Significant Aspect of the Cultural Heritage of Australia - Essay Example

Name: Tutor: Title: Significant aspect of the Cultural Heritage of Australia The Torres Strait Island  Course: Date: The Torres Strait Island  Introduction Traders and immigrants in Australia influence the ancient Australia and its culture to a large extent. Australians hold on to their culture of about 30,000 years ago through the ice age to the time of dry land and in their plans for the future. Writings and stories about the Australian culture is in different archaeological sites and museums. Australians heritage, animals and natural plants and buildings are a treasure that they protect by enacting laws to govern their usage and accessibility. Stefano & Davis (2012) argue that Australia as a country values the environment, and the habitants, plants and animals both wild and domestic. The cultural primeval heritage is the most treasured aspect of the Australians traditions. Keeping records of the activities, events and Physical evidences like drawings and writings. The items are informed of documents they keep in archives and libraries, works of art in museums, events of the past and also historical places. This paper critically discusses the significance of the Torres Strait Island as an aspect of cultural heritage of Australia. The Torres Strait Island is one of the Australian cultural heritages. It is an area where the second group of the native Australians originated. It is found within the Queensland. The Island records a history of British dominance and infringement of the rights of its people, the minority. Although, the current population on the island contains ten percent or less of the ancient Australians, most of them occupy the Australian Queensland. And islanders possess a mixture of cultural practices and traditions part of the Australian and from Papua, the New Guinea. The lesser proportion in the island is the minority and a neglected lot. The people of the island are a group of the ancient Australia and because of the reason, the government granted them the authority for local self governance, being the first primeval group to be awarded, and their influence extends to the laws that govern of pre-historical land occupancy in order to gain sovereignty over their region (Shnukal, 2001 p.2). The Tradition Culture and Society From the European seamen documents, islanders record a tradition of practicing Agriculture, fishing and hunting are also among the practices they carried out, other than them being considered as the leading group among all the early groups. They are a people who demanded respect even by the colonists. According to Shnukal (2001), the primeval Islanders believed in themselves and practiced their own activities from their own regions not considering the people from the cost as part of them, despite the festivals, trade and wartime negotiations that linked them. People from the New Guinea and The Cape York also practiced isolation each of them sustaining its practices and language. The eastern part of the island, for the Meriam Le islanders is volcanic with good soil suitable for gardening. However, the lower part of the western region which is the Kaurareg occupy is rocky, as a result of an earlier land bridge. The central part is the area of fishing practices which has poor sandy soils and less water, for the Kulkalgal islanders while the Saibailgal are hunters and occupy the top area of the western region which has significance of wild animals, and with water absorbing soils. The most popular animal that the islanders are familiar with is the Kangaroo. This explains why most people associate the islanders with the Kangaroo in the current Australia. Islanders uphold on links for trade with the coastal people despite the weakening of their relation. The number of children was a limiting factor among the Islanders, having three children or less. Elder men were the leaders in the ancient society and practiced successive ruling kind of leadership. Since there was an interaction between cultures of the primeval islanders and their neighbors at the coast they both end up sharing some aspects of their cultures, social practices and technology. For example, the Meriam mir language of the easterners is a language which traces some aspects of the languages in Papua (Coghill, 1997, p.33) The people possess different kinds of beliefs and sub-groups having religious leaders who they believe connect them to the spiritual world. The islanders believed that the earth is a lasting planet and that there are people of earlier generations occupy it too. They believe that the early people are in the form of specific animals such as the men of Kangaroo, the Bowerbird women and the Emu men. This is evident in the Australian culture where physical objects and drawings on stones are preserved in museums and exhibition houses to illustrate the early islanders. They believe that the ancient people influenced the environment and participated in bringing other creatures into existence. In their interaction with the environment, they believe that the early people had their marks on features like trees, rocks and mountains, connecting people with certain languages. Some believe in a supernatural power controlling the earth and its involvement in the process of bringing into existence life and other earthly features. According to Davis (2004), festivals were a part of the lives of the island people of Torres, holding customary religious ceremonies on religious places singing religious songs, and among them painting their bodies was a ritual symbolizing the integration of the spirits powers and their belief in the spirits. People of both genders used hold festivals and events to seek advice in the different phases of their lives as a way of carrying on the dream as they referred to it. Events like fertility ceremonies were held for the purpose of carrying on a ritual which without it, certain privileges would not be enjoyed by the people of the community. The islanders of the Torres Strait Island still practice their rituals and hold their ceremonies, whereby more are coming up, like the Stompin’ ground festival which is an event for dance and performances in Australia by Peter Stock, carried out mid every year. The Barunga festival incorporates the celebration of traditional sports and cultural activities and this year, the islanders generation and the whole Australians are celebrating the twenty seventh year of its creation. The National Aboriginal Rugby League is a national association that supports the rugby sport, also celebrated in Australia as it organizes matches and hosts others (Behrendt, 2012, p.294) Contribution of the Torres Strait Island to the Australian heritage The most obvious significance of the Island to Australian heritage is its identity as a land of origin for ancient