Locals in small beachside communities in Queensland are furious after an aboriginal corporation insisted on holding a cultural festival on a protected native bird nesting site they claimed to be caring for and called their critics racist.
Hundreds of residents from Agnes Water and 1770 joined public meetings last moth and almost 10,000 signed a petition calling for the 1770 Cultural Connections Immersion Festival, held on October 4 and 5, to be moved away from the Rainbow bee-eater nesting site at the 1770 SES grounds.
But the Gidarjil Development Corporation, which in early September laid mesh and netting over the grounds to stop birds from nesting in peak breeding season ahead of the festival and parked trucks on top, rejected an offer from council to pay for the costs of moving the festival and accused locals of racism.
In a now-deleted post addressing the community anger the aboriginal corporation stated “our culture will not be silenced by RACIST AUSTRALIA” and claimed that “recent community disputes and boycotts have jeopardised conservation efforts, undermining Tradition Owners’ (sic) roles in wildlife management”.
Gidarjil, a registered charity that received almost $7 million in government funding last year, also put up signs saying “First Nations (sic) Rangers are caring for country in partnership with Gladstone Regional Council and DES, protecting the Rainbow bee-eater during its breeding season” in response to the outrage.
A community group responded by calling Gidarjil’s post “inflammatory” and “deeply disappointing” and called on Bundaberg-based corporation, to address the environmental evidence.
“Holding the festival directly on top of a breeding ground of a protected native species is not compatible with environmental stewardship. That is why so many have urged relocation or rescheduling, solutions that would allow both culture and wildlife to flourish without being in conflict,” the group said.
“False accusations of racism not only do nothing to resolve the issue, they actively divide the community and risk damaging the very festival Gidarjil claims to be protecting.”
One local resident wrote “our concerns are not about race, culture, or identity. They are about accountability, compliance with the law, and the protection of our environment and wildlife” and stressed that the opposition to the festival was purely about wildlife protection.
“The Rainbow Bee-eater (Merops ornatus) is a federally protected migratory bird species. Evidence shows active nesting sites are being disturbed in breach of the approved Species Management Program. This is a matter of environmental law and compliance – not cultural conflict,” she wrote.
“We respect and value the role of First Nations culture in our region, and we strongly reject any claim that our community is motivated by racism or hate. Our concerns are the same as they would be with any organisation or event causing harm to protected species and fragile ecosystems.”
Other residents hit out at the aboriginal corporation for the racism accusations, and there have been calls to “defund” the aboriginal corporation, while one told Noticer News there was a “disgusting double standard” at play.
“Pulling the racism card is about as weak a response you can give, this isn’t about people’s skin colour this is about a migratory bird. Next we will be labelled far right nazis. You deserve to be boycotted, I hope the whole of Agnes takes note of your gaslighting garbage,” wrote one man.
“They pull the race card when challenged. One person said it was their right as the birds are feral. That they are original owners and the birds have rights there. This is causing division in Australia,” said another.
“Time to start demanding our politicians stop giving our money to Gidarjil,” said a third.
A spokesperson for the Department of the Environment, Tourism, Science and Innovation told ABC News that wildlife specialists had visited the site and had not identified any “active nests”, defined as those containing eggs or offspring.
But Jodie Richards from the Gladstone Conservation Council said birds had dug dozens of nests, and that it was impossible to check for eggs without tampering with them.
The Rainbow bee-eater lays underground nests up to one metre long with a chamber at the end where the female lays up to eight eggs, and the SES ground was previously home to hundreds of nests.
Header image: Left, a marquee set up on the nesting ground. Right, a sign erected by the aboriginal corporation after complaints about the nests being disturbed (Facebook).
The post Fury as aboriginals hold festival on nesting site of native bird they claim to protect first appeared on The Noticer.
The Noticer
