Office For Justice, Ecology and Peace

1983: Death of John Pat in Roebourne Prison WA, prompting the Royal Commission into Aboriginal Deaths in Custody
2021-09-28 00:00 - 23:59 (Australia/Sydney)
Noel Olive explains in the Australian Dictionary of Biography:

“On 28 September 1983 several members of the Roebourne police force attended a meeting of the Western Australian Police Union of Workers at Karratha. They adjourned to the local golf club for drinks, and then proceeded to the Top Bar of the Victoria Hotel at Roebourne. A brawl broke out between the off-duty police officers and a group of Aborigines, including Pat, a 16 year old Aboriginal boy who died of head injuries alleged to have been caused in a disturbance between Aboriginal people and Police… The circumstances of Pat’s death were investigated by the Royal Commission into Aboriginal Deaths in Custody, established in 1987… Pat’s death became for Aboriginal people a symbol of injustice and oppression. The Aboriginal poet, Jack Davis, wrote John Pat (1988). The John Pat Memorial Day for Deaths in Custody is observed each year with a ceremony at the old Fremantle Prison.” Noel Olive, “Pat, John Peter (1966-1983)”, in Australian Dictionary of Biography

1869: Birth of Mahatma Gandhi
2021-10-02 00:00 - 23:59
“Gandhi constantly highlighted the gap between what we do, and what we are capable of doing. On this International Day, I urge each and every one of us to do everything in our power to bridge this divide as we strive to build a better future for all.” UN Secretary-General António Guterres

1962: Opening Session of Second Vatican Council
2021-10-11 00:00 - 23:59

1997: First Sea of Hands, Canberra
2021-10-12 00:00 - 23:59
The first Sea of Hands was held on the 12 October 1997, in front of Parliament House, Canberra. Hands in the colors of the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander flags were signed by people to show their support for reconciliation and native title. At the time it was the largest public art installation in Australia.

The Sea of Hands movement has continued for over twenty years. You can book a Sea of Hands installation through ANTaR’s Hands Up! program.

2001: Sinking of refugee boat SIEV X
2021-10-19 00:00 - 23:59
On 19 October 2001, 353 people, mostly women and children, drowned on the high seas trying to reach Australia in a small, dilapidated, grossly overloaded fishing boat that would later come to be known as Suspected Illegal Entry Vessel (SIEV) X. There were 45 who survived the sinking, of whom seven eventually settled in Australia. SIEVX was the first major drowning incident involving asylum seekers travelling to Australia by boat.

Eureka Street

1985: Return of Uluru to the traditional owners, the Anangu people
2021-10-26 00:00 - 23:59
On 26 October 1985 the Governor General of Australia, Sir Ninian Stephen, handed over title for the Uluru-Kata Tjuta National Park to the Traditional Owners of the area – the Anangu.

The hand over and lease back ceremony was held in the Mutitjulu community near the base of Uluru. It was a night of singing and dancing for the Traditional Owners and other Aboriginal people. The celebrations marked a long struggle for Anangu to be recognised as the rightful custodians of Uluru, Kata Tjuta and the surrounding land.

AIATSIS Handback

2019: Ban on climbing Uluru comes into force
2021-10-26 00:00 - 23:59
On this day the Uluru-Kata Tjuta National Park Board of Management decision to close the climb to the top of Uluru came into force. The Board is made up of a majority of traditional owners of the park. This date was chosen as it was the date in 1985 when the park was handed back to the Anangu people.

1834: Battle of Pinjara, WA
2021-10-28 00:00 - 23:59
One hundred years after the Battle of Pinjarra, someone writing under the nome de plume ‘Cygney’ recounted the story in The West Australian newspaper. What do you make of this 1934 account of the battle?

1995: Execution of nine Nigerian environmentalists and human rights activists
2021-11-10 00:00 - 23:59
On this day in 1995, writer and human rights activist, Ken Saro-Wiwa was executed in Nigeria despite worldwide pleas for clemency. The country’s military rulers ordered the execution of Mr Saro-Wiwa and eight other dissidents.

BBC On This Day

1975: Dismissal of the Whitlam Government
2021-11-11 00:00 - 23:59
“On 11 November 1975, after a series of dramatic events including a 1974 double dissolution and a budgetary supply crisis, the Gough Whitlam-led federal Labor government became the first (and only) government in Australian history to be dismissed by the Governor-General. While this constitutional crisis has overshadowed the Whitlam years, the administration left a lasting legacy of social and political reform.” National Museum Australia

For reflection

Which social and political reforms of the Whitlam era are you most grateful for?

