Ancient sites

The practices of First Nations people, honed over thousands of years, weave science with storytelling. In this Indigenous science series, we look at different aspects of their life and uncover the knowledge behind them. Here we examine the chemistry and techniques behind perhaps the most iconic element of Indigenous life: rock art. - An article by Andrew Thorn, Lecturer in Stone Conservation, from the International Centre for the Study of the Preservation and Restoration of Cultural Property [node:read-more:link]

The NSW Labor Government sold the iconic The Drip gorge for $2084 in a 2010 lease conversion sale that cost a Chinese coal company less than $3 a hectare. The unpublicised $2084 conversion of more than 700 hectares of Crown land to freehold title in 2010, despite the community raising strong concerns about the possibility of such a conversion at least two years earlier, has shocked and angered groups fighting to protect the area. "They sold it for the price of a clapped-out second-hand car" said Environmentalist Bev Smiles [node:read-more:link]

In the past two years about 1500 sites have changed from being "registered" to "stored data", meaning they no longer warrant heritage protection. stated Academic, Professor Joe Dortch.

Most of those sites are in mining leaseholds belonging to Gina Rinehart and Andrew Forrest.Anthropologists are aghast at the interpretation, saying it's further evidence the Barnett government is taking Aboriginal heritage back 40 years. [node:read-more:link]

WA government fires have devastated have damaged the world-renowned Bradshaw collection on the Kimberley Plateau. These works are widely regarded as the oldest figurative paintings in the world, was recently damaged by fire, which locals claim was a result of the government's program. There are 8742 known examples of rock art in the Kimberley but their future looks bleak, with damaged sites stretching from Kununurra, along the Mitchell Plateau, across the Bungle Bungles to Faraway Bay. [node:read-more:link]

Be careful what you pray for. By proposing to strip away protection for Aboriginal people's heritage across the board, and throughout the State, the Barnett Government appears to have unwittingly conjured up a strong, united and angry Aboriginal coalition which is now mobilising against the AHA amendments.

Written Dr Stephen Bennetts, who is a consultant anthropologist that has worked with Aboriginal people in Northern Australia since 1994. [node:read-more:link]