"Celebrate what's great" was the official theme of this year's Australia Day, January 26. But for Aboriginal Australians, what was worth celebrating on the day that marks the brutal British invasion of their land was the decision to charge the police officer Chris Hurley with the manslaughter of Mulrunji Doomadgee.
On this Invasion Day, to protest against so many other "killer cops" who have escaped conviction, the lack of a treaty or substantial land rights, and racism and poverty, 400 people marched in Canberra behind a banner saying "Sovereignty".
The march from Garema Place to the Tent Embassy was led by Indigenous activists from around the country and joined by members of the Australian Student Environment Network, which called for an end to uranium mining. There they were met by Isabelle Coe from the Tent Embassy and were welcomed in a ceremony.
David Dryden, a Yorta Yorta man from Shepparton in Victoria, said it was necessary to protest on Invasion Day because, "From the ACT to Palm Island, to Melbourne, to Redfern, the issues are all the same; we need equal opportunities, land rights and understanding".
"Only a short time ago were we even recognised as human beings", said Dryden. "I can't even tell my kids what 'hello' is in Yorta Yorta because I was never allowed to learn it.
"There is an eternal flame at the War Memorial to remember those who died defending their country, but we still can't have an eternal flame for all the Aboriginal people who died defending theirs."
"John Howard can say that he can't apologise for injustices done in the past, but he can apologise for what he's doing today, and that sort of apology can only come from the PM."
On hearing of charges being laid against Hurley, Dryden said, "It's a start. Now we can go after all the others who think they got away with murder. But it's still taken two years to charge Hurley. Imagine how fast it would have been if it was the other way around, and it was a white cop that got killed."
"We still have a long way to go and that's why we need to be together on this day".