Indian-origin Giridharan Sivaraman, who serves as the race discrimination commissioner of the Albanese government in Australia, said the country should not celebrate January 26 as Australia Day as it is the day when colonization began displacing the First People from their own country. Australia is a stolen land and there is nothing to celebrate on January 26, Sivaraman said, triggering a massive row. The comment came at an SBS podcast where Sivaraman said he feels very conflicted about Australia Day as there is an undercurrent of nationalism about this day.
“When it comes to January 26, it becomes so difficult, because there’s this undercurrent of nationalism – love it or leave it phenomenon – where people go, well ‘unless you’re with us, you’re against us’, and so you’ve just got to, on January 26, you’ve got to kiss the flag, love the country, otherwise go away,” Sivaraman said.
