CANBERRA, Sept. 14 (Xinhua) -- A third local city council in Australia's second-largest city Melbourne has voted to abandon official Australia Day celebrations on January 26, claiming they are insensitive to Australia's Indigenous people.
Late on Wednesday, the Moreland City Council, which is in Melbourne's inner north, voted 7-4 to end all official national day celebrations, claiming that January 26 is not a day for celebrations for all Australians.
The motion which passed said the council did not believe inclusive celebration could be had by all, as "January 26 marks the beginning of the British invasion of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander lands and oppression of the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people."
Moreland has also said it would support the "change the date" push, a campaign to change the date of Australian Day from January 26, which Indigenous Australians say represents the landing of the first European Australians and thus the beginning of oppression and the killing of their ancestors.
Speaking to the council during Wednesday night's hearing, Dja Dja Wurrung elder Gary Murray likened celebrating January 26 to championing a "holocaust."
"There's no shame in having courage to make hard decisions and you want a treaty with First Peoples in this state, whether it's a state government one, a federal government one or a Moreland one," he said.
After the council voted in favour of the motion, federal Greens Senator Rachel Siewert applauded the move, saying January 26 was "considered a day of grieving for many."
"We are kind and inclusive nation and simply moving the day to a date where everyone can celebrate this wonderful country makes sense," she told News Corp on Thursday.
"I have no doubt that the federal government will now exercise incredible overreach and try and intimidate the City of Moreland out of this decision.
"Instead of being the big bully, the (federal) government should reflect on why local councils are taking this step."
Moreland councillor Sue Bolton said now the wider Australian society was aware of negative history of the date, celebrating Australia Day on January 26 would be "grossly insensitive" to Australia's first people.
But not all councillors voted in favor of the change; councillor John Kavanagh said Australia Day could be "an opportunity with the Aboriginal welcome on that day for the oldest Australians to inform the newest Australians of the plight and the difficulties that day has for them and their history."
The Yarra and Darebin city councils have already voted to dump any official mention of Australia Day on January 26.
