a campaign talking point is, in my view, opportunistic, in poor taste, and deliberately inflammatory," she said.
The debate on limiting the ceremonies' presence comes after a small group of people booed and yelled during the welcome by Bunurong elder Uncle Mark Brown in Melbourne during Anzac Day dawn services.
Albanese condemned the acts, saying there is "no place in Australia for what occurred."
"The disruption of Anzac Day is a disgraceful act and the people responsible must face the full force of the law," the prime minister said in a statement. "This was an act of low cowardice on a day when we honour courage."
Dutton also condemned the acts as he said Anzac Day was a "sacred day," The Guardian reported.
Amnesty International Australia has expressed its solidarity with Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Elders following the disruption on Anzac Day.
"A Welcome to Country is a cultural protocol that First Nations communities have been conducting for thousands of years, as an act of reciprocity when other mobs travelled to visit their homelands," said Rach McPhail, Gomeroi woman, Amnesty International Australia's Indigenous Rights Campaign Organiser, in a statement.
"Our Elders have fought hard to have this respectful ceremony inserted as a cultural norm in Australian society, and we all should be standing up to protect this advancement, and not let Indigenous Rights be wound back in this country."
