“A neo-Nazi disrupting Anzac Day is abhorrent, un-Australian, and disgraceful. The people responsible must face the full force of the law.”
Aunty Joy Murphy, a Wurundjeri elder who has long performed the Welcome to Country at Melbourne events, said heckling at the shrine on Friday would not deter her. If anything, she is more defiant.
Aunty Joy Murphy performs a Welcome to Country ceremony at the Australian Open in January 2025.Credit: Getty Images
“It’d take more than that for me not to do the welcome,” she said. “It makes me want to hold my head up higher than ever. We know what it’s like to be insulted, and we have to stand strong and be brave. We’re proud to be who we are.”
Aunty Joy said the ceremony was particularly important on Anzac Day to recognise Indigenous soldiers like her father, Jarlo Wandoon, who fought for Australia.
As The Age reported in 2003, Wandoon initially tried to enlist for World War I as an Aboriginal Australian but was rejected. Family legend has it that he was accepted as an African American.
He was commemorated on the Healesville RSL honour roll as James Wandin.
“I don’t think people should disrespect anything that happens on Anzac Day,” Aunty Joy said.
The men at the shrine on Friday claimed to be protesting against the Welcome to Country ceremonies on a day they said should be dedicated to Australian war veterans.
Indigenous soldiers have served in every conflict involving Australian defence contingents since 1901, according to the Australian War Memorial, including at least 70 who fought at Gallipoli.
“Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people have a long and proud history of serving and sacrifice for this country,” said the Bunurong Land Council in a statement following the incident.
“We commend Uncle Mark Brown for his strength and determination. We thank the Prime Minister Anthony Albanese and allies for their calls of support.
“The actions of a few this morning are abhorrent and do not deserve to take away any more from today.”
Hours later, a heckler shouted obscenities during a Welcome to Country at Perth’s dawn service in Kings Park.
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Jeers rang out as Noongar elder and former soldier Di Ryder took to the podium for the traditional welcome. Crowd members quickly hushed the heckler.
At the shrine in Melbourne, John Selleck said he had participated in Anzac Day commemorations for decades and was disappointed the event had been interrupted.
“It’s not the place for that. It’s a place for remembrance. You should leave all that political stuff behind,” the CFA lieutenant said. “We’re here to pay our respects.”
Selleck said it was an important occasion for his family: his son served in the navy, his daughter was an air force cadet, and he marched representing his grandfather’s unit.
Veteran and former longtime Fitzroy AFL player Uncle Ricky Morris said it was a disappointing act on what was meant to be a day of respect for the entire community.
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“Today is unique being Anzac Day … where a lot of our ancestors and descendants fought for our country, and when they came back home from service, they were treated differently.”
“[The people who disrupted Friday’s Welcome to Country] need to go back and have a good hard look at themselves, because it’s not OK, and it’s very disrespectful, not only for my people, Aboriginal people, but also many other of parts of the Australian community that have served this country.”
The Anzac Day disruptions are the latest in a series of stunts by far-right agitators during the federal election campaign.
Defence Minister Richard Marles said Australians should focus on the sacrifices of Anzac soldiers instead of the “deplorable” actions of an alleged neo-Nazi.
“What we saw was obviously terrible but in a sense I don’t want to give that any more time than it deserves because this is a day to acknowledge those who have worn our nation’s uniform … and of course, the 103,000 Australians throughout our history who have made the ultimate sacrifice,” Marles said on Nine’s Today.
Premier Jacinta Allan said the booing dishonoured the men and women who fought for Australia.Credit: Simon Schluter
RSL Victoria president Robert Webster condemned the behaviour and said the crowd’s support for the speakers far outweighed the small minority of hecklers.
“The actions of a handful were completely disrespectful to the Aboriginal community, veterans, and the spirit of Anzac Day. In response, the spontaneous applause from the 50,000-strong crowd attending the service drowned out those who disrupted, and showed the respect befitting of the occasion,” he said in a statement.
Co-chairs of the First Peoples’ Assembly of Victoria, Rueben Berg and Ngarra Murray, reiterated the service of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people.
“We stand in solidarity with Bunurong elder, Uncle Mark Brown, and acknowledge his strength and resolve during the disruption,” they said in a statement.
Last year, Hersant became the first person in Victoria to be convicted for performing the Nazi salute. Local neo-Nazis have been documented recruiting aggressively among young men and boys in Australia.
With Nick Newling and Jesinta Burton
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