Tuesday, 3 December, 2024
Check out nearby bushfire shelter sites
Questions raised about closed toilets in Warburton
Tourism Hall of Famer, Healesville Sanctuary
See Real Estate liftout inside
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A Star News Group Publication
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A helping hand By Dongyun Kwon St Brigid’s Primary School students had a busy day helping a local charity organisation prepare its Christmas hampers. 10 Grade 6 students visited Darron Honey Centre to pack 150 Christmas hampers for HICCI on Friday 29 November. The primary school aims to educate students not just on the academic side but also on the non-academic side such as community welfare and social justice. Ministry leader Millie Jackson, one of the Grade 6 students, said it was a good experience to help out the community. “I’ve learnt not everyone has as much stuff as others do and we should always be grateful for things we have,” she said. Turn to page 16 for more
St Brigid’s Primary School Grade 6 students helped HICCI prepare Christmas hampers. (Dongyun Kwon: 447008)
Treaty underway The Victorian Government and the First Peoples’ Assembly of Victoria have begun negotiations for Australia’s first Treaty with First Nations people, having started discussions on Thursday 21 November. The establishment of Treaty in Australia would bring it in line with treaties in other colonial countries like New Zealand (Aotearoa), the United States and Canada (Turtle Island). Taungurung man and Healesville resident
Adam Frogley said he is very happy that treaty negotiations have commenced in Victoria. “This process has taken some time to get to this point, and as the only State to advance treaty discussions, I expect Aboriginal communities in Victoria are also excited for the process to commence,” he said. The First Peoples’ Assembly of Victoria has been consulting with Indigenous communities across the state in preparation for negotiations since 2019, with an eye to ensuring they know how communities want Treaty to be negotiated
and what it should deliver. First Peoples’ Assembly of Victoria Co-Chairs Ngarra Murray and Rueben Berg both welcomed the milestone. “We commence these negotiations with the support of our communities. Treaty is from the ground up and talking to our communities at every step. We are ready, we are prepared, and we look forward to a better future for our children, families and communities,” Ms Murray said. “Whether it’s caring for land and keeping cul-
ture strong or improving the way services like health and education are delivered at a local level, we want to negotiate a Treaty that will empower Aboriginal communities for generations to come,” Mr Berg said. “Treaty negotiations will draw a line in the sand, right past wrongs, and deliver real improvements to the lives of First Peoples – in housing, education, health, employment. The past cannot be changed. What we can do now is sit down respectfully and negotiate how we move forward.” Turn to page 5 for more
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