What social and Political reforms do you think are needed today?

How might we answer Pope Francis’ call in Fratelli Tutti (On Fraternity and Social Friendship) for a ‘better kind of politics’?

1991: Dili Massacre, Timor-Leste: more than 271 people killed
2021-11-12 00:00 - 23:59
On November 12, 1991, 271 unarmed and peaceful protesters were massacred by Indonesian troops at Santa Cruz Cemetery in Dili, the capital of Timor Leste. 250 people are still listed as missing. Timorese protesters attended Mass at Motael Church on the morning of the massacre to honour and remember Sebastião Gomes, a fellow protester, who had been killed by the Indonesian military on October 28. The protesters then walked two kilometres in procession to Santa Cruz Cemetery where they were met by an unprovoked assault by automatic weapons. Those who were not killed in the initial attack were bayonetted. People who fled to nearby houses for shelter were hunted down and murdered. In the following days, Indonesian security forces arrested suspected protesters, and many were tried and imprisoned. Others were tortured and killed.

This horrific episode in the history of Timor Leste was minimised at first by some governments around the world, including the Australian government. Indonesian government officials alleged that the deaths in Dili were the result of isolated actions from rogue elements within the Indonesian military, capping the death toll at 19. However, a video record of the massacre taken by British journalist Max Stahl was smuggled out to the BBC. The truth of the ongoing and sanctioned violence against the Timorese people by the Indonesian government and military could no longer be denied.

The Timorese people had suffered violent oppression since the Indonesian invasion in 1975, and thousands of Timorese has been killed. Xanana Gusmão proved to be an effective and galvanizing resistance leader against the Indonesian occupying force, and the Santa Cruz Massacre turned the eyes of the world on Timor Leste. The UN Special Rapporteur on Torture was in Dili on November 11, 1991. Evidence of the massacre, and the brave witness of survivors of torture over many years, led to Timor Leste becoming an independent nation in 2002. Gusmão became the first President of the Democratic Republic of East Timor (Timor Leste).

Prayer on the 30th Anniversary of the Santa Cruz Massacre

by Sr Susan Connelly RSJ

Ever-living God, refuge of the oppressed and comforter of the sorrowing, we trust in your infinite mercy and care.

Today we remember the young Timorese who died for freedom in the Santa Cruz cemetery thirty years ago.

We pray for them, their families, and for all the Timorese people.

We ask you, O God, for the wisdom and courage to follow the way of Jesus your Son, to work for the peace that comes from your justice, and to see you in all whom we meet.

We ask this in the name of Jesus, who died and rose again, and who lives with you for ever and ever,

Amen

Music:

Plaint over Dili by Christopher Willcock SJ

Listen to the music here

This instrumental music was written as a lament response to the violence suffered by the people of Timor Leste at the Santa Cruz Massacre in 1991, and from 1975. It is a meditation of 9 minutes that acknowledges the cry of the oppressed, and the hope for freedom and redemption even amidst grief and loss.

Image:

Santa Cruz Tragedy Monument, Santa Cruz Cemetery, Dili, Timor Leste.

This monument is usually covered in flowers, especially on November 12 each year.

For more information:

Remembering Santa Cruz:

Remembering-Santa-Cruz-Download

A History of the Conflict:

History-of-the-ConflictDownload

1989: Murder of six Jesuit priests and two co-workers in El Salvador
2021-11-16 00:00 - 23:59
In the early hours on 16 November 1989, six Jesuit priests, a cook and her 16-year-old daughter were shot and killed at the Pastoral Centre of José Simeón Cañas Central American University (UCA) in San Salvador. The victims were Fathers Ignacio Ellacuría, Rector of the University; Ignacio Martín-Baró, Vice-Rector; Segundo Montes, Director of the Human Rights Institute; Amando López, Joaquín López y López and Juan Ramón Moreno, all teachers at UCA; and Julia Elba Ramos and her daughter, Celina Mariceth Ramos. The priests publicly opposed U.S. support of the Salvadoran armed forces, and pleaded for peaceful dialogue between the right and the left. They polled poor citizens and kept detailed records of refugees fleeing the country.