Australians. Although people of the island are characterized with possession of multicultural practices and traditions, they possess the Australian origin. The Island indentifies itself, and others as first groups of people that embrace different cultures in Australia. The groups move to settle in Queensland, which is the Australians territory. The Australian achives and history books provide for the islanders history recording events of war and according to Hoffman (2006), laws should be enacted to protect heritage. The Australian history record the year 1967, that people appeal for the amendment of the constitution regarding the Torres islanders and the results are to their favor as section 127 is amended to allow the people to participate in the census. Commonwealth recognizes them by integrating the islanders in the Australian population in the year 1947 and the two consecutive census years. The island marks its significance in the Australian heritage by featuring in its history as an island of seizure by the Queensland which is a territory that Australia claims possession of. This causes misunderstanding as the islanders want to claim their originality. According to Osborne (2009), the resident magistrate, Honorable John Douglas who was also a leader in the midland protects the islanders’ interests against the restriction and protection Act of the Queensland for selling Opium and against the general control and protection of the people by the Australian government. The central government of Australia achieves its goal after the death of the magistrate by enacting the protection and control Act over the islanders, an act they refer to as the Dog act. Years later, this changes when the government surrenders sovereignty back to the locals and their own governance departments, and legally distinguish the island as people of their own. The Island records the history of its influences on the laws of the land which are a part of its heritage. The celebration of the Torres Strait Island National day by native islanders, in the midland, on 1st July every year, contributes to the heritage of the Australians. In the world war, the people make history and contribute largely to the victory of Australia against Japan as they participate in the war as defense and do it to prosperity. Although their payments and post-war rights are not met, they become apart of the celebrated victory which improves implementation of their rights and relationships among Australians with the European origin. Islanders also make a significant contribution in the development of other Australian cultural heritage. (Glaskin,K. 2008, p.182) The 1960 economic challenges in the island prompt the residents to move to parts of Australia like the Western and the Northern parts to seek employment during the minerals-age and others participated in the construction of railway lines that passed to different parts of Australia. Finally settling in Australia, they did not have voting rights but show participation in organizations protecting the rights of people their kind, the ancient people, such as the National Aboriginal Committee. Break through People Solutions website recognize the islanders as the ancient settlers of Australia and as Shnukal (2001) puts it, the contribution of the islanders is very significant both within their respective communities in Queensland and the whole of Australia. There also are significant people that carry on the heritage of Australia. Ari Buzari of Mer makes a significant decision that later own influence the population in the island, by participating in the evacuation of foreign settlers from the land to another (Erub). Maino, a soldier and popular among the people was respected and becomes the first warrior to lead the group to settle on Yam, the year 1892. Namai is another standing figure that the Australian history upholds as its heritage. He marks the originality and the establishment of the church of England Mission for the islanders of the pacific, as he is part of the planning and settlement procedure. The church accommodates most of the islanders at the time and present. The leaders of the marine-time strike mark a history in the archive of Australia for their management and sustainability effort during that time. Namai of Moa and Marou of Mer take the responsibility of the people during the time instability. Despite the military restriction Act for the islandser, Charles Mene an islander of Mabuiag makes it to the top rank from a serving military man before the Second World War serves with the British Commonwealth Occupation Forces where he manages to get the military medal in Japan. Political figures also feature in the history that marks the Australian cultural hereditary such as Getano Lui, Pedro Stephen of Ugar, makes history as the Quarantine officer, being the first islander (Ashplant et.al 2006, p. 141). Conclusion The Australian culture and heritage traces all through the history, cultural activities and physical structures of the primeval Australia. With little or no argument, the ancient Island people of Strait, marks a great history of the people of Australia from the 1900 decade and before, being the first settlers and moving on to influence the Australian laws and ways of governance and leadership. The People of the island represent the ancient Australian people and their cultures are what the current generations also adopt, their activities being integrated in the current word to mark the identity of Australia from other cultures. Their nature as a society of multiple cultural practices makes it a unique lot all together, although, does not discriminate it from being a part of the Australians and their rights being infringed. References Ashplant, T. G., Dawson, G., & Roper, M. (2006). Commemorating war: the politics of memory. New Brunswick: Transaction Publishers. Shnukal, A. (2001). Torres Strait Islanders. Brandle, Maximilian Coghill, L. (1997). Footsteps- to country, kin and culture. Carlton, Vic, Curriculum Corporation. Davis, R. (2004). Woven histories, dancing lives: Torres Strait Islander identity, culture and history. Canberra, Aboriginal Studies Press. Stefano, M. L., Davis, P., & Corsane, G. (2012). Safeguarding intangible cultural heritage. Woodbridge, Suffolk, Boyell Press. Glaskin, K. (2008). Mortality, mourning and mortuary practices in indigenous Australia. Aldershot, Ashgate. Singh, S. (2001). Aboriginal Australia & the Torres Strait islands: explore indiginous Australia. Hawthorn, Vic, Lonely Planet. Hoffman, B. T. (2006). Art and cultural heritage: law, policy, and practice. Cambridge, Cambridge University Press. Behrendt, L. (2012). Indigenous Australia for dummies. Richmond, Vic, John Wiley & Sons. Osborne, E. (2009). Throwing off the cloak: reclaiming self-reliance in Torres Strait. Canberra, Aboriginal Studies Press. Read More