Quenten Agius of Aboriginal Cultural Tours - Adjahdura Land can give you an amazing insight into the traditional owners of this country, of their rich cultural heritage, Dreaming stories and traditions - and the issues they are facing today.

Statement from Quenten Agius: The Shocking Truth about Heritage.
The following information from Quenten Agius tells the shocking truth about the state of Aboriginal Heritage on Adjahdura Land - it gives some insight into major problems and conflicts the traditional owners are facing today to protect what is left of their ancient heritage.

The above pictures capture peaceful protests at Australia's largest wind farm at Wattle Point in South Australia - where an ancient Adjahdura burial ground and archaeological site was desecrated by the developers, Meridian Energy and Southern Hydro. (Right photo: Traditional Owners, Irene Agius with her son Quenten Agius)

 
Australia's Ancient Heritage under threat
Our culture and Dreaming sites are being destroyed before my eyes. If something isn’t done soon, our heritage, Australia’s ancient heritage - the final resting places of our ancestors - will be lost forever.

People forget that black fellas have lived on this country for 40,000 years before white fellas first stepped on this land. Our ancestors are buried all over this country, in the sand hills, along coastal areas and near water holes.

In the 200 years since white fellas invaded this country, Adjahdura Dreaming sites, burial grounds, cultural landscapes and archaeological sites have been desecrated and destroyed. And the invasion never stopped - it continues today. Land Developments along coastal areas are disturbing and desecrating the last remaining burial grounds, cultural landscapes and ancient archaeological sites of the traditional owners of this country. Everything possible should be done to protect these sites, for future generations.

Australia's largest Wind farm - Wattle Point Wind Farm - Wind Turbine 4. Burial ground and archaeological site desecrated by developers, Meridian Energy and Southern Hydro. Quenten Agius standing over remains found in graded area. The turbine was actually built on a protected archaeological site - the boundary of the site was compromised and hundreds of artifacts, tools and skeletal remains were uncovered.   After discovering that they had desecrated an ancient burial ground and archaeological site - the developers just continued desecrating the site. Remains were found 2 metres from the edge of the hole that was dug for the turbine. In the above photo Quenten is standing just in front of where the remains were discovered.

 
Wattle Point Wind farm conflict
The State Labor government railroaded through the $170Million Wattle Point wind farm development, the largest wind farm in Australia. The developers, Meridian Energy and Southern Hydro, desecrated an Aboriginal burial ground and archaeological site that was supposed to be protected by law, and they then went about covering it up. While the developers, Southern Hydro and Meridian Energy (New Zealand Government owned companies), put out public relations propaganda, they just kept on destroying and desecrating the site at Wind Turbine 4.

How is it, that in Australia, 100 year old buildings are heritage listed and protected, yet ancient Aboriginal heritage sites that are thousands of years old don’t receive the same protection? And how can land developers like Meridian Energy and Southern Hydro bulldoze ancient burial grounds and archaeological sites and get away with it, when there are laws in place to stop this from happening?

Governments have learnt nothing from their mistakes in the past - they continue making the same mistakes.

See: Media

Lack of respect for Traditional Owners with knowledge

I have been very critical of the way our heritage has been destroyed and the lack of respect shown for the traditional owners with cultural knowledge of Adjahdura Land, not only from government people but also from Non-Traditional Owners who are in positions of power. People who care very little about our heritage, who are blinded by greed and are more concerned with personal wealth than preserving what is left of Adjahdura heritage for future generations - and these same people have very little understanding of what our heritage means to us and what they are destroying and that these sites are a significant part of our life and culture. If these important places are being destroyed, our culture is also being destroyed - but these people don’t care about standing up for Aboriginal rights because in my eyes they are a lost people and they have lost their culture - and this is very sad.

Cultural Knowledge
Our knowledge comes from our ancestors  - knowledge that’s been handed down by word of mouth - from generation to generation - for thousands of years.  

See: Culture

Traditional Owners with Knowledge
The government don’t want to know or understand that only some of the families who are traditional owners of Adjahdura land have knowledge of our country, heritage and Dreaming stories. And the Non-Traditional owners who grew up on this land only have 100 years of history on this country because their families were herded like cattle to Point Pearce by governments when other Aboriginal missions from other parts of the state closed down.

The Traditional Owners with cultural knowledge of this country, who are the minority, have been pushed aside. Non-Traditional Owners in positions of power are having a lot to say about things they know very little about.

New Group Forms: Adjahdura Land Traditional Owners Group

The Narungga Heritage Committee and the Narungga Indigenous Land Use Agreement (ILUA)