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Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison (archive image)
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It should be a sign of appreciation for the indigenous population: At the turn of the year Australia changes the text of its national anthem.
As Prime Minister Scott Morrison announced, the second line of the anthem will no longer read "that we are young and free" but "that we are united and free".
The change does not take away anything, but adds a lot, wrote Morrison on Thursday in the newspaper "The Age".
"Australia as a modern nation may be relatively young, but our country's history is ancient," said the Prime Minister.
The country recognizes and respects its indigenous people, he added.
Morrison alluded to the change on Twitter as he wished his compatriots a happy new year.
The change was brought into play to recognize the Australian Aboriginal history dating back tens of thousands of years.
Australia struggles with its colonial past and the inequality between indigenous people and the rest of the population.
There had been numerous protests in several cities over the past few months, in which demonstrators protested the numerous unexplained deaths of indigenous people in custody.
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