New Delhi: A group of First Nations indigenous people who have occupied the site of Adani’s Carmichael coal mine in Queensland, Australia for the past five weeks have been told by the police that they will not be forcibly removed from the area.
According to The Guardian, the group of people belong to the Wangan and Jagalingou group and are traditional owners who are opposed to the mine. They began an “ongoing cultural ceremony” within the boundary of Adani’s mining lease in late August.
The report says that Adani described the group as “anti-fossil fuel activists” who are “trespassing under the guise of traditional activity”.
In an audio recording accessed by The Guardian, police officers can be heard telling the group of indigenous people that they understand “that your connection to culture is disappearing and you don’t want to lose that.”
“At the moment you guys are here and you’re practising culture, and part of that under the Human Rights Act is for that to be practised and shared. We have no intention at this time is to come in [and remove you], our intention is to support you through that [and] mediate the two groups,” the officer says.
Provisions of the 2019 Queensland Human Rights Act recognises cultural rights to conduct a ceremony.
“Initially we were here [because Adani] were making a complaint against you guys being here, at this time that is not the case. Please note we are not the enforcers here. If they want to do something they’ve got their legal avenues they need to take,” the officer continues, according to The Guardian.
A formal statement issued by the police said that Adani’s complaint is still being investigated.
“A police command team, including police negotiators and police liaison officers have been in negotiations with all stakeholders involved,” the statement said.
“This includes people at the camp, mining employees and executives from government departments with a view to obtain a peaceful and non-disruptive resolution into the future.”
Wangan and Jagalingou Council leader Adrian Burragubba leads a protest against the Adani Carmichael project. Photo: WJWarriors/Twitter
The Guardian said that Queensland police’s refusal to remove the group “potentially paves the way for an ongoing standoff at the mine … between Adani and Indigenous protesters”.
Though Adani has a formal land-use agreement with the Wangan and Jagalingou people, the project is opposed by some traditional owners. There have been several protests against the mine.
Also Read: Adani’s Australia Story: What’s the Fuss All About?
Coedie McAvoy, a Wangan and Jagalingou man, told The Guardian that the group was “practising our culture and performing traditional ceremony on our home lands, the place of our ancestors”.
“The police came in with the understanding that we are practising our human rights. They accepted that we have human rights pursuant to section 28 of the Queensland Human Rights Act and they quoted that section knowing that we are asserting that right. It’s phenomenal that they actually understand the rights that we are asserting,” he said.
Adani described the group who have occupied land in the mine’s boundary as “anti-fossil fuel activists” who were unlawfully trespassing.
“We are supportive of our traditional owners undertaking cultural practices and ceremonies on their traditional lands and as a responsible landholder we will continue to ensure that when people do wish to access our land properties, they are able to do so in a planned, safe, and respectful manner. However, we won’t tolerate criminal activity on our mining lease, nor anti-fossil fuel activist group Frontline Action on Coal cloaking their anti-coal protest camp and trespassing under the guise of traditional activity,” the company said in a statement, according to the newspaper.
The Adani group bought the coal tenements in 2010 and expected to begin production in 2014. The company had expected to reach peak production of 60 million tonnes of coal a year by 2022. However, production has yet to begin.
The project is also facing financing woes, with key insurers dropping out, with banks and financial institutions deeming the project unbankable.