By Tom Flanagan
DARWIN — The Aboriginal traditional owners of the site of the proposed Jabiluka uranium mine have taken their struggle to stop the mine to the Federal Court. The validity of the Jabiluka mineral lease is being challenged by Yvonne Margarula, senior traditional owner and clan leader of the Mirrar people.
The legal challenge seeks orders preventing the minister for resources and energy, Senator Warwick Parer, from granting approval for Energy Resources of Australia Ltd. (ERA) to export Jabiluka uranium.
The challenge is based on the fact that control over the uranium in Jabiluka is vested in the Commonwealth under section 35 of the Atomic Energy Act (1953). The challenge argues that "no legislative or executive instrument of the Commonwealth has ever purported to assign any right, title or interest in the uranium within the Jabiluka lands to the Northern Territory, ERA or its predecessor in the Jabiluka project".
Instead, the Northern Territory Self-government Act of 1978 prevented the NT government from having any power over "prescribed substances within the meaning of the Atomic Energy Act 1953". As a result, the challenge argues, when the NT granted the mining lease in 1982, it had no title upon which it could validly do so.
Margarula has asked the Federal Court to declare the Commonwealth the owner of the Jabiluka uranium and to restrain the minister from granting any export approval for uranium within the Jabiluka lands.
The challenge argues that the Commonwealth can grant the right to mine its uranium only if it has the consent of the traditional owners. The traditional owners have made it clear that they do not consent to the mine.
Jacqui Katona, a spokesperson for the Mirrar people, addressed a 200-strong rally against uranium mining in Darwin on June 11. She pointed out that the proposed mine is in a world heritage area listed for both its environmental and cultural values.
Katona explained that the existing Ranger uranium mine had not benefited Aboriginal people in terms of improved housing, health, education or continuous employment.
She said that no-one even wanted to know about the social impacts of uranium mining until the traditional owners said they were opposed to the mine. Now, after much consultation and discussion among different clan groups, the traditional owners have decided to hand back the royalty money received so far.
Katona has travelled south to seek the support of environmental groups, trade unions and student organisations. She told the rally of the difficulty of stopping the mine, pointing to the powerful influence on government decision-making of the large corporations such as ERA.