FREMANTLE’S inner harbour precinct should be ceded to the Whadjuk Aboriginal Corporation in preparation for its rebirth as a riverfront metropolis says a member of the corporation’s cultural advice committee.

Whadjuk traditional owner Joe Collard sits on a raft of cultural authority and state advisory committee and says moving the port’s container trade to Kwinana would free up 260 hectares of industrial land for development, providing the perfect opportunity to give Noongar people a long-overdue economic and physical foothold in the metropolitan area.

Future Fremantle

The idea was also floated last week in a proposed amendment to Fremantle council’s response to three Future of Fremantle options released by the Cook government, but was quickly dropped after mayor Hannah Fitzhardinge flagged concerns.

Mr Collard said the $1 billion South West Native Title Settlement initiated by the former Barnett government included a land acquisition component that had so far proven challenging for Noongar Whadjuks.

“Aboriginal land acquisition was included in the settlement; there’s 320,000 hectares of land, but in Perth there is none… they are being strategic about what land they’re offering,” Mr Collard said.

“We have not secured one parcel of land in the Perth area, and [the native title settlement] is supposed to be completed in five years, and three have already gone.

“We only have a small window… it’s a matter of urgency.”

• Cr Ben Lawver and Whadjuk traditional owner Joe Collard at Port Beach discussing handing freed-up port land to a Noongar corporation. Photo by Steve Grant

Mr Collard said colonisation had wiped out the Noongar footprint in Fremantle itself, and the Future of Fremantle process provided them the opportunity to re-establish it on the northern side of the river.

“I think it would be a great opportunity to get that land back.”

The native title deal also included a cash component, making regional corporations such as WAG well placed to enter joint ventures and partnerships with developers to lead the remediation and transformation of the area.

He describes the removal of asbestos and concrete as “caring for country” that was in desperate need of healing.

Mr Collard said case studies around the globe pointed to the economic and cultural benefits of Indigenous people having inner-city land, and he pointed to the La Perouse Local Aboriginal Land Council in Sydney as a prime example. It has a community hub built near surrounding housing and in March it was given additional heritage protection as an “Aboriginal place” by the NSW government.

While La Perouse has been used by the Kameygal people for thousands of years, it became a vital settlement when they were pushed out by Sydney’s colonial expansion, eventually being declared an Aboriginal mission.

Mr Collard said Noongar people were similarly pushed east as Perth expanded.

“This gives us the opportunity to bring our mob from the eastern suburbs and onto the coast; our people having the ability to get on our country – and that includes sea country.”

He says it could also provide a strong base for an Aboriginal tourism hub, saying previous efforts to spark the industry had been piecemeal and lacking a focus.

• Joe Collard and Ben Lawver want to see port land back in Noongar hands. Photo by Steve Grant

Reconciliation

Ms Fitzhardinge had raised concerns about the level of contamination WAC would inherit if it was ceded the land at last week’s council meeting, but Mr Collard said the corporation would be just as capable of overseeing its remediation as any owner and agreements would be negotiated with the state government during the transfer process.

“That’s what happens when you are in business; the government doesn’t just give it to the community and say ‘that’s yours’,” he said.

Hilton councillor Ben Lawyer put forward the amendment to support Indigenous ownership of the port land after attending a Future of Fremantle consultation session with Mr Collard, saying he supported the need to “something special” if the port was to be redeveloped.

“This is our opportunity to really think about changing the lives and the generations of the people that used to live here as part of our reconciliation journey,” Cr Lawyer said.

“If you look at it from a council point of view, it shouldn’t matter to us whether the Whadjuk Noongar Corporation develops a condo tower or Nigel Satterly – we’re still going to get rates.

“Our preference, I would think, should be to help and build the capacity within our local community.

“This is a significant piece of land and we can welcome them back to where their ancestors grew up.”

Cr Lawyer says he hopes the broader community will back the plan, but acknowledges it’s a bit of an unknown, particularly following the defeat of the Indigenous voice referendum.

“There’s never been something like this happen in Australia before, and so we will be leading the way, but having a position that says very clearly that this is the right thing to do, and that’s the way we continue our reconciliation journey, would be amazing.”

by STEVE GRANT