Archives March 2015

There has been evidence that the First peoples were on this continent 60,000 years ago, but the work of Dr Peter Kershaw's palynology (the study of fossil pollen) research suggests that the first peoples were on the continent as long ago as 80,000 years earlier than that.
When specks of prehistoric pollen and charcoal embedded in the ocean floor off the Great Barrier Reef were analyzed it was discovered an abrupt change in the fossil pollen was recorded around 140,000 years ago. [node:read-more:link]

Western Australian Premier Colin Barnett originally said that he was closing down the remote Homelands communities because of the lack of funds. Now he is saying that he is doing it because of the 'appalling mistreatment of little children'.
Following Barnett's recent complete change of story, Ben Wyatt, the WA's opposition spokesman for Aboriginal affairs has described the new story as not the actions of a Premier but the actions of a desperate, despicable man. [node:read-more:link]

The Peak body for Indigenous legal services was denied funding under the Indigenous advancement strategy as $680m in grants handed out. The NSW ALS had its two applications rejected by the IAS scheme, including one for its existing custody notification service, which provides 24-hour legal advice and welfare support for Aboriginal people arrested in NSW. Some organisations said they did not know if or how much of a grant they had been given, or if funding would continue beyond the next 12 months. [node:read-more:link]

WA Premier Colin Barnett is looking for dirt in the poor under-resourced communities of remote Western Australia. He's peeping under every bed and under every tree searching for evidence to improve his argument to close down remote Homeland communities. The Western Australian government has done this at Lockridge in Perth's Swan Valley and then more recently at Oombulgurri in the North Eastern Kimberley. Colin Barnett has turned removals and dislocation of First Nations and Peoples to a new level. [node:read-more:link]

An Indigenous protest against remote community closures in WA has been dismissed by Aboriginal Affairs Minister Peter Collier as premature. Aboriginal activists have set up camp on Perth's Heirisson Island, creating what they describe as a "refugee camp" for Aboriginal people displaced by the Government's planned closure of up to 150 communities across WA. The group has written a letter to the WA Governor, in response to the State Government's pronouncement last year that they would close up to 150 Aboriginal communities. [node:read-more:link]

A group of Indigenous campers on Heirisson Island say the self-declared refugee camp is “for all homeless and displaced person” and not a protest. The camp has been running since Sunday, with a sign declaring the area “Private property of the Djurin Republic”. The group are reportedly also protesting the proposed closure of remote communities in the State’s north. “This is a refugee camp, and it’s dry and peaceful,” one camper Willow said. “It’s for all homeless and displaced persons, we are not protesting or declaring war. [node:read-more:link]

The Premier of Australia's wealthiest state Colin Barnett has, without notice or consultation, announced he is closing down 150 small towns in his state and has refused to meet the mayors or residents of these generally remote towns to discuss the matter. The Premier – Colin Barnett – said he had no other options after the Federal Government announced they would no longer fund essential services to the towns, instead providing a one-off payment of $90 million to the State Government to take responsibility. [node:read-more:link]

A group of First Nations women have established a 'Sovereign Tent Embassy' at Matargarup (Heirisson Island) WA which also hosts a "Refugee Camp" for their homeless sisters and brothers and for the displaced First Nations people from their Homelands. Elder Maureen Culbong said, "We will stand in even stronger numbers together than even the two years ago where we stood for so long. There are so many issues our peoples face that we need the Embassy as a place of sanctity for all those hurting ... " [node:read-more:link]