Aboriginal Law Bulletin --- "News - Cultural Survival; Perth's Fringedwellers" [1985] AboriginalLawB 67; (1985) 1(16) Aboriginal Law Bulletin 13

• News
• Cultural Survival
• Perth’s Fringedwellers

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News

Cultural Survival

Cultural Survival is a non-profit organisation whose aim is to promote the interests and welfare of indigenous people. As part of its work it wishes to develop a network with other organisations and indigenous groups working towards similar goals.

Cultural Survival publishes an excellent journal and is attempting to set up as many exchange subscriptions as possible.

In addition it publishes an international list of indigenous groups and groups of like interest and is thus wanting organisations to let it know they exist.

Enquiries: Elizabeth Pockel,
Cultural Survival Inc.,
11 Divinity Avenue,
Cambridge, Mass. 02138, U.S.A.

Perth’s Fringedwellers

The Fringedwellers of the Swan Valley have asked for support to help keep their homelands at Lockrdge, WA.

For three years the Metropolitan Regional Planning Authority of WA has been trying to build a road, the Midland Western Link Road, through the Lockridge camp site, cutting diagonally through the Fringedweller Aboriginal homelands, even though the Museum of WA has registered the camp site as sacred ground and it would be an infringement of the WA Aboriginal Heritage Act to build the road.

Nevertheless, the Aboriginals have been in a deadlock for three years, and their submissions to Premier Burke and their submission to the Metropolitan Regional Planning Authority dated 18 July 1985 have produced no results, and their letter to the WA Minister with Special Responsibilily for Aboriginal Affairs, Keith Wilson, of 20 February 1984, has not been answered.

Lockridge is 'the last bit of bushland, the last bit of space of our homegrounds left in the Swan Valley ... we've been pushed to the edge of the swamp.' Now it looks like the road will go through.

Mrs Pat Byrnes of the Department of Anthropology, University of WA, has said that Lockridge camp site is most likely to be a'personal place' or similar place of considerable significance to the Aborigines living there and others in the Swan Valley.

The Fringedwellers have been supported by Bishop Challen, Chair of Anglicans Concerned for Aborigines, whose letter to the road consultants 9 February 1984 stated that the Lockridge traffic flow could easily be diverted to other routes and any traffic from the Western area to and from the Midland centre could be handled by minor improvements to the existing road.

Correspondence:
Metropolitan Regional Planning Authority
22 St Georges Tce, Perth 6000

WA Museum, (regarding the over-riding of a sacred site designation).
Francis St, Perth 6000

Mr P. Prince, Study Director, R. Travers Morgan P/L,
GPO Box T1624, Perth 6001.