WA COMMUNITY CLOSURES
Dear supporter, It is distressing that remote communities in WA are being targeted by the WA Government for closure – a reckless and harmful policy brought on by the withdrawal of Federal Government funding for essential municipal services. Again we find Aboriginal communities facing dispossession of their land and culture by Australian governments. Take action now! ANTaR believes in a fairer society that supports and promotes justice, rights and respect for First Peoples in Australia and we appreciate that you do too. Closing down remote Aboriginal communities in Western Australia is out of step with that vision so we’re asking you to stand with us in opposing it. Imminent Disaster Premier Barnett himself acknowledged that closing communities would:
“…cause great distress to Aboriginal people who will move, it will cause issues in regional towns as Aboriginal people move into them.”
Professor Patrick Dodson, Yawuru man from the Kimberley, said closing down communities would:
“…be disastrous, increasing access to drugs and alcohol and exacerbating social tensions, which would flow on to antisocial behaviour and incarceration. The immediate consequences would be to create an internal refugee problem for the indigenous people.”
He also said that breaking people’s connection to land:
“…would threaten the survival of Aboriginal knowledge and culture, because in towns people were restricted from camping, lighting fires, hunting and fishing.”
I’m sure you’ll agree that we can’t let this stand. Take action by writing to the Federal Minister for Indigenous Affairs, Premier of WA, and relevant WA Ministers. In solidarity, Andrew Meehan (and the team at ANTaR) National Director PS We could not find any examples of government decisions to refuse to fund essential municipal services for non-Indigenous communities, including small communities in remote areas in WA.