Juukan Gorge inquiry: Rio Tinto's decision to blow up Indigenous rock shelters 'inexcusable'
Source: The Guardian
Juukan Gorge inquiry: Rio Tinto's decision to blow up Indigenous rock shelters 'inexcusable'
Parliament committee says miner must negotiate a compensation deal with traditional owners and ‘ensure a full reconstruction’ of the caves
Calla Wahlquist and Lorena Allam
Wed 9 Dec 2020 09.37 GMT
A parliamentary inquiry into the destruction of 46,000-year-old caves has delivered a scathing report criticising the actions of Rio Tinto and calling for the Western Australian government to put a stop to the destruction of heritage until new laws are passed.
The majority bipartisan interim report said Rio Tinto’s decision to destroy two rock shelters in Juukan Gorge, against the wishes of the traditional owners and despite knowing the archaeological value of the site, was “inexcusable”.
“Rio knew the value of what they were destroying but blew it up anyway,” the report said.
The report recommended a moratorium on the approval of all new section 18 approvals under the Aboriginal Heritage Act until new laws are passed next year – unless it can be “established and verified that there is current free, prior and informed consent obtained from Traditional Owners”.
It also called for mining companies to introduce a voluntary moratorium on acting on existing approvals, under section 18 of the Western Australian legislation, to destroy sites.
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Read more: https://www.theguardian.com/australia-news/2020/dec/09/juukan-gorge-inquiry-rio-tintos-decision-to-blow-up-indigenous-rock-shelters-inexcusable