First public peace pole planted

REPRESENTATIVES from Ballarat’s multicultural groups came together on Monday morning for the unveiling of the city’s first community peace pole.

The structure, situated at Barkly Square’s outer courtyard, has been installed as part of a global movement aiming to foster peace between nations and cultures.

Ballarat Regional Multicultural Council (BRMC) co-delivered the project and chief executive Suzanne Ryan-Evers said the pole’s location is ideal.

“Some of us have been at Barkly Square for two to three years and one of the most talked about aspects of it is the fact that most [tenants] are either non-profits or community organisations,” she said.

“They’re enhancing community strengths here in Ballarat region and Barkly Square is frequented by people coming in to do courses or into the café for a chat.

“When it was the Pot of Courage café, that was such an institution and said so much about community supporting community and that theme is still here.”

The new peace pole is the third to be installed in Ballarat since the movement began in Japan, but it’s the first to be installed in a public community space, with the other two located at Phoenix P-12 Community College and Sebastopol Primary School.

Ballarat Interfaith Network, Let’s Talk Peace Ballarat, Compassionate Ballarat, and BGT Jobs and Training also partnered to deliver the pole which is adorned with ‘May Peace Prevail on Earth’ in several languages.

Artwork created by members of BRMC’s Intercultural Women’s Friendship Network and Multicultural Playgroup is on and around the pole in the garden.

BRMC settlement support coordinator and Intercultural Women’s Friendship Network member Abrar Dham represented the Arabic community with a keffiyeh-inspired artwork.

“I started off just drawing the woman in the blue scarf, but couldn’t help but draw in the symbol of the keffiyeh with the black and white pattern,” Ms Dham said.

“It’s a symbol of peace itself and a symbol of resistance to anything that ruins our peace. It’s always special for me to write in Arabic too because I don’t get many opportunities to do that.

“The words I wrote mean ‘You are peace and from within you comes peace.’ Everyone has the capacity to give peace to others.”

As part of the unveiling, all attendees joined in a performance of I Am Australian and were invited to write their own messages of peace on paper doves which have been planted around the pole’s base.