Australian Aboriginal sacred site
An Australian Aboriginal sacred site is a place deemed significant and meaningful by Aboriginal Australians based on their beliefs. It may include any feature in the landscape, and in coastal areas, these may lie underwater. The site's status is derived from an association with some aspect of social and cultural tradition, which is related to ancestral beings, collectively known as Dreamtime (or the Dreaming/s), who created both physical and social aspects of the world. The site may have its access restricted based on gender, clan or other Aboriginal grouping, or other factors.
The sites are protected by various state- and territory-based legislation, and the federal Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Heritage Protection Act 1984 can be invoked as a "last resort" if the site is not considered adequately covered by legislation in the jurisdiction. The legislation also protects sites of archaeological, historical and cultural significance relating to Aboriginal peoples that may be unrelated to beliefs, and more commonly thought of as heritage sites.
Land and The Dreaming
The Aboriginal population of Australia is made up of around 500 tribes and nations, each with their own sacred places, animal totems and other items in the geographic area known as their ‘country’.[1]
Sacred sites are places within the landscape that have a special significance under Aboriginal tradition. Hills, rocks, waterholes, trees, plains and other natural features may be sacred sites. In coastal and sea areas, sacred sites may include features which lie both above and below water. Sometimes sacred sites are obvious, such as ochre deposits, rock art galleries, or spectacular natural features. In other instances sacred sites may be unremarkable to an outside observer. They can range in size from a single stone or plant, to an entire mountain range.[2]
The Dreaming refers collectively to Aboriginal religious beliefs. These beliefs endeavour to explain the questions of ultimate human reality, including the origins of humans and animals. The Dreaming is an ongoing phenomenon, incorporating the past, the present and the future. Aboriginal people believe that the Spirits who initially inhabited the land were their ancestors and their identity is derived from the Spirits from whom they descended. Particular tribes have their own totem which is an animal often native to their tribe's territory. Their traditional way of life is based on their relationship with the land, which they believe to be their origin, sustenance and ultimate destiny. They believe it is their duty to look after the land and take only what is needed. The beliefs of the Dreaming are diverse and various. They depend on an individual's tribe, gender, location and totem.
Traditional custodians and management
The traditional custodians of the sacred sites in an area are the tribal elders. "Sacred sites give meaning to the natural landscape. They anchor values and kin-based relationships in the land. Custodians of sacred sites are concerned for the safety of all people, and the protection of sacred sites is integral to ensuring the well-being of the country and the wider community."[2] These sites are or were used for many sacred traditions and customs. Sites used for male activities, such as initiation ceremonies, may be forbidden to women; sites used for female activities, such as giving birth, may be forbidden to men.
Legislation
Before 1965 there was no legislation protecting Aboriginal sites in Australia, with the exception of some regulations in the Northern Territory.[3] In 1965, the South Australian Government was the first to introduce legislation, and all other states have since done so.[3][4]
Legislation relating to the protection and management of sacred sites in Australia includes:
| Jurisdiction | Legislation |
|---|---|
| Commonwealth (Aust)[5][6] | Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Heritage Protection Act 1984[7] Aboriginal Land and Cultural Legislation Aboriginal Land Rights (Northern Territory) Act 1976[8] Native Title Act 1993[9] The Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act 1999[10] |
| Australian Capital Territory | Heritage Act 2004[11] |
| New South Wales | National Parks and Wildlife Amendment (Aboriginal Ownership) Act 1996[12] |
| Northern Territory | Northern Territory Aboriginal Sacred Sites Act 1989[13] Aboriginal Land Act 1978[14] |
| Queensland | Aboriginal Cultural Heritage Act 2003[15] |
| South Australia | Aboriginal Heritage Act 1988[16] |
| Tasmania | Aboriginal Relics Act 1975[17] |
| Victoria | Aboriginal Heritage Act 2006[18] |
| Western Australia | Aboriginal Heritage Act 1972[19] |
Criminal offences apply under Commonwealth and state and territory laws for unauthorised access to sacred sites. Damage to these sites can also result in civil penalties.[20]
Some examples
Some documented examples of Aboriginal sacred sites in Australia include:
- Baiame's Cave: south of Singleton, New South Wales
- Ban Ban Springs: near Gayndah, Queensland
- Kakadu National Park, Northern Territory was first inscribed on the List of World Heritage Sites in Oceania in 1981.[21]
- Willandra Lakes Region was inscribed on the World Heritage List in 1981 and included in the National Heritage List on 21 May 2007.[22]
- Murujuga (a.k.a. Burrup Peninsula or Dampier Peninsula): in the Pilbara Western Australia.[23]
- Uluru-Kata Tjuta National Park was added to the World Heritage List for cultural values in 1994 and is "associated with events, living traditions, ideas and beliefs".[24]
In the media
In June 2008 BBC released the series Ray Mears Goes Walkabout, composed of four episodes, where Mears tours the Australian outback. An accompanying hardcover book was published in the UK by Hodder and Stoughton in March 2008. In the series, Mears meets one of his heroes, Les Hiddins (a.k.a. "The Bush Tucker Man"), and he also headed to the Kimberley region to meet the reputed aboriginal artist and bush guide Juju Wilson.[25]
Threats to heritage sites
Juukan Gorge
In May 2020, in order to expand an iron ore mine, Rio Tinto demolished a sacred cave in Western Australia that had evidence of 46,000 years of continual human occupation.[26][27] Permission to destroy the site had been given in 2013 under the Aboriginal Heritage Act 1972 (WA), which is currently being reviewed. The destruction brought widespread criticism.[28][29]
Other sites in WA
"Blanket approvals" under Section 18 of WA's Aboriginal Heritage Act have been granted by the Government of Western Australia to mining companies which could be a threat to the safety of many other sites in the Pilbara and Goldfields regions of Western Australia. Aboriginal people have no power to object to such approvals, which allows corporations to disturb or destroy sites across wide areas. One example is the 148 square kilometres (57 sq mi) of Ngalia land in the Goldfields which contains seven sacred sites, and an area which includes 40 Banjima sites in the Djadjiling Range in the Pilbara.[30]
Canberra development
As of June 2020, the federal government has approved plans by a developer for a residential complex near Mount Ainslie in Canberra, on a site that has been deemed of Indigenous significance by archaeologists at the Geological Society of Australia and Geoheritage Australasia. The government has not consulted local elders or Aboriginal organisation, and a Department of Agriculture, Water and the Environment spokesperson said that it had not assessed the site for its Indigenous heritage (under heritage provisions of the EPBC Act) "as no world or national heritage sites were identified on the location". However, local Ngambri people say was used for sacred men's business; in addition, artefacts found there in 1933 are of enough significance to be displayed in the British Museum.[31]
See also
- Aboriginal sites of New South Wales
- Customary Aboriginal law
- Gamilaraay people
- Hindmarsh Island bridge controversy
References
- David L. Carmichael; Jane Hubert; Brian Reeves; Audhild Schanche), eds. (1997). Sacred sites, sacred places. Routledge. ISBN 978-0-415-15226-6.
