Minggu, 29 Juni 2014

Indigenous dance performance marks Australian Navy Chief handover (ABC)

View Comments Indigenous troupe perform at Australian Navy Chief Ray Griggs handover ceremony.ABC Indigenous troupe perform at Australian Navy Chief Ray Griggs handover ceremony.

A performance troupe made up of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander members of the Navy is helping Indigenous sailors maintain traditional practices when they are far away from home.

The outgoing Chief of Navy, Vice-Admiral Ray Griggs, named the troupe Bungaree, after a 19th century Aboriginal performer who circumnavigated Australia with explorer Mathew Flinders.

The dancers performed at his handover ceremony today, as he transferred command of the Navy to his successor VADM Tim Barrett.

Staying close together far away from home

For young Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander men and women who join the Navy, their career usually takes them far away from their tight-knit home communities.

Seaman Leroy Ghee grew up on Murray Island in the Torres Strait.

"Being away from home we drift away from these things," he said.

"We don't want that and we don't want to be seen doing that.

"[Performing shows] we don't forget we still remember everything."

Outgoing Chief of Navy calls for boost in Indigenous employment

The outgoing Chief of Navy has championed Indigenous outreach during his time at the helm, along with a number of programs aimed at fostering diversity.

"There's a very simple reason that we've done all this and it's not political correctness," Vice Admiral Griggs said in an address at his handover ceremony.

"It's so we can enhance the capability of the Navy by continuing to build a culture that includes, not a culture that excludes."

There are now targeted recruitment programs that seek to boost Indigenous employment in the Royal Australian Navy (RAN).

Chief Petty Officer Ray Rosendale is the RAN's strategic advisor on Indigenous cultural affairs, and a dancer in the Bungaree troupe.

He said initiatives like Bungaree also show Indigenous communities that the Navy respects their cultures.

"What I can show the Indigenous community is that Navy is willing to take that step to understand us," he said.

"People will talk to us about issues, people will trust their kids to us on development camps.

"It's not something that's easy to do and as a government arm, you walk into a community and you're not sure you're going to get that response. But it's something we've begun to see happening."

New traditions and old customs

Able Seaman Boatswain's Mate Alan Patterson hails from the community of Yarrabah near Cairns in Queensland.

He joined the Navy after seeing advertisements on television.

He was the first in his family to join up, but has several sisters and brothers who want to follow in his footsteps.

"I come from a small community up north and we're full-on in our tradition," he said.

"Everyone back home, my families and friends, they're really happy to see we're showcasing our Indigenous heritage in the Defence Force."

The dancers draw from their own individual traditions when they perform.

"We'll wear our camouflage and boots and we'll paint up," Chief Petty Officer Rosendale said.

"Some of the markings have been given to us by elders."

The Navy is already steeped in traditions, symbolism and ceremonies of its own.

By incorporating the much older cultural traditions of some of its members, the RAN is showing that the armed forces can embrace and adapt to different cultures.

It is a strategy that could pay off for the Navy in the public sphere as well as inside the ranks.


http://au.news.yahoo.com/a/-/latest/24351559/indigenous-dance-performance-marks-australian-navy-chief-handover/

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