VOA新闻杂志2023--Australian Vote Could Give 'Voice' to Indigenous Communities

Australian Vote Could Give 'Voice' to Indigenous¹ Communities

Some of Australia's Indigenous communities are hoping a national vote that would change the country's constitution could give native people more of a voice in the government.

The vote, known as a referendum, would put in the nation's constitution a way for Indigenous people to advise Parliament on policies that affect their lives. The vote, officially called "Voice to Parliament," will be held on October 14.

Leaders of some Indigenous groups are looking to the process to help save their cultures and languages. Clark Webb is seeking to do that for his native, or Aboriginal², community, the Gumbaynggirr people.

Webb recently led a class of schoolchildren as they danced to native songs. "Opening our own schools, that's sovereignty in action," Webb said.

He and others want to bring back the Indigenous language spoken in Coffs Harbor, a coastal³ town about 500 kilometers north of Sydney. "And so we need that 'Voice' there to lobby for that."

Webb started the Gumbaynggirr Giingana Freedom School last year. It was the first bilingual Indigenous school in Australia's most populous⁴ state of New South Wales.

The effort is part of an attempt to bring back dozens of languages that are close to dying out. It is being supported by federal and state governments.

Many of Australia's Indigenous people see the recovery of languages as very important to the survival of their cultures.

Oldest culture

Australia's Indigenous and Torres Strait Islander communities are perhaps the world's oldest. They have a history on the continent dating back tens of thousands of years.

After colonization⁵ by Great Britain in 1788, the people increasingly faced discrimination, which continued long after Australia became a nation in 1901.

Government officials often moved Indigenous people from their traditional lands, known as Country. They forcibly separated Indigenous children from their families, resulting in a "stolen generation" from the mid-19th century to the 1970s.

As late as the 1980s, officials punished Indigenous people for speaking their languages.

"I think, growing up, I knew there was something missing from my life," Webb said. "And as I got older, I realized that ... was our language."

Webb estimates there are now about 30 proficient⁶ or highly proficient speakers of Gumbaynggirr. Among them is his nine-year-old daughter.

Language revival⁷

Australia has one of the world's highest rates of language loss in the world.

At the time of European colonization, more than 250 Indigenous languages, including 800 dialects, were believed to have been spoken on the continent.

But the most recent population data shows that more than 150 languages were still being spoken in 2021. However, just 9.5 percent of indigenous Australians reported speaking one or more languages at home.

Ray Ingrey is one of a handful of people fluent in Dharawal. It was the first language heard by British explorer Captain James Cook when he landed in Australia in 1770.

Ingrey heads the Gujaga Foundation. It was founded in 2019 to bring back the language. He said government policies in those days severely⁸ hurt the ability to pass the language on from one generation to the next.

Officials had barred the grandparents of Webb and Ingrey from speaking their native languages. And some relatives were threatened by the police for speaking it anywhere.

Author and teacher Jasmine Seymour is leading efforts to revive the Dharug Aboriginal language among hundreds of schoolchildren in Sydney. Most of the children are non-Indigenous.

Seymour is related to Maria Lock, the first Aboriginal person to marry a European settler and one of the first admitted to a school to learn English.

"To be at the other end of history, where my language is being revitalized in school, is completely profound," she said.

Words in This Story

indigenous — adj. produced, living, or existing naturally in a particular region or environment

sovereignty — n. unlimited⁹ power over a country

lobby — v. o try to influence government officials to make decisions for or against something

proficient — adj. good at doing something

dialect — n. a form of a language that is spoken in a particular area and that uses some of its own words, grammar, and pronunciations

revitalize — v. to make active, healthy, or energetic again

profound — adj. having or showing great knowledge or understanding

1 indigenous   

adj.土产的，土生土长的，本地的

参考例句：

• Each country has its own indigenous cultural tradition.每个国家都有自己本土的文化传统。
• Indians were the indigenous inhabitants of America.印第安人是美洲的土著居民。

2 aboriginal   

adj.（指动植物）土生的，原产地的，土著的

参考例句：

• They managed to wipe out the entire aboriginal population.他们终于把那些土著人全部消灭了。
• The lndians are the aboriginal Americans.印第安人是美国的土著人。

3 coastal   

adj.海岸的，沿海的，沿岸的

参考例句：

• The ocean waves are slowly eating away the coastal rocks.大海的波浪慢慢地侵蚀着岸边的岩石。
• This country will fortify the coastal areas.该国将加强沿海地区的防御。

4 populous   

adj.人口稠密的，人口众多的

参考例句：

• London is the most populous area of Britain.伦敦是英国人口最稠密的地区。
• China is the most populous developing country in the world.中国是世界上人口最多的发展中国家。

5 colonization   

殖民地的开拓，殖民，殖民地化； 移殖

参考例句：

• Colonization took place during the Habsburg dynasty. 开拓殖民地在哈布斯堡王朝就进行过。
• These countries took part in the colonization of Africa. 这些国家参与非洲殖民地的开发。

6 proficient   

adj.熟练的，精通的；n.能手，专家

参考例句：

• She is proficient at swimming.她精通游泳。
• I think I'm quite proficient in both written and spoken English.我认为我在英语读写方面相当熟练。

7 revival   

n.复兴，复苏，（精力、活力等的）重振

参考例句：

• The period saw a great revival in the wine trade.这一时期葡萄酒业出现了很大的复苏。
• He claimed the housing market was showing signs of a revival.他指出房地产市场正出现复苏的迹象。

8 severely   

adv.严格地；严厉地；非常恶劣地

参考例句：

• He was severely criticized and removed from his post.他受到了严厉的批评并且被撤了职。
• He is severely put down for his careless work.他因工作上的粗心大意而受到了严厉的批评。

9 unlimited   

adj.无限的，不受控制的，无条件的

参考例句：

• They flew over the unlimited reaches of the Arctic.他们飞过了茫茫无边的北极上空。
• There is no safety in unlimited technological hubris.在技术方面自以为是会很危险。