Uluru Statement from the Heart
About the statement
A constitutional convention that brought together over 250 Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander leaders met in May 2017 at the foot of Uluru in Central Australia on the lands of the Aṉangu people.
They resolved the Uluru Statement from the Heart, that called for the establishment of a First Nations Voice in the Australian Constitution and a Makarrata Commission to supervise a process of agreement-making and truth-telling between governments and Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples.
Professor Andrew McLachlan Head of School and Dean, Rimmi Arora Vice President and Scott Rickard President Sydney Univeristy Pharmacy signing the Uluru Statement.
Our commitment
“As an academic organisation training healthcare professionals for now and the future, we feel it is essential to acknowledge and provide our full support for the Uluru Statement from the Heart as a landmark document that seeks to support justice and respect for Indigenous Australians and aligns with our values and priorities in training pharmacists at the University of Sydney.
“Pharmacy students at the Sydney Pharmacy School take the Oath of a Pharmacist, developed and endorsed by the International Pharmacy Federation, and embrace the Code of Ethics for Pharmacists from the Pharmaceutical Society of Australia. These codes highlight the importance of respect for all people, especially the vulnerable, and the care of individuals as well as their diverse communities, returning Indigenous Australians to a position of power and eradicating inequity and injustice.
“Pharmacists, students and pharmacy educators have a long history of supporting Indigenous health especially through the quality use of medicines. This is a core element of the training and practice of pharmacists, which has the improvement of the health of all Australians as a key goal, as articulated in Australia’s National Medicines Policy.
“The Uluru Statement from the Heart, led by Indigenous elders, academics and delegates from across the nation, embrace these elements of autonomy and justice. Recognition of Indigenous Australians within the Constitution is a critical step in realising the importance of Indigenous health and autonomy endorsed in the Uluru Statement from the Heart.
“We commit to ensure our teaching and research in the Sydney Pharmacy School and leadership through the Sydney University Pharmacy Association embraces the elements of the Uluru Statement from the Heart to enhance the role of pharmacists in supporting justice and autonomy for Indigenous Australians. We invite you to walk with us in a movement of the Australian people for a better future.”