Report of the UN Truth Commission on El Salvador pages 45-47

1964: Passage of National Service Act by Australian Parliament
2021-11-24 00:00 - 23:59
An Act to amend the National Service Act 1951-1957. The National Service Act 1964, was an Australian federal law, passed on 24 November 1964, which required 20-year-old males to serve in the Army for a period of twenty-four months of continuous service (reduced to eighteen months in 1971) followed by three years in the Reserve. Date of Assent: 24 November 1964. Date of Repeal: 30 June 1992. Repealed by: Defence Legislation Amendment Act 1992.

Australian Parliament Legislation

For reflection

What do you know about the history of national service, conscription and conscientious objection in Australia?

How does national service relate to Church teaching about war and nonviolence?

1980: Death of Dorothy Day, Founder of the Catholic Worker Movement
2021-11-29 00:00 - 23:59
Dorothy Day was a journalist and social activist who cofounded the Catholic Worker Movement with Peter Maurin. Her approach to social issues combined direct service of the poor, prayer, advocacy and civil disobedience.

People began hailing Dorothy a saint shortly after her death in 1980. The cause for her canonisation is underway and in 2012 she was recognised as a Servant of God.

You can read more about Dorothy’s life and spirituality here.

1971: Synod of Bishops' Statement "Justice in the World"
2021-11-30 00:00 - 23:59
The Post Synodal Statement of the 1971 Synod of Bishops contains some of the most quoted words in the body of modern Catholic Social Teaching:

“Action on behalf of justice and participation in the transformation of the world fully appear to us as a constitutive dimension of the preaching of the Gospel, or, in other words, of the Church’s mission for the redemption of the human race and its liberation from every oppressive situation.” Synod of Bishops, Justice in the World, Introduction,1971.

Action

Remember or research what the world was like in 1971. What were the most important messages of Justice in the World at that time, and what does it say to us today?

Read this introduction to Justice in the World. Identify and reflect on what struck you or surprised you.

1961: First raising of the Morning Star flag, West Papua
2021-12-01 00:00 - 23:59
On this day in 1961 the West Papuan national flag, the Morning Star was first raised.

The flag was raised by West Papuan legislators who had been promised independence by then-colonial ruler, the Netherlands.

Although the Netherlands’ commitment did not come to fruition, the flag prepared for an independent West Papua continues to be a symbol of the desire for self-determination and independence for the West Papuan people.

2021 marks the 60th anniversary of the first flag raising.

In 1962 Indonesia invaded West Papua, an act later recognised by the United Nations General Assembly in 1969. Since then, the raising of the Morning Star flag has been treated as a criminal offense. It is a symbol of the ongoing struggle for West Papuan independence.

On this day each year marches, prayer services and flag raising ceremonies are held to commemorate the first raising of the West Papuan national flag, the Bintang Kejora or Morning Star.

This year there are concerns over violence in the area.

Peter Anrdt, Executive Officer of the Catholic Justice and Peace Commission of the Archdiocese of Brisbane spoke to ABC Radio National News in early November.

Listen to his interview

Action

Find out more about the history of West Papua here.

Visit the website of the Pacific Conference of Churches to find out about their latest actions in solidarity with the people of West Papua.

And visit the International Coalition for Papua (ICP) which has a wealth of resources on human rights in West Papua: https://www.humanrightspapua.org/

Find out more at West Papua Flag Day

1976: Appointment of Sir Douglas Nicholls as Governor of South Australia, first Aboriginal person to hold vice-regal office
2021-12-01 00:00 - 23:59
“A trailblazer who won hearts around the nation, the achievements of Sir Douglas Nicholls KCVO OBE JP are many and varied, taking in the fields of sport, politics and social justice. He broke new ground — as the first Indigenous Australian to receive a knighthood in 1972, and the first to be appointed to vice-regal office, when he became Governor of South Australia in 1976.” Aboriginal Victoria, Sir Douglas Nicholls KCVO OBE JP: A Trailblazer Who Won Hearts Around the Nation

2000: 350,000 people walk for reconciliation in Melbourne and Perth
2021-12-02 00:00 - 23:59
The Melbourne walk, starting at Flinders Street Station and finishing at King’s Domain gardens, drew as many as 300,000 people.

