Sugar Slaves

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On the 25th of August 1994, the Commonwealth Government officially recognised descendants of Australia’s blackbirding trade as a “Distinct Cultural Group”.

The Salvation Army‘s Freedom Partnership – to End Modern Slavery, and the Australian South Sea Islanders Port Jackson (ASSIPJ) invite you to join us as we remember an important period of history unknown by many Australians today about the practice of blackbirding which is akin to the slavery of some 62,000 Melanesian labourers taken from 80 Pacific islands mainly within Vanuatu and Solomon Islands.

We will be screening the documentary “Sugar Slaves” and hosting conversations around the impacts on Australian descendants of the trade in creating a greater understanding of our community integration via coastal, mainland workstations and plantations firstly to NSW in 1847 (by Benjamin Boyd), with an influx to Queensland between 1863-1908.

Discussions will be joined by Emeritus Professor Clive Moore (UQ), founding board members of ASSIPJ – Emelda Davis (president) and Shireen Malamoo. Also sharing in conversation will be Pearl Wymarra.

Light refreshment will be served with an ambience of Tanna Island music in the lead up to discussions around our shared history.

Date: Thursday 25 August
Time: 6:00 pm
Location: Salvation Army HQ
261-265 Chalmers St, Redfern

Two day workshop for Australian South Sea Islander youth

We’re excited to announce a two day workshop for Australian South Sea Islander youth designed to celebrate our distinct cultural identity and build stronger relationships within the community will be coming to Western Sydney and Tweed Heads later this year.

B L A C K – Bold Leadership Awareness Culture Knowledge has been funded by Youth Opportunities – NSW Multicultural. This will be a first for the ASSI community on the Tweed and Western Sydney where a state funded workshop of this enormity has been supported through self determination.

Talented artist Wayne Strong or “Strongi” (nee Togo) is a proud Bundjalung-ASSI man comes from an extremely talented and artistic family who are renowned for taking to a sketch pad in creating the most surreal images through free style drawing.

Wayne says “I kept the design simplistic and it emanates identity for our people layered with text and kanaks. The colours are deliberate in our struggles and imagery is remembering our bold blackistory.”

NSW State body Australian South Sea Islanders (Port Jackson) will be the facilitators of the workshop. Dates are yet to be advised, however the event is planned for 22nd & 23rd October in WESTERN SYDNEY, followed by TWEED HEADS in November 2016 (dates tbc). Keep an eye out for more information soon.

Recognising youth collaborators to date: Zachary Wone, Shola Diop, Desiree Leha, Tom Clarke, Louise Togo, Emily Corowa, Ming Darcy, Dianna Robbinson who will be drawing on the young leaders of the region to discuss, demonstrate and share in the essence of leadership.

Mentors from across the state are banding together to make this workshop a great success including: Hannah Hamilton, Kelly Gonda, Varr Smallwood, Telisha Togo, Alana Togo, Brendan Roberts, Marija.Vranic.

The work is supported by an array of young skilled and talented people on the B L A C K network such as Jahnesta Noter, Maddy Togo, Josh Apanui, Pearl Corowa, Nathan Hart, Tayla Hortle, Dylan Doherty, PJ Smallwood, Wayne Solomon, Graham Smallwood.

We welcome and appreciate your input at any time.

Admission Impossible

Admission Impossible is the true story of the behind-the-scenes political forces and the propaganda campaigns that attempted to populate Australia with “pure white” migrants.

Between 1865 – 1900 Pacific Islanders were kidnapped from their Island homes and brought to Australia for use as slave labour. They were rounded up and taken off to “they knew not where” in sailing ships.

The cruelty and savagery they experienced, at the hands of European recruiters, was appalling but after the first ones returned bringing back guns and steel tools, Islander life was transformed.

After that, a steady stream of men were sent over, not necessarily by choice, they were sent by the elders to bring these things back. So what had been a kidnapping service became a routine trade in human cargo.

Up until that period of time [c. 1890], they thought that only black men could do that hard manual outdoor labour; and the white man he had to work in the shade because his lily-white skin would get sunburnt.

