Victorian MP Anne Webster's cultural heritage speech triggers walkout

Australia Broadcast Center

18 hours ago

Local government representatives have walked out during National Party MP Anne Webster's speech at a national conference, calling comments she made about Aboriginal cultural heritage "appalling", "insensitive" and "really disrespectful".
Dr Webster's speech as shadow local government minister at the Australian Local Government Association (ALGA) general assembly in Canberra last week led to heckling from the audience and dozens of people, including ALGA board members, leaving the room, attendees told the ABC.
During the 20-minute address, attendees said Dr Webster repeatedly raised examples of native title and cultural heritage disputes in her electorate.
She questioned a cultural heritage declaration that paused the progress of a proposal to develop a caravan park and cabins on private land on the edge of Lake Tyrrell, near Sea Lake.
"It remains frozen to this day, but with no cultural artefacts found by their expert archaeologists," Dr Webster told the crowd.
She also said two-thirds of rock-climbing routes at Mount Arapiles were shut for "disputed" cultural heritage reasons "at the behest of the local Indigenous corporation" after sacred Indigenous rock art was rediscovered.
Dr Webster told the crowd some of the rock art "can't even be seen with the naked eye anymore".
Three mayors at the event told the ABC the rhetoric of the speech, which Dr Webster gave in front of several Indigenous mayors, councillors and chief executives, was "tone deaf", "appalling", "truly disgraceful", "really offensive" and "hugely inappropriate".
Berrigan Shire Mayor Julia Cornwell McKean, a Wiradjuri woman, said it was not the time for Dr Webster to claim native title was restricting councils from doing their job.
"It was just truly disgraceful for someone who has been a shadow minister for two seconds," Cr Cornwell McKean said.
"Quite frankly, I was stunned.
"I was just sitting there in disbelief that someone would use this valuable platform at this critical point in their career as a shadow minister to make points of this nature.
"It wasn't a topic for the National General Assembly, and a whole number of Indigenous people and people in the audience decided to leave the assembly at that time."
Byron Shire Mayor Sarah Ndiaye was among those who walked out.
She said when Dr Webster started to question how land where no artefacts were found was culturally significant, the speech moved into "really offensive territory" and identity politics.
"As if that's the only measure of cultural significance," Cr Ndiaye said.
"Anyone who knows anything about native title and cultural significance knows that's not the case at all.
Mildura Mayor Helen Healy, whose council is in Ms Webster's electorate, said the role of local government leaders was to bring people together, not divide them.
"It deeply troubles me that one of our most vulnerable communities is being used, and I'll refer to the words of the mayor of Palm Island speaking to delegates after the incident, as a 'political football to kick around'," Cr Healy said.
"Furthermore, with Indigenous Australian culture being a major driver of international tourism, what is it going to mean to the economies of our communities when a federal leader dismisses the cultural significance of Mallee places like Lake Tyrrell at Sea Lake?"
Wotjobaluk Wergaia Jaardwa Jardwadjali man Gary Murray said Lake Tyrrell, known as Direl, was a well-documented culturally significant place featuring burial sites and discovered objects that confirmed First Nations people, their ancestors and clans belonged to this country for millennia.
"Our unique cultural heritage is shared with all Australians, and this significant cultural heritage should never disappear from our country at the whim of a development or the need for a pollie's vote," Mr Murray said.
"After all, there is no other Direl place in the world with such documented significant cultural heritage linked to the astronomy, people, waters and landscape."
Archaeologist and Njeri Njeri and Wergaia man Mark Grist said Lake Tyrrell and its surrounds was a sensitive landscape and a special place with a rare sky story.
"It has a lot of archaeology history to it, and it also has a lot of oral history and it has the sky story, which is significant to the wider area of Lake Tyrrell," Mr Grist said.
"Whatever does happen at Lake Tyrrell has got to be done in a way that respects Lake Tyrrell, as a landscape and the people that use it as well, including my people, and we used it all the time."
Dr Webster told news.com.au a conversation about cultural heritage bans was worth having, and those who chose to walk out during her speech were known to cause "difficulty" to other councillors.
She told the ABC the comments she made on cultural heritage were consistent with statements she had publicly made before.
"I have been grateful for the significant number of ALGA delegates who have subsequently contacted me from all over Australia, wholeheartedly supporting my comments," Dr Webster said.
The shadow minister for Indigenous Australians and social services, Kerrynne Liddle, said Dr Webster's speech was about the impact the Native Title Act 1993 and the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Heritage Protection Act 1984 had on constituents and stakeholders.
"The issues raised by Dr Webster are not new and are often raised by traditional owners, constituents and developers in relation to the native title and cultural heritage acts across Australia," Senator Liddle said.