Cleansing city’s station
Smoking ceremony helps heal
A TRADITIONAL smoking ceremony at the Toowoomba police station has expelled bad spirits and reaffirmed the city’s commitment towards reconciliation.
The ceremony marked the International Day of the World’s Indigenous Peoples and 12 months from the first smoking ceremony which cleansed the Toowoomba station of bad spirits and feelings.
Crime Prevention Unit Sergeant Tony Rehn said the ceremony was important for the city’s police service and the region’s First Nations people.
“This area has been a meeting place for First Nations people for over 60,000 years so it’s a very central hub,” Sgt Rehn said.
“Consequently we’re dealing with First Nations people from at least 50 or 60 or so different Murri nations in this city.
“So it’s important for us to connect with them at a level they feel comfortable and understand that police are the community and the community are the police.”
Alan Martin lead the traditional ceremony using sandalwood to expel the bad spirits from the city’s watch house and police complex as Warren Moody played the didgeridoo.
Sgt Rehn said it was a “very crucial ceremony” grounded in tradition, and continued the momentum of last year’s inaugural event.
“Smoking is a very traditional ceremony and the sandalwood that they use is designed to actually attract good spirits, cleanse the air of spirits that are bad or troubled (and) notify the ancestors that we are on their land,” he said.
“It’s an ongoing thing for us to connect with First Nations people.
“We want to work with them to make our community better.”