The bridge walk and similar events across Australia were enormously important in showing that public sentiment was moving towards support for more concrete steps in the reconciliation process. Though the event was organised by Aboriginal people those taking part were from all sections of the Australian community.

Importantly, the walks were not a protest but a peaceful demonstration that reflected a shift in the public mood and a growing awareness of the importance of reconciliation and a need for a national apology.

Walk for reconciliation, National Museum Australia

For reflection

Did you, or someone you know, participate in a walk for reconciliation? How did you / they feel that day? And how do you / they feel about action for reconciliation now?

Tewnty years later, how might we take up and support the Uluru Statement from the Heart?

2000: Council for Aboriginal Reconciliation Final Report presented
2021-12-04 00:00 - 23:59
At the end of the year 2000, the Council for Aboriginal Reconciliation handed its final report to the national Parliament at a ceremonial event at Parliament House in Canberra. This letter contained in the full report provides an overview of the decade-long work of the Council and a way forward for the nation to achieve reconciliation.

Read the full report at the Australian Legal Information Institute.

Saint Nicholas (Santa Claus)
2021-12-06 00:00 - 23:59
Children all over the world know him and love him. In Germany, he’s Kriss Kringle. In France, he’s Pere Noel. British children call him Father Christmas. Of course, you know him as Santa Claus.

He’s got another name – it’s an ancient one that goes back hundreds of years. It’s one of the very first names people called him: St. Nicholas. St. Nicholas was the bishop of Myra which is in the country we now call Turkey. Nicholas was loved for one reason. He loved. He loved God and God’s people so much that he would do anything for them.

St. Nicholas showed his gratitude for God’s gifts by giving to others. What gifts can your family share with those in need?

Source: Loyola Press.

1965: Vatican II Pastoral Constitution Gaudium et Spes ('Joys and Hopes')
2021-12-07 00:00 - 23:59
Second Vatican Council, Gaudium et Spes, December 7, 1965

The Pastoral Constitution on the Church in the Modern World

The joys and the hopes, the griefs and the anxieties of the people of this age, especially those who are poor or in any way afflicted, these are the joys and hopes, the griefs and anxieties of the followers of Christ. Gaudium et Spes, 1.

The Pastoral Constitution on the Church in the Modern World Gaudium et Spes was promulgated by Pope Paul VI on 7 December 1965. Read an introduction to Gaudium et Spes here.

This important document emphasised a theology of Christian mission, describing the church as “leaven in the world” (Gaudium et Spes, 40). The church was called to play an active part in shaping the wider world, offering the gift of Christ in dialogue with all people in a collaborative model. All Christians, by virtue of their baptism, were invited and empowered to proclaim the Gospel by their lives and their living. This call to holiness was not reserved only for some but open to all, with the strong formation of Christian conscience considered a primary consideration and need.

Gaudium et Spes calls Christians to an integrated life that sees the match of word and deed in their dealings in both public and private spheres. The document stands against a form of religion that creates any artificial split between worship and mission. It names the best way to fulfil the obligations of justice and love as people contributing to the common good; this leads to better living conditions for all people, especially those most in need (Gaudium et Spes 25, 30, 43, 75). The dignity and value of the human person is central (26, 27).

On the other hand, the right of having a share of earthly goods sufficient for oneself and one’s family belongs to everyone. The Fathers and Doctors of the Church held this opinion, teaching that all are obliged to come to the relief of the poor and to do so not merely out of their superfluous goods. If one is in extreme necessity, they have the right to procure for themselves what they need out of the riches of others. Since there are so many people prostrate with hunger in the world, this sacred council urges all, both individuals and governments, to remember the aphorism of the Fathers, “Feed the person dying of hunger, because if you have not fed them, you have killed them,” and really to share and employ their earthly goods, according to the ability of each, especially by supporting individuals or peoples with the aid by which they may be able to help and develop themselves. Gaudium et Spes, 69

Image: Jonathon Peterssen via Pexels.com

1992: Redfern Speech by Prime Minister Paul Keating
2021-12-10 00:00 - 23:59
“It begins, I think with that act of recognition. Recognition that it was we who did the dispossessing. We took the traditional lands and smashed the traditional way of life. We brought the diseases. The alcohol. We committed the murders. We took the children from their mothers. We practised discrimination and exclusion. It was our ignorance and our prejudice.” – Former Prime Minister Paul Keating, Redfern Speech, 1992

On 10 December 1992, Prime Minister Paul Keating delivered a speech to the large crowd gathered in Redfern Park for the launch of the International Year of the World’s Indigenous Peoples. It was a historic moment for Australia. In his speech, Keating explicitly acknowledged the experiences of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples in Australia. It was the first time a prime minister spoke about the dispossession, violence and prejudice perpetrated against Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples.

