King Charles and Queen Camilla are on their last day of their visit to Australia. Toby Melville-Pool/Getty
King Charles embraces a member of the indigenous community in Sydney at the National Centre for Indigenous Excellence on Oct. 22, 2024. King Charles received a welcome from indigenous leaders in Sydney amid an ongoing protest over sovereignty.
Charles’ visit to the National Centre of Indigenous Excellence (NCIE) came a day after he faced shouts of “You are not my King, this is not your land” from a senator at Parliament House in Canberra.
The King’s appointment with the elders of the community in Sydney was always scheduled to take place on Oct. 22. But it meant that there was a timely moment for Uncle Allan Murray, a leader of the Metropolitan Local Aboriginal Land Council, to greet the King, 75, on “Gadigal land,” saying, “Welcome to Country,” while also putting the wider point across.
“We’ve got stories to tell and I think you witnessed that story yesterday in Canberra but the story is unwavering and we’ve got a long way to achieve what we want to achieve and that’s our own sovereignty,” he told Charles, according to U.K. newspaper The Telegraph.
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King Charles watches a performance by the Mui Mui Bumer Gedlam group at the National Centre of Indigenous Excellence in Sydney on Oct. 22, 2024. “We are proud, sovereign people, and we continue to walk on this great land,” he added.
The King nodded and listened, reports said. Uncle Allan — the respectful formal title for elder men — said after the conversation: “We always long for a return of our sovereignty. We are a sovereign people, we have never signed a formal agreement or treaty. The [British flag] was put on our land without our consent,” The Telegraph reported. “We’ve been ignored. We can’t rest on our laurels.”
Appearing relaxed, Charles seemed to enjoy meeting the elders and took part in a traditional smoking ceremony led by community representatives from the Gadigal people of the Eora Nation.
Lisa Maree Williams/Getty
King Charles takes part in a traditional smoking ceremony in Sydney on Oct. 22, 2024. A day earlier, on Oct. 21, the protests had been more obvious and vocal. Heckling senator Lidia Thorpe, an indigenous Australian politician, first made claims of “genocide” and then said, “Give us what you stole from us: our bones, our skulls, our babies, our people,” videos from the event shared by The Telegraph showed. “You destroyed our land, give us a treaty — we want a treaty, we want a treaty with this country.”
As she was being escorted out of the Great Hall of Parliament House, Thorpe kept calling out, “This is not your land, This is not your land. You are not my King, you are not our King.”
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King Charles and Queen Camilla cook sausages for the food stalls at the Premier’s Community Barbecue at Parramatta Park on Oct. 22, 2024. “Related: King Charles Caught Off Guard by Sneezing Alpaca in Unexpected Royal Tour Moment
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Charles’ outing to the indigenous center was the first visit on a busy day for him and Queen Camilla on their last full day in Australia. Charles — who has been undergoing treatment for cancer since February — met some melanoma experts.
They couple also paired up for a community picnic and barbecue, though they reportedly declined to sample any food, hosted by the Premier of New South Wales Chris Minns and his wife Anna.
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