Victoria's Treaty

[pmccarthy]

As you may know, Victoria has gone alone in establishing a treaty with the original inhabitants. Some parts of our administration are paralysed, particularly Parks Victoria which is progressively surrendering control.  Here is my own story, not related to Parks Vic. My daughter was partly burnt out by the bushfires in January and has been waiting for her block to be cleared. On the road outside her property is a gum tree which has old steps cut into it. The neighbour told her he cut them himself about 40 years ago. However, the Dja Dja Wurrung have identified it as a sacred tree. Thus, the land around it for a 10m radius is protected. The 10m radius comes one metre into my daughter's block. Contractors cannot enter her property until the property has been "blessed" by the Dja Dja Wurrung. She contacted the council to find out about the delay. They told her that lots of people are suffering the delay because the Dja Dja Wurrung are not doing blessings at present. It is nearly four months since the fire.

[old man emu]

The indigenous people of Victoria seem to be the most aggressive people in relation to demanding rrights based on cultural claims. Is that their interpretaion of "reconcilliation"?

[pmccarthy]

I should have made the title Victoria's Secret, because not many people know how serious it is. In a way it will be a good thing, because the other states and the Feds will have a chance to see how a treaty really works. 

 

Unfortunately, in my opinion, some of the so-called leaders are just in it for what they can get for themselves and close family. Some have criminal records or are known drug dealers. Some, perhaps many, have a tenuous claim to aboriginality. At present there is a fight to see who comes out in control or with veto rights on public lands. At the same time, as in the greater society, probably 90% are good people wanting to get on with their lives, but they are not the high-profile activists.

 

If you ask me for hard evidence I probably don't have any, just my own experiences and observations and those of people around me.