NT Leader Skips Indigenous ‘Acknowledgement of Country’, Says Public Not Interested in Overdoing Rituals

Chief Minister Lia Finocchiaro says voters have been indoctrinated and shamed into performing the Acknowledgement regularly.

Indigenous performers perform the Welcome to Country during a smoke ceremony prior to the state funeral service for Uncle Jack Charles at Hamer Hall in Melbourne, Australia on Oct. 18, 2022. Asanka Ratnayake/Getty Images

When Northern Territory Chief Minister Lia Finocchiaro attended a commemoration of the Bombing of Darwin, she was the only speaking dignitary of eight who did not perform the Aboriginal Acknowledgement of Country.

The Acknowledgement is a verbal recognition of historical land ownership by Aboriginal groups, it has become commonplace and is spoken before speeches by politicians, or the heads of businesses, community groups, and universities.