By LGAQ Communications Advisor Tim Cox
Central Highlands has Altona, Manitoba in Canada and Ichinoseki in northern Japan; Fraser Coast has five, including Honiara; and Brisbane has nine, spanning the globe from Auckland to Abu Dhabi.
In some parts of the world they’re called ‘partner cities’, ‘friendship towns’ or ‘twinned cities’, though Australian places like Albury-Wodonga use that same term. And in Europe they’re commonly called ‘twin towns’ but to Queenslanders that’s the sole domain of the behemoth club complex of the same name on the Queensland-NSW border.
Here, they’re known as ‘sister cities’ and Australian first – between Parkes and Coventry – was forged in 1939, the link between the two stemming from statesman Sir Henry Parkes having been born in Coventry in 1815.
Coventry was very active in a wider move to nurture friendship and understanding between former combatants in the years immediately following World War II, initiating a further 24 partnerships to sit alongside the New South Wales town named after ‘the father of Federation’!
While Parkes and Coventry’s bond now spans 80 years, Mackay recently celebrated a 30-year bond with Matsuura, in the Nagasaki prefecture of Japan’s southern island of Kyushu.
The LGAQ’s Principal Advisor on Finance and Governance, Mark Leyland, was Mackay’s Deputy Town Clerk in 1989 and spent 13 years as inaugural chairman of the sister city committee overseeing the vitally important partnership with Matsuura.
He explained the difference between that relationship and Mackay’s first partnership, which commenced more than 50 years ago.
“Kailua Kona in Hawaii has a similar sort of geography – mountains to the ocean and tropical – and that was the sole basis for the link,” Mark said. “The sister city with Matsuura came about through the sale of coal from the Blair Athol Mine, through the Dalrymple Bay terminal, to a couple of huge coal-fired power stations situated in Matsuura.
“One of the wise things done at the start was that it wasn’t council to council, it was community to community, and that meant involving people from all aspects of life – teachers, retirees, travel agents, political and business people – and whilst the council is the backbone of it and supports the community committees, it’s the committees that keep the partnership growing.
“And while I’ve spent more time away from the sister city relationship than I had in it, I maintained contact with people who are part of it and went to the 30th anniversary celebrations in Matsuura because… it’s something that’s good to do.”
One of those participants Mark – and many of his travelling companions – wanted to see was Junko Hashimoto, who maintains the partnership from Matsuura’s side and said the two cities have established a strong tie during the last 30 years.
“It started like a wave: a person shows his or her kindness to a person who has different culture and language, the person is touched and tries to return some of kindness he or she received and again, and again for 30 years,” Ms Hashimoto said.
“Repetition over 30 years has brought trust and special friendship between our two communities. For Matsuura people, Mackay is not a city which is far away and unknown anymore, it is the city of the people whom we always respect and care for - just like an old friend now. “
Moreton Bay Regional Council also has a Japanese sister city, Sanyo Onoda, which is near the far south-western tip of Japan’s main island Honshu.
“Global sister city relationships are great opportunities to help local businesses become Asia-ready and open up international markets through relationship building and international business delegations,” Mayor Allan Sutherland said of the partnership which last year clocked up its 25th anniversary.
But not every partnership has a ‘hands across the water’ basis. Redcliffe City Council partnered with Winton in April 1995, and it remains important to present day Moreton Bay Regional Council (formed in 2008 through Redcliffe’s amalgamation with Pine Rivers and Caboolture).
Mayor Sutherland said the sister city relationship cherished by both communities. To that end, among the support sent to Winton after last February’s monsoonal flooding was two staff from their sister city.
“Helping your mates through thick and thin is what Queenslanders and sister cities do,” Mayor Sutherland said. “We may be some 1,300km apart but our communities share a strong bond.”
“It’s no secret that towns and regional centres in Outback Queensland have had it tough in recent years due to drought and I’m proud that our region is able to show its support.”
Sponsoring outback festivals and providing opportunities for student exchanges as part of the annual Bush to Beach/Beach to Bush tour between the two centres are some of the ways Moreton Bay Regional Council is actively supporting the outback town.
“In addition to helping the businesses and residents of Winton, council also promotes the Moreton Bay Region as a holiday destination to the people of Outback Queensland,” Mayor Sutherland said.
“To have our region’s iconic locations on show at events like the Outback Festival helps put our region on the map for people travelling across Queensland and Australia who might not have otherwise thought to discover all that our region has to offer.
Winton Shire Mayor Gavin Baskett is in no doubt the Bush to Beach program is a great opportunity for young members of his community to see the city lights – and experience swimming in the ocean.
“The local kids love the road trip and the hospitality shown during their stay in town – it’s also an exciting time for Winton when the Moreton Bay kids are heading our way. It’s a different way of life in the Outback and I’m sure there’s some kids who haven’t ventured past the Range, let alone to Winton,” Mayor Baskett said.
“The Moreton Bay mayor and councillors have always had a great relationship with our councillors and town, extending back to our previous mayor Butch Lenton and Al Sutherland. The mayor and councillors attended the opening of the rebuilt Waltzing Matilda Centre, which was a great honour at the time, and coincided with the Beach to Bush kids being in town.
“While I’ve been mayor it’s been an honour having these elected members visit our town numerous times and also being hosted by Mayor Sutherland during their Caravan and Camping Show, which Winton attends yearly,” Mayor Baskett said.
While Queensland can’t lay claim to any relationships with the longevity of Parkes and Coventry, it’s clearly an effective user of the ‘soft diplomacy’ sister cities can provide: Bundaberg Regional Council has twice (in four years) been awarded for Australia’s best sister city relationship, with Nanning in southern China.
“This really does fit in well with the LGAQ’s initiative for its trade ambassadors to assist councils to get more from their sister city relationships,” Bundaberg Mayor Jack Dempsey said.
“I can only say: please support the initiatives, support sister cities and we’ve got to be able to raise the bar in relation to professionalism, ensure we’re not duplicating our responses, and that we’re getting the best value out of these relationships.
“I just want to say a big thank you to everybody involved.”