Mt Warning Protest Australia Day 2023

 Mt Warning Protest Australia Day 2023

In the true spirit of reconciliation and looking towards a brighter future for all Australians, a small group of 7 walkers from Re-Open Mt Warning braved the darkness, heat, humidity and the leeches to be the first to see the sunrise on Australia Day this morning from the top of Mt Warning (wish I could have been among them). This small protest was intended to highlight continued management problems, delays and intransigence by NPWS in working with all stakeholders to re-open the park to all Australians.

The group were there with the blessing of Ngarkwal custodian Eelemarni Elizabeth Davis Boyd. At her request they played a song from the summit about the mountains west of Mount Warning sung by her grandmother, Millie Boyd in the hope that this magical song would influence the Aboriginal men responsible for the closure, and help them support the women in sharing the mountain with everyone.

A speech was read from the summit and its contents appear below.

Group at the summit (Picture credit AF)

First sunrays on Australia Day 2023 (Picture credit AF)

Speech read at the summit of Mt Warning Australia Day 26th January 2023 Welcome ALL Australians and thanks for joining us at dawn on Australia Day from the summit of Mt. Warning within the Wollumbin National Park, in Far North NSW. Sitting on top of this stunningly beautiful and sacred site we have just witnessed the first sunrays to strike our Australian mainland and feel very humbled and blessed. But we are not here for self-satisfaction or thrills but to strongly protest against the permanent closure of the Mt. Warning summit track. We are friends of Mt. Warning and seek to preserve this natural wonder for future generations. We wish to firstly highlight some uncomfortable truths involving the NSW National Parks & Wildlife service (NPWS) management, and secondly to launch our positive action plan to : Respect, Reconcile and Rejuvenate. Now the word ‘respect’ you may suddenly gasp! “How dare we utter that; today of all days! A day marked by increasing division and controversy!” Well the simple fact is we stand here at the top of Mt Warning with the formal permission of local Aboriginal custodian Eelemarni Elizabeth Davis Boyd of the Ngarkwal people (original custodians of Mt. Warning), daughter of Marlene Boyd and Grand-Daughter of famous activist Millie Boyd, a lady reknowned internationally as ‘a tribal clever woman’. Elizabeth supports the public access to this mountain as did her late mother, Marlene, who had the intelligent insight to state “ I do not oppose the public climbing of Mt Warning - how can the public experience the spiritual significance of this land if they do not climb the summit and witness creation!" A creation of a volcanic caldera that scientists estimate occurred 23 million years ago. So that leads to the very big and current media issue for NPWS, and that is who the heck have they appointed to sit on the Wollumbin Consultative Group (WCG), a group that is meant to be the VOICE of local Aboriginal people? Further , why wasn’t the original custodians, the Ngarkwal people NOT even invited to be a part of this group!? So embarrassing is this issue now that just 2 days ago the Gold Coast’s Yugambeh Clan has publicly expressed “grave concern about the composition of WCG, the processes that have followed to date, and lack of transparency by NPWS”. So what are these demands voiced by this ‘Faceless’ group. Well, all is disclosed in the 94 page ‘Wollumbin Management Plan’ endorsed by the Minister but the key point is the public will be banned and the mountain will be restricted to selected men only. Ngarkwal women are not included in the plan and will be banned from their important cultural sites. So wait up, in 2023, the National Parks and the Minister will now condone a blatant SEXIST policy! In effect making the mountain a selected Men’s only Private Club! Other demands, include the summit track to be consumed by the forest left with no trace! well..um…yes our local community has been rocked very badly by sequential flooding but droughts will return and possibly more severe with climate change so how will fire protection be managed without a proper track in the future? So without a track, a Park with no visitors, where goes our children’s opportunities for adventure and spiritual enlightenment? Elizabeth shares grave concerns for the disconnect of our youth and addiction to devices. With this current epidemic of anxiety and obesity surely reopening and rejuvenation is the correct moral direction. NPWS would have you believe the mountain is not safe to climb. Well within our group is Colesy a 71-year-old who underwent full hip replacement just 5 months ago and he managed to limp up here in the dark! The fact is, the hike is as safe as any other grade 5 hike in the NSW, and even in its current overgrown condition it still meets the criteria for a grade 5 hike. Yes it needs some maintenance, some rejuvenation, but it's not currently a safety issue for experienced walkers. We have provided a short list of simple pragmatic measures that would restore respectful access to the park and summit. Measures that responsible managers should have introduced 20 years ago to deal with concerns of safety, rubbish and human waste. Yes there are some problems but they are easily solvable and affordable. So why has National Parks been deceitful regarding its safety and not worked with the community to ensure tourists respect the mountain? Why? We call upon Minister for Environment & Heritage James Griffin for urgent inquiry and action of all of the above. The current State government has further failed to listen to the concerns of locals and the wider public who have made lasting memories by climbing this mountain. There are numerous local businesses that rely on the mountain for their livelihood. They face financial ruin if the mountain is not reopened. These are generally small family businesses that have been hard hit over the last three years. Their future now in the hands of this anonymous faceless group who will not speak with them. Will they be compensated for their losses? If the current state government refuses to listen, we call on the opposition leader Chris Minns to help rejuvenate the community of Murwillumbah. We also call upon the Prime Minister, Anthony Albanese, to listen to the Voices of the Ngarkwal women ignored for last 20 years by NPWS and help them look to a future where reconciliation has real meaning and the park is reopened for all Australians. Ngarkwal Elder, Elizabeth Davis Boyd, requested we play a recording of her grandmother “Millie’ singing a song about the mountains west of Mt Warning. She believes this song sung from the mountain will influence the Aboriginal men responsible for the closure, and help them support the women in sharing the mountain with everyone. Please listen…. Millie Boyd’s song played from the summit. https://www.instagram.com/reel/Cn3cmjzv1PH The group climbed with permission of local Aboriginal custodian Eelemarni Elizabeth Davis Boyd of the Ngarkwal people. Elizabeth requested the group play her Grandmother’s song about mountains west of Mt Warning from the summit in the hope it would influence the Aboriginal men responsible for the closure, and help them support the women in sharing the mountain with everyone.

Press coverage... https://www.couriermail.com.au/news/queensland/protesters-defy-mt-warning-ban-with-summit-climb/news-story/84079b6bee560231f58256160e138c4f