Once they got to Queensland, as many as one third of them died. They worked from dawn, long before dawn in fact, until night with no food, little rest. They were beasts of burden. They were sold virtually on the dock, by the head, as commodities.

Pacific Islander ‘Kanakas’ are brought to Queensland as ‘a routine trade in human cargo’ to harvest cane. Reaction against them is instrumental in the formation of the White Australia Policy, which Phillip Adams discusses.

For much of the 20th century, successive Australian governments pursued a policy of deporting and barring entry to any race of people they considered undesirable, this was known as the White Australia policy.

In 1901 The Commonwealth of Australia becomes a self-governing member of the British Empire and the Immigration Restriction Act passed in Federal Parliament introduces a ‘dictation test’ with the prime purpose of excluding non-European migrants while the Pacific Islanders Labourers Act allowed for deportation of Pacific Islanders.

1903 Naturalisation Act excludes Asians and non-Europeans from the right to apply for naturalisation.

1904 Saw the deportation of Pacific Islanders from Queensland and the assisted immigration of Britons revived.

Pearls of the Pacific

Mele and Phyllis, pearls of the Pacific

Mele Lerch & Phyllis Zinghini – Pearls of the Pacific Executives. These fabulous two have invited ASSIPJ to come and share with young womens groups that are facing hardship in our Pacific Island communities.

Inspiration through self determination is what we all thrive on when celebrating our history, heritage and life choices. Looking forward to connecting with our Pacific Pearls.

Solomon Islands independence 2016

An afternoon with Samoa High Commissioner - Solomon Islands independence 2016

The Oakes Estate is home to Sir Trevor Garland who serves the Australian government as honorary consul for the Solomon Islands Consulate, which facilitates relations between the people of the Solomon Islands and Australia.

Watch:

A great end to the afternoon with Samoa High Commissioner – Solomon Islands independence 2016

FOUR LITTLE LETTERS on Question 18 – ASSI.

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A message from TWEED SOUTH SEA ISLANDER ASSOCIATION.PLEASE SHARE THIS FAR AND WIDE WITH FAMILY AND FRIENDS.

During the week, members of the board and committee met with David Keys, Manager of the 2016 Census, Targeted Strategies of the Australian Bureau of Statistics and Lynette Zito, District Manager for the ABS.

What we were told is that in our last Census only nine (9) people in Lismore, fourty nine (49) in Tweed and seven (7) people in Chinderah identified their heritage as ASSI. We were, and still are, completely shocked! The numbers recorded Australia wide are less than 2000!

What we learnt is that the ABS do not give out your information to any other government organisation. They are bound to secrecy by the Census Act and can be prosecuted if this information is revealed. So please don’t worry about who your data is shared with because the answer is no one!

Everyone, including other government agencies, can only access general numbers not specifics.

What we need is for people to identify their heritage in Question 18 as “ASSI,” “Australian South Sea Island,” “South Sea Islander” (all of these will be converted to Australian South Sea Islander).

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If you have dual heritage please also identify your Aboriginal or Torres Strait heritage on Question 7 – but don’t forget that no matter what you fill in on the whole form, please, please, please fill in Question 18 with your heritage at “ASSI.”

Those four little letters will give the government a better idea of how many of us there are and in turn, will help us on our fight to receiving assistance, support, grants, scholarships, apprenticeships.

Without those four little letters, the government will have no idea that we exist in the numbers that we do and therefore we will not get the assistance we need!

Please get this message out there to all of your family and friends. No matter what else you fill in on this form get those four little letters – ASSI, written down for Question 18.

Tell the government that the approximately 8000 Islanders that stayed after the 1901 deportation that our numbers have swelled to probably 50 000 – 80 000 (conservative guesstimate).

Honour our heritage and ancestors and make this government see our numbers and be held accountable for its actions – fill in Question 18 on Census night, August 9th, with those four little letters – ASSI.

Once it’s been established that we exist in huge numbers, we can then lobby the government to put us in Question 7 before the next Census so it is just a mark that you put in on the same question where you acknowledge your Aboriginal or Torres Strait Islander heritage.

FOUR LITTLE LETTERS on QUESTION 18 – ASSI.

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