King Charles brushes off Indigenous protest – Royal family news

Australian Senator Lidia Thorpe, who campaigns on First Nations issues, disrupted Charles’s welcome to the capital Canberra with her protest on Monday.

Her comments were criticised by Australia’s prime minister Anthony Albanese, who attend the event and later told The Australian newspaper: “The actions of the independent senator in the Great Hall were disrespectful. This is not the standard of behaviour Australians rightly expect of parliamentarians.”

A statue of Queen Victoria has been defaced with red paint in Sydney ahead of the final day of the Australian leg of King Charles and Queen Camilla’s royal tour.

The statue is located close to the Sydney Opera House, where the royals met with the public today as they celebrated its 50th anniversary.

This comes hot on the heels of a high-profile protest from Australian senator Lidia Thrope, who shouted “You’re not my King!” after Charles’s speech at Parliament House in Canberra.

The royals were celebrating the 50th anniversary of the iconic opera house.

King Charles urged Australia to take a leading role in the fight against climate change in his Parliament House speech on the second day of his royal tour.

On Monday, the King asserted that Australia’s character “is hardly more vivid” than when it is “tested by disaster” and cited several examples of devastating natural events that have taken place in recent years.

He said he is always “deeply impressed” by the “extraordinary bravery and resilience” of the Australian people for their willingness to “battle on” before acknowledging the role that climate change is playing in these events.

“Australia has all of the natural ingredients to create a more sustainable, regenerative way of living, by harnessing the power with which nature has endowed the nation,” he said. “Whether it be wind or its famous sunshine, Australia is tracking the path towards a better and safer future.”

The King has launched an Australian version of his King’s Foundation charity.

Charles unveiled the plans for The King’s Foundation Australia at a special reception at Admiralty House in Sydney during his high-profile royal tour.

The charity’s first project will be as the custodian of the Hillview Estate in Sutton Forest, New South Wales, working to restore the historic property and its surrounding land.

The state-heritage listed former summer residence of the governor of New South Wales will serve as The King’s Foundation Australia’s permanent base and be developed as a “landmark cultural hub”, the charity said.

Inspiration has been taken from the regeneration of Dumfries House – an 18th century mansion in Ayrshire, Scotland, which now acts as The King’s Foundation’s headquarters after it was saved for the nation in 2007 by a consortium led by Charles as the Prince of Wales.

The King set up his original foundation, previously called The Prince’s Foundation, to train the next generation of skilled craftspeople – including in building, carpentry, fashion and textiles – in heritage techniques essential to many traditional industries.

Practical education and training programmes in traditional and heritage craft will also be developed at Hillview.

Kristina Murrin, the Australian-born chief executive of The King’s Foundation, said the new foundation was a sign of Charles’s affection for Australia.

The King and Queen flipped sausages on a barbecue when they joined locals in a park for a taste of suburban life in Sydney.

In New South Wales’ blistering sunshine, Charles and Camilla gave chefs a hand tending the snags – or sausages – grilling on the barbecue.

The King was handed some tongs and clicked them in anticipation and the Queen did the same before they set about making sure the “top tucker” cooked evenly, with Charles looking after the vegetarian option and his wife the beef bangers.

Restaurant manager Scott McCoy, 42, was looking after the barbecue and said it was an “honour” to have some royal helpers.

Known by his nickname Chop, he added: “They said the sausages were amazing, they didn’t try them but they could see.”

The 42-year-old who manages the BlackBear BBQ restaurant in Sydney said: “It’s amazing they’re here helping us to cook.”

In a speech to the guests, Charles said: “… I am so delighted to be here, in Parramatta – an excellent choice for a community barbecue, since Parramatta was a place where First Nations people from around the region also came together for generations to meet and to trade food.

“It is a particular delight to see and smell all the ‘top tucker’ here today, from Western Sydney’s vibrant and diverse community.”

He added: “As we are happily rediscovering today, New South Wales farmers continue to produce truly outstanding food and wine.

“It is no wonder, I think, that Sydney is world famous for its cuisine, whether it’s smashed avo, a pav, or a Cab Sav and that is what I hope has been on display!”

The King was confronted for a second day by First Nations activists questioning the supremacy of the British monarchy in Australia.

When Charles met Indigenous elders during a visit to the National Centre of Indigenous Excellence (NCIE) in Sydney one told him their goal was “sovereignty”.

The visit came after the King was accused on Monday of “genocide” against Australia’s First Nations by senator Lidia Thorpe who told him “You are not my King”.

Elder Allan Murray from the Metropolitan Local Aboriginal Land Council appeared to reference Senator Thorpe’s words in his Sydney greeting.

Charles nodded as he said: “Welcome to country. 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. But welcome to Gadigal land.”

This is the moment senator Lidia Thorpe heckles King Charles during a reception in Australia’s parliament.

The monarch had just finished addressing lawmakers in Canberra on Monday when Ms Thorpe shouted “This is not your land. You are not my King.”

She continued raising her voice in protest, saying “Give us our land back. Give us what you stole from us! Our bones, our skulls, our babies, our people.

“You destroyed our land. Give us a treaty!”

Security stopped Ms Thorpe from getting close and ushered her out of the chamber as the King turned to talk to prime minister Anthony Albanese.

As he finished his speech, senator Lidia Thorpe approached the stage and shouted for around 30 seconds, saying “this is not your country”.

“You committed genocide against our people. Give us our land back. Give us what you stole from us – our bones, our skulls, our babies, our people,” said Ms Thrope, an outspoken advocate for Indigenous rights.

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