Mr SETTER - 1997-04-29
Is it true that Aboriginal people in remote areas around Australia are being told by Aboriginal and green activists that uranium mined in Australia is responsible for disasters such as Chernobyl?
ANSWER
Mr Speaker, I am quite appalled at the latest events in the debate over the proposal to mine uranium at Jabiluka, near the Ranger uranium mine. It appears now the debate over the proposed Jabiluka project has been hijacked by the green movement for an Australia-wide anti-uranium campaign. Members would be aware from press reports that a meeting was held in Alice Springs on 19 and 20 April under the banner of an Alliance Against Uranium. A media release was issued by the group. It stated that the meeting was attended by Aboriginal people from the Northern Territory, South Australia, Western Australia and Queensland, together with national, state and regional environmental groups. The media release stated:
The meeting resolved to work actively to oppose the new
push for mines. Strategies have been developed and
Aboriginal representatives will be shortly travelling
to Canberra, Sydney and Melbourne to take their message
to the Australian people.
I am concerned about the kind of information being peddled to the Australian public, particularly Aboriginal people, by the activists who are behind this campaign. The level of emotive and misleading information is evidenced by the meeting declaration which was issued in the name of 5 Aboriginal clans involved. It stated:
We share concerns at the local, national and
international impacts of present and proposed uranium
mines. We do not want uranium from our country to be
used to hurt other peoples. The Aboriginal experience
with uranium mining continues to result in genocide of
our community and destruction of our homelands and
country.
The claims became even more emotive and outrageous in subsequent media interviews.
Mr Bell: They were as bad as the Chief Minister's, weren't they?
Mr Toyne: You would know all about misinformation on that side.
Mr SPEAKER: Order!
Page 2072
Mr MANZIE: They cannot help themselves, because the Labor Party opposes uranium mining. We know about its 3-mine policy. We know that it wants to close the industry down, to prevent jobs ...
Mr Bell: Get out of here, Daryl.
Mr MANZIE: The member for MacDonnell is notorious in this House. Whenever something crosses Labor Party policy, he has to interrupt in an effort to prevent ...
Mr BELL: A point of order, Mr Speaker! I do not mind the member for Sanderson telling lies about the CLP, but when he tells lies about what is Labor Party policy ...
Mr SPEAKER: Order! The member will withdraw that remark.
Mr BELL: I withdraw the remark and replace it with `quite inaccurately characterising' what Labor Party policy ...
Mr SPEAKER: There is no point of order.
Mr MANZIE It is amazing. I wonder where the 3-mine policy came from if it did not come from Labor Party policy. Gee, they have short memories.
Mr Bell: You blokes lived with it for 13 years.
Mr MANZIE: If the member for MacDonnell would be quiet, there are Territorians who would like to hear what is happening in the Territory that might prevent people obtaining jobs and Aboriginal people making gains. Of course, the member for MacDonnell does not care. He just wants the community to be ...
Members interjecting.
Mr SPEAKER: Order!
Mr MANZIE: It really is interesting ...
Mr Bailey: Back to the script.
Mr SPEAKER: Order!
Mr MANZIE: The member for Wanguri is trying now to prevent Territorians receiving this information. It is disgraceful, but I will continue.
On ABC Territory Radio, on 21 April, Jacqui Katona, who I am sure honourable members will realise is doing her best to try to undermine the Jabiluka project, claimed:
This mineral has international impacts. We have heard at the meeting this weekend the impact of uranium mining when it ended up in a reactor over at a place called Chernobyl. People were horrified to see the type of destruction that
Page 2073
has been wreaked on other people's land as a result of
the uranium that is sold by Australia.
The Australian Conservation Foundation's Dave Sweeney continued with that sort of nonsense on 5-CK radio on 22 April:
After presentations from anti-nuclear environmental
activists and experts there, a lot of Aboriginal people
said, `We have never heard this before. We have never
heard that radioactive waste lasts as long as this. We
have never heard that Chernobyl was so bad. We were
told there were 12 people, 13 people, killed in a fire.
We have never heard of this'.
The main reason why Aboriginal people had not heard many of these things is because they are blatantly untrue. It is clear that Aboriginal people are being told by environmental activists that uranium, mined on their land, is responsible for disasters like Chernobyl. Aboriginal people are being clearly misled in an attempt to obstruct the Australian uranium mining industry. Then, having horrified Aboriginal people with stories about events that have had absolutely nothing to do with Australian uranium, the activists are now telling the Australian public that Aboriginal people are strongly opposed to uranium mining. That has to be one of the most appalling examples of manipulation of Aboriginal people that I have ever been aware of. It can be described only as an utter disgrace. If the truth were told, Aboriginal people would be advised that Australia's uranium mining is the cleanest in the world. They would be advised that Ranger is the most regulated mine in the world. They would be advised that Australian mining is strictly monitored to ensure that the uranium produced is used only for peaceful purposes, under a very strict safety and storage regime, in countries which permit independent auditing to ensure that standards are maintained.
I believe that the so-called Aboriginal-environmentalist alliance is a worrying development for Australia's mining industry. These people have shown that they have absolutely no regard for the truth. They will say anything to oppose a project which does not fit with their ideology.
Mr Bailey interjecting.
Mr Ah Kit interjecting.
Mr MANZIE: It is a joke for those people over there. The Labor Party opposition members in this House continually project anti-development, anti-jobs views. Whenever details are given of their friends and their travelling companions trying actively to prevent development in the Territory, they try to make a joke of it or to interfere when government members seek to provide that information over the radio. They are a disgrace in their attitudes, their policies and their behaviour.
I have written to the federal Ministers for the Environment and Primary Industries and Energy to advise them of this new anti-uranium campaign. I will be following that up with industry and other interested groups. I say to all members of our community that we must expose this campaign for what it is. It is a campaign of lies, manipulation and dirty tricks.
