TRANSCRIPT
On the final day of his tour, King Charles has broken royal tradition - embracing an Indigenous man, Michael Welsh, who was taken from his family and sent to an abusive boys home.
Mr Welsh is just one of many survivors of the stolen generation who came to see the monarch as he visits Redfern in Sydney.
Allan Murray from the Metropolitan Local Aboriginal Land Council welcomed the King to Gadigal Land, and says there is important dialogue to be had.
"Like any other Welcome to Country we have stories to tell, I think you witnessed that story yesterday in Canberra but the story is unwavering and we have a long way to go before we achieve what we want to achieve which is sovereignty."
That quest for sovereignty is now making international headlines - following Indigenous Senator, Lidia Thorpe's protest during a parliamentary reception on Monday [[Oct 21]].
Senator Thorpe says she stands by her comments after she was escorted from the Great Hall yelling.
"You are not our king. You are not sovereign. You are not our king. You are not sovereign. 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. You destroyed our land. Give us a treaty. We want treaty."
Senator Thorpe's protest follows several demonstrations, including large crowds gathering behind a large banner in Sydney as the royal couple touched down for their five-day visit.
Senator Thorpe says she was forced to heckle the King after her several letters and requests for a meeting were ignored.
However, the backlash to the defiant display has been swift, with both sides of parliament saying the protest was disrespectful.
Speaking to Sky News in the U-K, Senator Thorpe says she was determined to get her message across.
REPORTER: "Why did you do it?"
THORPE: "I did it for truth telling, global truth telling about the royals who cause so much devastation to not only our people in this country but Indigenous people around the world. We don't have a treaty in this country, we've been calling for decades and decades for a treaty, we just want peace."
As the Royal Family met with Indigenous elders in Redfern, there were mixed views amongst everyday Indigenous Australians.
VOX POP 1: "I like the royals, my mum and nan liked the royals and it's good to bring my son and nephew."
VOX POP 2: "I'm not here to cheer on a king that stole my land, I'm here to say to him give me back my land. Just like my Auntie Lidia Thorpe did in parliament what a brave strong matriarch she is."
But a number of high-profile Indigenous Australians have taken issue with the approach.
Former Senator Nova Peris, who was the first Aboriginal woman elected to federal parliament, says she's deeply disappointed by the way Senator Thorpe chose to engage with the King.
In a post on X she says the outburst was both embarrassing, and disrespectful to the nation and the Royal Family.
It's a sentiment shared by federal minister Amanda Rishworth.
"Pretty disrespectful and not just to the King, but to the many great Australians that had gathered in the Great Hall. I was standing next to a number of great Australians who were pretty shocked, and didn't quite understand why this was going on."
Opposition Leader, Peter Dutton, has told the ABC that Senator Thorpe didn't advance anyone's cause, and made it all about herself
"I think there's a very strong argument for somebody who doesn't believe in the system, but is willing to take a quarter of a million dollars a year from the system, to resign in principle. If you were really truly about your cause and not just about yourself, then I think that's a decision that you would make."
Asked about her affirmation of allegiance to the crown when she was sworn in as a parliamentarian, Senator Thorpe says she did that under duress and to fulfil her duties.
She's rejected Mr Dutton's calls to resign - saying she will spend her next three years in parliament focused on truth-telling.
