National Reconciliation Week

Mr DULUK (Waite) (14:21): My question is to the Premier. Will the Premier advise the house on the importance of Reconciliation Week and what events are taking place in South Australia to mark this occasion?

The Hon. S.S. MARSHALL (Dunstan—Premier) (14:21): I would like to thank the member for Waite for his question. I note that he has now been elected onto the Aboriginal Lands Parliamentary Standing Committee, a very important standing committee between the two houses of this parliament, and I wish him all the very best for that important opportunity. I myself have served on that body in the past and I really enjoyed my time on that parliamentary standing committee.

This is National Reconciliation Week and it's an opportunity for us to celebrate the unique culture and history of Aboriginal people in Australia. The National Reconciliation Week theme this year is 'Don't keep history a mystery: Learn. Share. Grow.' This should encourage all of us to learn more about Aboriginal culture and history, to share that knowledge and to grow as a nation.

I would like to put on the record my support of Reconciliation South Australia and the work that it does. I have served on that body for the previous eight years and then I found out that, as the Minister for Aboriginal Affairs and Reconciliation, I am not permitted to be on there, so they have kicked me off. It's outrageous after serving on there for eight years.

I have really enjoyed the work of all of the members of Reconciliation SA. I note that they were the ones who organised the Reconciliation Week Breakfast, which was held at the Adelaide Convention Centre on Monday morning this week. I really enjoyed that breakfast. There were plenty of young people at that breakfast. Many schools were represented. In particular, it was really heartening to hear during the breakfast a group of 29 Aboriginal and non-Aboriginal students, school staff and young mentors who shared their experiences of walking the Kokoda Track. I have not done this myself. I am not sure that I would be able to, especially after hearing just how difficult it was, but every one of the people who spoke about it talked about the learnings they had along the way.

In particular, I would like to acknowledge the contribution made that morning by Harry from Brighton High who wrote some poetry reflecting that journey and read it out to the group. It was a privilege to hear what he had to say.

I was also very pleased to learn this week that Adelaide city council were releasing their Stretch Reconciliation Action Plan and it is currently being not displayed but read by the member for Florey, who is a great advocate for reconciliation action plans. In the South Australian government at the moment, we have nine agencies that have reconciliation action plans. We have 15 departments, so I think we have still got quite some way to go. We are at the moment, I think, finalising those reconciliation action plans for the Department of Treasury and also the Department for Education, so I look forward to those being delivered.

This entire week, as I stated, is Reconciliation Week. There are a huge number of activities, hundreds of activities, that occur right across many of the electorates represented by people here in this chamber.

Today, I attended a lunch, which was put on by the Don Dunstan Foundation, where Noel Pearson was providing a dialogue especially around job creation, which was, of course, a very interesting speech. He will be making the Lowitja O'Donoghue Oration tonight. I believe it is a sell-out, with over 700 people going.

I encourage everybody to make sure that they engage with Reconciliation Week; it is an important opportunity for us, and I commend all of the activities to the house.