Australia

Australia’s historical context is highly influential on the makeup of its touristic identity and is inextricably linked to the nation it has become. The so-called discovery and subsequent violent colonization of Australia casts a major shadow over the country’s past, and reconciliation with its indigenous peoples remains a highly contentious and perennially unresolved matter.
More recently, a renaissance to ensure genuine and long-lasting reconciliation with its indigenous peoples has occurred, spurred by the Australian government’s apology in 2008 in which then-Prime Minister Kevin Rudd acknowledged, “The time has now come for the nation to turn a new page in Australia’s history by righting the wrongs of the past and so moving forward with confidence to the future” (Australian Government, 2008). One of the upshots of the apology has been a renewed acknowledgment of Australian indigenous culture and heritage.