Read Paul Keating’s Speech Transcript via ANTAR’s website.

1948: Adoption of United Nations Declaration of Human Rights
2021-12-10 00:00 - 23:59
Celebrate the adoption of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights by reading a simplified version [PDF ] or the illustrated booklet of the Declaration, or watching the Declaration in sign languages.

1831: Founding of Sisters of Mercy by Catherine McAuley
2021-12-12 00:00 - 23:59
Catherine McAuley was born in Dublin, Ireland, in 1778. In 1824 she used her inheritance from an Irish couple she had served for twenty years to build a large House of Mercy where she and other lay women would shelter homeless women, reach out to the sick and dying and educate poor girls. The House on Baggot Street opened in 1827. To give these efforts greater stability, Catherine and her co-workers founded a new religious congregation. On 12 December 1831, she and two others professed their vows as the first Sisters of Mercy. Before her death on 11 November 1841, Catherine founded convents and works of mercy throughout Ireland and England.

Source: Mercy International Association

1993: Passage of Native Title Bill by the Australian Senate
2021-12-21 00:00 - 23:59
The Native Title Act 1993 (Cth) (NTA) is a law passed by the Australian Parliament that recognises the rights and interests of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people in land and waters according to their traditional laws and customs. It established a process for claiming and recognising native title lands and waters in Australia. The NTA aims to balance Indigenous and non-Indigenous peoples’ rights to land, and sets out how native title rights and interests fit within Australian law.

1901: Enactment of Immigration Restriction Act (White Australian Policy)
2021-12-23 00:00 - 23:59
At the end of the 19th century, Australian colonies had concerns about who was migrating to Australia. With a rise in the number of migrants from China and the Pacific, many colonies passed tough immigration legislation. The Immigration Restriction Act was one of the first Commonwealth laws passed after Federation. It was based on the existing laws of the colonies. The aim of the law was to limit non-white (particularly Asian) immigration to Australia, to help keep Australia ‘British’. The ‘White Australia Policy’ was not fully removed until 1972.

1996: Wik High Court decision
2021-12-23 00:00 - 23:59
In The Wik Peoples v The State of Queensland & Ors; The Thayorre People v The State of Queensland & Ors [1996] HCA 40 (‘Wik’), the High Court held that native title rights could coexist on land held by pastoral leaseholders. The High Court decided that:

– a pastoral lease does not necessarily confer rights of exclusive possession on the pastoralist– the rights and obligations of the pastoralist depend on the terms of the lease and the law under which it was granted; – the mere grant of a pastoral lease does not necessarily extinguish any remaining native title rights– if there is any inconsistency between the rights of the native title holders and the rights of the pastoralist, the rights of the native title holders must yield.

1987: Pope John Paul II's encyclical Sollicitudo Rei Socialis ('On Social Concerns')
2021-12-30 00:00 - 23:59
“Pope John Paul II’s 1987 social encyclical Sollicitudo rei Socialis marks the twentieth anniversary of Populorum Progressio. Sollicitudo rei Socialis is also known by the English title On Social Concerns. It was the first major Catholic Social Teaching document to mark the anniversary of a social encyclical other than Rerum Novarum.” Source: Social Spirituality

Read an introduction to Sollicitudo rei Socialis

Read full text of Sollicitudo Rei Socialis

1901 Foundation of the Commonwealth of Australia
2022-01-01 00:00 - 23:59

1977 First loans offered by Grameen Bank
2022-01-03 00:00 - 23:59
The Grameen Bank was founded by Professor Muhammad Yunus in Bangladesh. In 2006 he won a Nobel Peace Prize for this work.

The Grameen Bank, known as the ‘bank for the poor’, reversed conventional banking practice by removing the need for collateral. It created a banking system based on mutual trust, accountability, participation and creativity. Yunus reasons that credit is a cost effective weapon to fight poverty and it serves as a catalyst in the over all development of socio-economic conditions of the poor. Find out more here.
