AUSTRALIA’S NATIONAL day celebrations were marred yesterday when prime minister Julia Gillard had to be rescued by riot police from a group of about 200 angry protesters.
Ms Gillard and opposition leader Tony Abbott were attending an awards ceremony for emergency service volunteers in the capital, Canberra, when it was interrupted by people who had been nearby celebrating the 40th anniversary of an encampment known as the Aboriginal tent “embassy”.
Australia Day commemorates the arrival of the first fleet into Sydney Cove on January 26th, 1788. Many Aboriginals call it “invasion day”, and those at the tent protest were angered by remarks made by Mr Abbott yesterday morning in which he said it was time to consider removing them.
At least 50 police, including the riot squad, were called to the restaurant Ms Gillard and Mr Abbott were in as protesters banged on its glass sides chanting “shame” and “racist”. When reinforcements arrived, the politicians were rushed from the function under police protection.
Ms Gillard stumbled, tripped and lost a shoe as she was pulled away from the protesters by security. Some protesters then chased her car, banging on the roof and bonnet. Ms Gillard later hosted a function for ambassadors at her official residence, The Lodge.
“Oh, I’m fine, I’m fine,” she said when asked about the riot. “The only thing that really kind of angers me about it is that it disrupted such a wonderful event for great people, emergency services medals . . . I am made of pretty tough stuff and the police did a great job.”
While surrounded in the restaurant, television cameras recorded Ms Gillard expressing concern for the opposition leader. “Okay, what about Mr Abbott? Where have you got him? We’d better help him through too, hadn’t we?” she said to her security officer.
On the tent embassy’s Facebook page last night there was a picture of Ms Gillard losing her shoe with the caption: “What is losing a shoe compared to losing an entire continent?”
Some Aboriginal protesters accuse Ms Gillard of being a coward.
“The opposition leader talks about ripping the tent embassy off us. The other leader fails to even come out and speak to us as Aboriginal people. She runs like a coward, she runs,” said activist Sean Gordon.
Elsewhere, actor Geoffrey Rush was named Australian of the Year for his long career on stage and screen and his commitment to the arts. Mr Rush won the best actor Oscar for his role as David Helfgott in the 1996 film Shine.
Australia Day was also marked by citizenship ceremonies in towns and cities around the country. Hundreds of Irish people became Australian citizens. One of those was Mark Molumby, who lives in Camden, a suburbs of Sydney. “The lifestyle and the weather here is a big plus,” he told the Camden Advertiser newspaper. “When people ask me where I’m from, I say I’m Australian. Now I’ll be able to show them the passport.”