Aboriginal leaders are urging the Tasmanian government to rule out reopening 4WD tracks on culturally significant land in the state s rugged northwest.
A cultural assessment report found a proposal to allow off-road vehicles on three tracks in the Arthur-Pieman Conservation Area does not minimise risk to Aboriginal heritage sites.
The tracks, which contain middens thousands of years old plus stone artefacts, were closed in 2012.
The Liberal government pledged to reopen them during the 2014 election campaign and had a legal challenge against the closure dismissed in the Federal Court two years later. This report . I think it will kill the idea that these areas should be subjected to 4WDs. The government doesn t really have anywhere to go, Aboriginal Land Council chairman Michael Mansell told AAP.
Tasmania s Aboriginal community outraged over government control of sacred Wargata Mina cave site
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FebFebruary 2021 at 1:16am
Members of Tasmania s Aboriginal community on a trip to Wargata Mina cave earlier this year.
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It is owned and managed by the Aboriginal community but the sacred Wargata Mina cave in southwest Tasmania is still being controlled by the State Government, according to Tasmania s Aboriginal Centre (TAC).
Key points:
The Wargata Mina cave in southwest Tasmania contains a series of hand stencils dating back over 15,000 years
The site is owned and managed by Tasmania s Aboriginal people, with the title transferred to the Aboriginal Land Council in 1995