MEDIA RELEASE
19/10/05
3 pages
A carrot was dangled in front of the Narungga Nations Native Title negotiating committee - and together with the Aboriginal Legal Rights Movement (ALRM) and government - they SOLD OUT the traditional owners of this country.
My mother, Irene Agius and myself, we put forward 18 Objections to the Narungga Local Government ILUA and we expected the National Native Title Tribunal (NNTT) to come back to us after the deadline (28/9/05) to tell us that we were to go into mediation and talk about our objections with the other parties - but they never did. NNTT made a decision without mediation, without even talking to us. NNTT stated that because the other parties didn't want to talk to us, they (NNTT) made a decision using the documents that were submitted to them and they went ahead and endorsed the Narungga ILUA anyway.
The other parties didn't want to talk to us - so no mediation happened - how did they get away with that? We didn't even get a chance to see the letter written by ALRM about our objections before NNTT made their decision to endorse and register this ILUA. ALRM got the opportunity to comment about our objections to the ILUA but we didn't get the same right to comment about what they said about our objections - this whole ILUA process has been a farce.
My mother, Irene Agius, who is the state heritage rep for the region, was on the Narungga Nations Native Title negotiating committee for this Local Government Narungga ILUA before she got sick. Irene Agius said, "I didn't believe they were ever going to look after our heritage that is why I went on the negotiating committee Ð but I was sick for 10 months - I know our heritage wont be looked after by Narungga Nations. When I was going to meetings, before I got sick, they didn't listen to what I was saying. I questioned a lot of things they put in the ILUA - there was only me that was thinking opposite. When we were told at an ILUA meeting by a crown solicitor that government could extinguish our native title rights and build over our cultural sites if they wanted to - no one spoke up. The people at the meetings didn't know anything about our sites - we are the traditional owners of this country not them".
"When the Narungga Nations book got released and everyone could read for themselves who were the traditional owners of this country and who's families came from another country - the Narungga Nations committee didn't like that. Once they knew they weren't from this country that was it - they ganged up on us (traditional owners). They (Narungga Nations committee) told me I didn't know what I was talking about - they didn't talk to me - they didn't believe the stories I was telling them - they didn't want to know.
No one talked to me about the majority white Liaison committee or about the compensation. I didn't see a map of the ILUA area either. I was just mad at the way the meetings were being handled. As soon as I would open my mouth to say something they would jump down on me. I asked at meetings - what about our heritage, what's going to happen to our heritage - and I kept on telling them I want our burial sites left alone - but they just looked at me and smiled. I'm worried about our burial sites - what is going to happen to them now? I don't like this Narungga ILUA - it stinks. As it is now, council can extinguish our Native Title rights as they please - and they will, with the help of black fellas with no knowledge of our land.
They stole the land from us and they are still taking from us - where are we going to end up".
My mother Irene Agius is the state heritage rep for this region - she is the oldest traditional owner with cultural knowledge living on the Aboriginal community of Point Pearce. If they wont listen to her and wont respect what she has to say - then what hope have we got of preserving what's left of our heritage - and this state and local government, ALRM and the Narungga Nations committee, which is made up of mostly government yes men - are to blame.
Is ALRM under pressure from the government to railroad through these ILUAs? Yes they are. Our heritage is under threat and this process pushes the Narungga Heritage Committee aside - the people with knowledge. It puts our heritage in the hands of people who have little or no knowledge of our cultural sites, Dreaming stories and burial grounds.
There is nothing in this ILUA for our future generations. There is only a one off compensation payment of land - no more - which is worth about a toilet roll for each black fella on this country. There is only one job for one black fella for 5 years - no other jobs. The council will let us use some of their heavy equipment on a limited basis - for what purpose? Our Native Title rights will get extinguished on land that local and state government wish to develop. The Minister will still have the final say on whether our sites get destroyed for development. People with little or no cultural knowledge will now have a say on what happens to our heritage sites - and an ILUA liaison committee made up of mostly white fellas will be making recommendations.
This is disgraceful - I'm disgusted with the whole ILUA process - the true traditional owners of this country have been Sold Out and this state and local government, ALRM and the Narungga Nations committee are to blame.
I have been very critical of the way our heritage has been destroyed and the lack of respect shown from not only government people but also some of our own people as well. 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 our heritage for future generations - and these same people have very little understanding of what our heritage means to us and that it is an integral part of our life and culture and if our places of significance are destroyed, our culture is 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 because they are a lost people, and are in a position of power, like a bruised apple, they are going to rot and destroy what is left of our culture. How can these same people - with no knowledge - who have left us out of the consultation process - be put in charge of making decisions about our heritage? This ILUA has gone through without changes, without the Narungga Heritage Committee (NHC), the people who have the knowledge of this country, being involved.
There has been white fellas books written about our culture - and there are a lot of ways you can interpret what's been written in those books - but our knowledge comes from our ancestors - knowledge that's been handed down by word of mouth - from generation to generation - for thousands of years.
The government don't want to know that only some of the families who are direct descendants of the true traditional owners of Adjahdura land (Yorke Peninsula) have knowledge of our country, heritage and Dreaming stories. And some Aboriginal people 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 knowledge of this country, who are the minority, have been ignored. This is a very sorry day for our culture.
On behalf of my mother Irene Agius and myself:
Yours in unity
QUENTEN AGIUS
Direct descendant of the true traditional owners of Adjahdura Land (Yorke Peninsula)
Chairperson and Head Senior Monitor for NHC.
46 Maitland Rd, Point Pearce SA 5573 Mobile: 0429367121
Irene Agius
Direct descendant of the true traditional owners of Adjahdura Land (Yorke Peninsula)
Representative on the State Heritage Committee (Point Pearce, SA 5573)