Welcome to Australia
The Australian heroine from start, when she carried the Olympic torch into the stadium, to finish, as she crossed the line to take 400m gold, was the indigenous athlete Cathy Freeman. Against the will of many of her still oppressed people, she came to represent the symbol, albeit shallow, of reconciliation between White and Aboriginal Australia. But the frenzy of flames and fireworks surrounding the Games blinded the rest of the world to the darker side of a land down under.
In 1999, John Pilger returned home to find that the elaborate preparations for the Games overshadowed a hidden world where Aborigines continue to live in Third World conditions. He revealed that some of the greatest sportsmen and women in the world were in fact Aboriginal. Many of them, like blacks in South Africa under Apartheid, were until recently denied a place in their country’s Olympic teams.
He also found that the Australian Government was in the process of overturning the landmark legislation of 1992 which finally recognised Aborigines as people with common law rights before the English colonised the country. ‘Welcome to Australia: The Secret Shame Behind the Sydney Olympics’ was the third film Pilger made on the Aboriginal struggle alongside fellow Australian, Alan Lowery.
Watch the full documentary now
July 4th, 2009 at 00:39
I no longer want to go to Australia anymore.
August 1st, 2009 at 14:14
Shame on Australia. This is a country which I definitely won’t like to visit. How inhuman people can get!
August 4th, 2009 at 04:08
I’m Australian, not ashamed to be one, just decided not to live there anymore because it’s full of racist wankers.
The governments have very cleverly made the rest of the world think it’s a dinky-di fun loving kind of place where the sun shines and everyone has a beer and a laugh. Everyone does; everyone white with a bit of dosh that is.
Australia is a backwater.
Have a look how behind the times the government is on gay rights.
Many an Australian will deny racism, they will shout out their good time, sun lovin’, live and let live ocker attitude. Don’t believe it.
I like visiting, but would NEVER live there again.
John Pilger’s documentary reinforces why.
August 25th, 2009 at 00:07
I knew there was racism against the aborigines, but I guess I didn’t know how bad it was. Really awful.
August 25th, 2009 at 00:23
I knew there was racism against the aborigines, but I guess I didn’t know how bad it was. Really awful. This makes American racism look relatively tame in comparison.
August 31st, 2009 at 02:01
After watching this documentary there isnt much suprise to me. I have been living in this country for ten years and I have seen how Anglo Australians have treated the Aborigines. It is very upsetting because rightfully this is their land. Who are we to make judgements to the people who we should be thanking and showing some dignity and respect towards? I love the Aboriginal culture and people. By the way im a Muslim and I’ll be damned if anyone was to call me a non- Australian.
October 28th, 2009 at 12:01
Shameful for a developed nation! This needs to change.
Nonetheless, I would still love to visit and even live in Australia, because discrimination is world-wide and we mustn’t toss out the baby with the bathwater.
October 28th, 2009 at 19:06
Interesting. I’d like to know what has changed since this documentary was made (10 years ago).
October 30th, 2009 at 04:11
Look at you gullible people. The Aboriginals live in extreme poverty because they segregate themselves. They demand everything given to them but give nothing back. There are tribes who refuse to teach children any language but there own. This will lead to extreme poverty.
I live where there are two classes of Aboriginals. Those who do and those that don’t. Those that do, have good living standards and drive some of the nicest cars here.
As for Australia the worst offenders of human rights, go move to any of the following; China, North Korea, Zimbabwe, Sudan, Iraq, Afghanistan, etc.
November 15th, 2009 at 08:00
Great Doco!!! One that all Australians should see… There is a huge problem in this country that needs serious attention. There are so many incredible qualities to the Indigenous Australians. They are the most successful culture to ever walk this earth (to our knowledge thus far). Their navigational skills in some instances were more accurate they any western technology up until the mid 80’s! Their music, instruments and art have spread and are enjoy all over the world. They ARE the true owners of this country and should be treated with the the despect.
November 27th, 2009 at 06:15
Wow, a democratic, free, rich country that treats its natives worse than we treat ours.
November 27th, 2009 at 06:54
I knew that there was racism in Australia but not this bad! I was floored on seeing the details of this documentary. A few years ago, my sister visited Australia and was shocked at the snikers and behaviour she and her friends received whilst touring Australian cities because they were tanned and not fair skin. I have had people who have told me or someone I know, that whites would stop their cars and shout, “Go back to your own countries or go back you bastards!” I have relatives in Australia and they say that normally one has to have a good support from one’s own community to live in Australia. There is pretty much a division by race. I know of friends who are studying in Australia who are Asians, and they have told me that whites would only sit among their own and would never sit among especially, the Chinese, in the Universities. They are pretty rude to Asians. It is very sad that in this day and age, such discrimination exists. But if I come to think of it, why wouldn’t there be discrimination when they can’t even treat the natives of Australia with human dignity then why should they treat all races other than the white race, any differently? Haven’t they forgotten that it was never their land to begin with? Racism exists any where you go in this world, even in Asian countries and there is very little anyone can do about it. Laws deal with the problem superficially but only God can deal with this problem from the heart!
December 25th, 2009 at 09:43
Australia is no different to India, China, Malaysia and all of those other commonwealth nations who claim to be democratic, have great pr machines to cover their dispicable conduct and treatment of their lesser citizens.
John Pilger is one of the world's greatest exponents of the art or science of the camera and film making. It is people like him that give the place some semblance of respectability.
Even if one of the 20 million is different then we cannot generalise. Pilger is Australia's fig leaf.
Raj Kumar
January 30th, 2010 at 18:09
Come to Australia and get beaten up by an Aboriginal when they don’t get what they want off you.