Just five weeks after being legislated, Roger Cook announces the WA government will be scrapping its Aboriginal Cultural Heritage Laws which he says caused 'division' and 'confusion' in the community.
The day after the Garma Festival wraps up we get confirmation of this from the WA government.
One has to wonder how Albanese thought himself capable of convincing the Australian public of a need to listen to First Nations voices when this and similar issues are rife within his own party. For the stakes the referendum has put on the table for First Nations people Labor isn’t fighting near hard enough. Publicly or internally.
The new laws were so broad, that any homeowner whose house sits on more than 1100m^2 could be covered. And if you’re near a body of water, assessment becomes mandatory for anything ground disturbing. So the owner of a 3x1 on 1/3rd of an acre in Cannington would need to pay thousands of dollars for an assessment if they want to plant a tree in their backyard - does that seem reasonable?
Yes. How do you think council heritage overlays and easements work?
We already have these sorts of structures, assessments processes, and limitations in place under the Crown. It’s reasonable to expect a First Nations equivalent.
An easement is listed when you buy a property. It’s detailed on the property title, and has drawings showing where it is, and who has access.
These new laws were the complete opposite - as long as the property was larger than 1100m^2, it was assumed to be of cultural significance until proven otherwise. The landowner needs to notify aboriginal people (whoever that is?), then they take their feedback to apply for a permit from the government, then the government will notify aboriginal people (again, who?) then based on their feedback will issue a permit (or not). And this same process would apply wether you’re fixing the retic in your suburban backyard, or digging a billion tonne open cut mining pit in the Pilbara.
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