Need to protect first Australians

I noted the ABC Four Corners program on Monday, July 18, was concerned with the ongoing struggle between iron ore miner Twiggy Forrest and the Yindjibarndi Aboriginal Corporation of the Pilbara.

Forrest has a project worth $280 billion in country to which the Yindjibarndi people have native title.

He is offering the people $4 million per year and an investment in an employment scheme, over which they have no say or control.

There are four issues here.

The first is the money.

Four million dollars a year for a property worth 70 times this amount.

Secondly, the land owners lose control of their property, for them a sacred site.

Thirdly, they have no control over the employment scheme which simply places them under the control of the Forrest company.

Fourthly, the meeting shown on the ABC indicated that Aboriginal supporters of Forrest were bussed to the meeting.

It smells of a stacked meeting.

I worked for the Aboriginal people of the Pilbara and lived at Roebourne the place where this meeting was held.

The strong feeling returns to me that the first Australians need to be recognised as Australians.

This needs to be written into the Australian Constitution as Australians and so that they are not ignored or are put down, as is the case now.

Then powerful forces would find it more difficult to ignore the cultural and economic needs of the people with the oldest culture in the world.

Email, 19 Jul 2011 Noel Olive, Umina