Aborigines reject heritage amendments
By Leon Harrison
PERTH — Western Australian Aboriginal communities and the Aboriginal Legal Service have condemned the state government's proposed Aboriginal Heritage (Amendment) Bill.
In the words of the Kimberley Land Council, the bill "discriminates against Aboriginal people, does not protect places of significance and threatens to extinguish Aboriginal title. The WA government deserves no respect from Aboriginal people because of its cynical and hypocritical actions."
The government has been criticised for allowing only 30 days for discussion of the bill and for not consulting Aboriginal communities in its formulation.
Criticism has so far centred on the definition of "Aboriginal custodian"and the exemption of the crown from the Aboriginal Heritage Act.
Traditional Aboriginal communities view the definition of "Aboriginal custodian" with concern, because, as the Ngalia Council in Wiluna said, it does not distinguish between traditional owners and "pro-mining renegade Aborigines who have no genuine ties to the land".
Under another section, the minister can suspend the operation of the act "if the Minister considers it necessary for the health and safety of the public or any section thereof that certain works be undertaken as a matter of urgency".
No terms or phrases in this section are defined, which leaves the provision open to abuse by the minister and government.