2020-11-03
A difficult year, raising all manner of challenges, and highlighting some ongoing ones like First Nations heritage
By Hon. Robin Chapple, MLC for Mining and Pastoral
Writing from the top end, near Broome, by the Yawuru calendar, we have entered into the season of Laja; the hot season marked by growing heat and cloud build-up. Down on Noongar Country we have entered Kambarang. Regardless of calendar, its certainly getting warmer. October is a time of action for Parliament as we rush to tie off the loose ends before the end of the year – and what a year it has been!
Over the last two months my Office and I have tackled myriad problems at local and State levels, in addition to fulfilling my Parliamentary duties. Firstly, and perhaps the most beneficial solution, was to sort out the banking in Derby. The bank was open and staffed for only a few hours a week; requiring elderly people to travel and wait for hours, with no guarantee of seeing a teller. After intervention, the bank has resolved to increase the staffing hours, as well as the level of training for tellers; ensuring that the community’s needs are being met.
While up in the Kimberley, I had the opportunity to attend a community engagement event with the Premier and Cabinet, with local opponents of fracking stealing the show. Whilst at the event, I had the opportunity to catch up with Kim Smith, Greens (WA) candidate for the Mining & Pastoral Region at the next election. The event was invaluable in terms of community engagement; Kim and I managed to speak to a number of people on a range of issues, providing a good starting point for the Greens’ (WA) future work in northern WA.
Additionally, I also attended the ‘Future Forum 2020 - Visions for the future of Aboriginal Heritage in Western Australia’ which was delivered by the Australian Association of Consulting Archaeologists (AACAI), Anthropological Society of Western Australia (ASWA) and the Australia International Council on Monuments and Sites (AICOMOS), in Fremantle earlier this month. This event was centred around the systemic problems with the WA heritage legislation; bringing together academics, Government, and First Nations’ voices. As you can imagine, it wasn’t an easy event – there were tears and anger from the wider community over the state of our heritage protections – but it was deeply moving to see so many champions for first nations heritage – many of whom are my dear friends and colleagues from over the years.
In other heritage matters, last month I presented to the Inquiry into the destruction of 46,000-year-old caves at the Juukan Gorge in the Pilbara region of Western Australia. My thoughts on this event are well-known however, I am sincerely hopeful that these discussions mark the turning point in the white-Australian treatment of First Nations heritage. Last week I also conducted an interview with Vice Australia, an international outlet who were focusing on the “how?” of the Juukan disaster, and the accumulation of errors that led us here.
On the run up to Christmas Parliament will be sitting longer and later, as we work through Government business. My office will also be keenly on the look out for environmental approvals which often get submitted over the busy November/December period. We will continue to closely watch the development of the new Aboriginal Heritage legislation, and provide support to the communities and people of the Mining and Pastoral Region.
Header photo: Candidate Kim Smith (left) with Robin Chapple (right), at the community engagement event in Broome.