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ANSWER
Mr Speaker, I am quite appalled at the latest events in the debate over the proposal to mine uranium at Jabiluka, near the Ranger uranium mine. It appears now the debate over the proposed Jabiluka project has been hijacked by the green movement for an Australia-wide anti-uranium campaign. Members would be aware from press reports that a meeting was held in Alice Springs on 19 and 20 April under the banner of an Alliance Against Uranium. A media release was issued by the group. It stated that the meeting was attended by Aboriginal people from the Northern Territory, South Australia, Western Australia and Queensland, together with national, state and regional environmental groups. The media release stated:
The meeting resolved to work actively to oppose the new
push for mines. Strategies have been developed and
Aboriginal representatives will be shortly travelling
to Canberra, Sydney and Melbourne to take their message
to the Australian people.
I am concerned about the kind of information being peddled to the Australian public, particularly Aboriginal people, by the activists who are behind this campaign. The level of emotive and misleading information is evidenced by the meeting declaration which was issued in the name of 5 Aboriginal clans involved. It stated:
We share concerns at the local, national and
international impacts of present and proposed uranium
mines. We do not want uranium from our country to be
used to hurt other peoples. The Aboriginal experience
with uranium mining continues to result in genocide of
our community and destruction of our homelands and
country.
The claims became even more emotive and outrageous in subsequent media interviews.
Mr Bell: They were as bad as the Chief Minister's, weren't they?
Mr Toyne: You would know all about misinformation on that side.
Mr SPEAKER: Order!
Page 2072
Mr MANZIE: They cannot help themselves, because the Labor Party opposes uranium mining. We know about its 3-mine policy. We know that it wants to close the industry down, to prevent jobs ...
Mr Bell: Get out of here, Daryl.
Mr MANZIE: The member for MacDonnell is notorious in this House. Whenever something crosses Labor Party policy, he has to interrupt in an effort to prevent ...
Mr BELL: A point of order, Mr Speaker! I do not mind the member for Sanderson telling lies about the CLP, but when he tells lies about what is Labor Party policy ...
Mr SPEAKER: Order! The member will withdraw that remark.
Mr BELL: I withdraw the remark and replace it with `quite inaccurately characterising' what Labor Party policy ...
Mr SPEAKER: There is no point of order.
Mr MANZIE It is amazing. I wonder where the 3-mine policy came from if it did not come from Labor Party policy. Gee, they have short memories.
Mr Bell: You blokes lived with it for 13 years.
Mr MANZIE: If the member for MacDonnell would be quiet, there are Territorians who would like to hear what is happening in the Territory that might prevent people obtaining jobs and Aboriginal people making gains. Of course, the member for MacDonnell does not care. He just wants the community to be ...
Members interjecting.
Mr SPEAKER: Order!
Mr MANZIE: It really is interesting ...
Mr Bailey: Back to the script.
Mr SPEAKER: Order!
Mr MANZIE: The member for Wanguri is trying now to prevent Territorians receiving this information. It is disgraceful, but I will continue.
On ABC Territory Radio, on 21 April, Jacqui Katona, who I am sure honourable members will realise is doing her best to try to undermine the Jabiluka project, claimed:
This mineral has international impacts. We have heard at the meeting this weekend the impact of uranium mining when it ended up in a reactor over at a place called Chernobyl. People were horrified to see the type of destruction that
Page 2073
has been wreaked on other people's land as a result of
the uranium that is sold by Australia.
The Australian Conservation Foundation's Dave Sweeney continued with that sort of nonsense on 5-CK radio on 22 April:
After presentations from anti-nuclear environmental
activists and experts there, a lot of Aboriginal people
said, `We have never heard this before. We have never
heard that radioactive waste lasts as long as this. We
have never heard that Chernobyl was so bad. We were
told there were 12 people, 13 people, killed in a fire.
We have never heard of this'.
The main reason why Aboriginal people had not heard many of these things is because they are blatantly untrue. It is clear that Aboriginal people are being told by environmental activists that uranium, mined on their land, is responsible for disasters like Chernobyl. Aboriginal people are being clearly misled in an attempt to obstruct the Australian uranium mining industry. Then, having horrified Aboriginal people with stories about events that have had absolutely nothing to do with Australian uranium, the activists are now telling the Australian public that Aboriginal people are strongly opposed to uranium mining. That has to be one of the most appalling examples of manipulation of Aboriginal people that I have ever been aware of. It can be described only as an utter disgrace. If the truth were told, Aboriginal people would be advised that Australia's uranium mining is the cleanest in the world. They would be advised that Ranger is the most regulated mine in the world. They would be advised that Australian mining is strictly monitored to ensure that the uranium produced is used only for peaceful purposes, under a very strict safety and storage regime, in countries which permit independent auditing to ensure that standards are maintained.
I believe that the so-called Aboriginal-environmentalist alliance is a worrying development for Australia's mining industry. These people have shown that they have absolutely no regard for the truth. They will say anything to oppose a project which does not fit with their ideology.
Mr Bailey interjecting.
Mr Ah Kit interjecting.
Mr MANZIE: It is a joke for those people over there. The Labor Party opposition members in this House continually project anti-development, anti-jobs views. Whenever details are given of their friends and their travelling companions trying actively to prevent development in the Territory, they try to make a joke of it or to interfere when government members seek to provide that information over the radio. They are a disgrace in their attitudes, their policies and their behaviour.
I have written to the federal Ministers for the Environment and Primary Industries and Energy to advise them of this new anti-uranium campaign. I will be following that up with industry and other interested groups. I say to all members of our community that we must expose this campaign for what it is. It is a campaign of lies, manipulation and dirty tricks.
Page 2074
Last updated: 09 Aug 2016