- "What is a sacred site?". Aboriginal Areas Protection Authority. Northern Territory Government. Retrieved 12 February 2020.
- "The Recognition of Aboriginal Customary Laws and Traditions Today Recognition through Legislation". Recognition of Aboriginal Customary Laws (ALRC Report 31). Australian Law Reform Commission. Archived from the original on 19 April 2012.
- "Protection under state and territory laws". Australian Government Department of Environment, Sustainability, Environment, Water, Population and Communities. Archived from the original on 5 June 2013.
- Australia Government Dept of Sustainability, Environment, Water, Population and Communities. "Indigenous heritage laws". Retrieved 15 May 2013.CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
- "Protection under state and territory laws". Department of Environment and Energy. Retrieved 20 March 2018.
- Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Heritage Protection Act 1984 (Cth).
- Aboriginal Land and Cultural Legislation Aboriginal Land Rights (Northern Territory) Act 1976
- Native Title Act 1993 (Cth).
- The Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act 1999 (Cth).
- Heritage Act 2004 (ACT).
- National Parks and Wildlife Amendment (Aboriginal Ownership) Act 1996 (PDF)
- Northern Territory Aboriginal Sacred Sites Act 1989 (NT).
- "Aboriginal Land Act 1978". Australasian Legal Information Institute (Austlii). Retrieved 23 June 2020.
- Aboriginal Cultural Heritage Act 2003 (Qld).
- Aboriginal Heritage Act 1988 (SA).
- Aboriginal Relics Act 1975 (Tas).
- Aboriginal Heritage Act 2006 (Vic).
- Aboriginal Heritage Act 1972 (WA).
- Environmental Defenders Office (NT) Inc. "Protection of Aboriginal sacred sites". Archived from the original on 12 March 2015. Retrieved 15 May 2013.
- Australia. Dept of Sustainability, Environment, Water, Population and Communities. "Kakadu National Park, Northern Territory". Archived from the original on 25 August 2012.CS1 maint: uses authors parameter (link)
- Australia. Dept of Sustainability, Environment, Water, Population and Communities. "Willandra Lakes Region". Archived from the original on 5 June 2013.CS1 maint: uses authors parameter (link)
- Bednarik, Robert G. "Murujuga Rock Art Imperiled in Australia". Sacred Sites International Foundation. Archived from the original on 16 February 2012.
- "Archived copy". Archived from the original on 7 November 2017. Retrieved 1 November 2017.CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
- Katsoulis, Melissa (25 April 2008). "Ray Mears discusses bushcraft and his new book about the Australian outback". The Times. London. Retrieved 22 May 2010.
- "A 46,000-Year-Old Aboriginal Site Was Just Deliberately Destroyed in Australia". Science Alert. 28 May 2020. Retrieved 31 May 2020.
- "Mining firm Rio Tinto sorry for destroying Aboriginal caves". BBC News. 31 May 2020.
- "Rio Tinto blasts 46,000-year-old Aboriginal site to expand iron ore mine | Indigenous Australians". The Guardian. 26 May 2020. Retrieved 27 May 2020.
- "Rio Tinto's claim rejected as 'outrageous' after Aboriginal sacred site destroyed". SBS News. 27 May 2020. Retrieved 31 May 2020.
- Van Extel, Cathy; Borschmann, Gregg (18 June 2020). "ABC News (RN Breakfast)". Dozens more ancient heritage sites could be destroyed by Australian mining companies. Australian Broadcasting Corporation. Retrieved 23 June 2020.
- Evans, Jake (21 June 2020). "Doma development to be built over possible Aboriginal men's business site in Canberra". ABC News. Australian Broadcasting Corporation. Retrieved 25 June 2020.
Further reading
- "Sacred sites". Aboriginal Areas Protection Authority. Northern Territory Government.
- Turner, Rebecca (10 June 2020). "Juukan Gorge won't be the last priceless record of human history to be legally destroyed by mining". ABC News. Australian Broadcasting Corporation.