MARALINGA TJARUTJA LAND RIGHTS (MISCELLANEOUS) AMENDMENT BILL

Standing Orders Suspension

The Hon. J.W. WEATHERILL (Cheltenham—Minister for Environment and Conservation, Minister for Early Childhood Development, Minister for Aboriginal Affairs and Reconciliation, Minister Assisting the Premier in Cabinet Business and Public Sector Management) (11:02): I move:

That standing orders be so far suspended as to enable the introduction forthwith and passage of a bill through all stages without delay.

The SPEAKER: There being an absolute majority of members present, I accept the motion.

Motion carried.

Introduction and First Reading

The Hon. J.W. WEATHERILL (Cheltenham—Minister for Environment and Conservation, Minister for Early Childhood Development, Minister for Aboriginal Affairs and Reconciliation, Minister Assisting the Premier in Cabinet Business and Public Sector Management) (11:02): Obtained leave and introduced a bill for an act to amend the Maralinga Tjarutja Land Rights Act 1984. Read a first time.

Second Reading

The Hon. J.W. WEATHERILL (Cheltenham—Minister for Environment and Conservation, Minister for Early Childhood Development, Minister for Aboriginal Affairs and Reconciliation, Minister Assisting the Premier in Cabinet Business and Public Sector Management) (11:03): I move:

That this bill be now read a second time.

The Maralinga Tjarutja Land Rights (Miscellaneous) Amendment Bill 2009 transfers section 400 Out of Hundreds (Maurice) to the Maralinga Tjarutja people. It also includes measures to improve the governance of the Maralinga Tjarutja Corporation and authorises it to make by-laws, subject to ministerial approval, to better control substance misuse on the lands.

Between 1953 and 1963 the Maralinga lands were used by the British government for the testing and development of nuclear weapons. This resulted in significant contamination of the land by radioactive substances and other hazardous materials. It also resulted in loss of access to the test site land by the Maralinga Tjarutja traditional owners for a significant number of years to date. Access to section 400 remains restricted to those permitted entry by the commonwealth government.

In 1984 the South Australian government granted a significant portion of the Maralinga lands to the Maralinga Tjarutja people. However, sections of the land at Emu (section 1486) and Maralinga (section 1487) and section 400 were not handed back at that time as the results of a joint state/federal government radiation survey in May 1984 had found that there remained significant radioactive contamination of those areas.

In 1991, after a program of minor works, the South Australian government transferred the ownership of section 1486 (Emu) and section 1487 to Maralinga Tjarutja.

Section 400 has been the subject of more extensive rehabilitation work as part of the 1995-2000 Maralinga Rehabilitation Project, described in the Maralinga Rehabilitation Technical Advisory Committee (MARTAC) Report 'Rehabilitation of Former Nuclear Test Sites at Emu and Maralinga (Australia, March 2003)'.

This work has reduced the radiation levels to the MARTAC clearance criteria that were agreed to by the commonwealth, the state and Maralinga Tjarutja, and section 400 is now in a condition such that it can be returned to Maralinga Tjarutja.

Section 400 is the only remaining parcel of land yet to be handed back to Maralinga Tjarutja. It is presently vested in the commonwealth government and dedicated in trust as a reserve for defence purposes under the SA Crown Lands Act 1929. If this bill is passed, the commonwealth will return the land to South Australia for transfer of the freehold title to Maralinga Tjarutja.

Critical in the negotiations with the commonwealth has been our position that the state would not accept the transfer of the land unless it, and Maralinga Tjarutja, were provided with an indemnity for all claims where the loss is directly or indirectly related to the contamination of the land as a result of the British nuclear test program. We considered that as the commonwealth was responsible for the contamination of section 400, it should accept liability for damage arising from that contamination. I am pleased to report that, after several years of negotiation, the commonwealth has provided the required indemnity within the Handback Deed. The indemnity covers not only section 400 but also the contamination at section 1486 (Emu) and section 1487.

Out of an abundance of caution, the bill also amends the Maralinga Tjarutja Land Rights Act 1984 to provide that no liability attaches to the state in relation to any injury, damage or loss caused by or in any way related to the British nuclear test program conducted at the Maralinga nuclear test site.

Although the 1995-2000 Maralinga Rehabilitation Project left the Maralinga site in a safe state, there will need to be periodic monitoring of the radiological status of the site to ensure the continuing effectiveness of the rehabilitation works and, if necessary, remedial action undertaken.

The Maralinga Land and Environment Management Plan sets out the ongoing responsibilities of the stakeholders to maintain the security of the buried radioactive materials for the ongoing protection of people and the environment. In addition to section 400, the plan covers section 1486 at Emu, section 1487 at Maralinga and other adjacent land affected by the British atomic tests.

Land management issues in relation to the British nuclear tests will be dealt with by the Maralinga Land and Environmental Management Committee comprising a state government representative, a Maralinga Tjarutja representative, and an Australian government representative. The committee will oversee the implementation of the Maralinga Land and Environment Management Plan.

Section 400 contains a licensable amount of radioactive material, and the South Australian Environmental Protection Authority will register and regulate the land under the Radiation Protection and Control Act 1982 following its transfer. However, pursuant to the plan, the commonwealth must at its expense maintain the physical structures built at Maralinga during the 1995-2000 rehabilitation project, monitor radiation levels and review radiation protection principles and standards.

In response to concerns about the potential risks associated with significant ground disturbance, mining activities will be prohibited on sections 400, 1486 and 1487. There are currently several petroleum and mineral tenements that cover those sections. The bill will vary these tenements to excise from them any lands within those sections. A review of the prohibition must be carried out within five years of the land transfer, and the report will be tabled in parliament. Whilst the prohibition may bring some criticism from the mining industry, the areas affected are only approximately 3 per cent of the total area of the Maralinga Tjarutja lands. Furthermore, permitting mining would place the state and Maralinga at financial risk because the indemnity provided by the commonwealth does not cover losses that arise from ground disturbance due to mining or exploration.

Section 400 contains what remains of the Maralinga Village constructed by the British government in 1955. The village has a number of large buildings as well as power generation and water reticulation systems and an airstrip. Maralinga Tjarutja proposes to develop a small Land Management and Heritage Resource Centre at Maralinga Village. This would enable Maralinga Tjarutja to conduct all land management operations for the Maralinga lands from Maralinga Village. Maralinga Tjarutja are also planning to establish and operate a caravan park style tourist facility at Maralinga Village that would include a kiosk and a small interpretive centre. The commonwealth government has provided funds to Maralinga Tjarutja to assist with this initiative and for the ongoing maintenance of Maralinga Village. My colleague the former minister for environment and conservation has also asked me to consider the question of a certain park status—maybe a heritage park status—for this very important part of South Australia's heritage, and that is something that we will attend to in due course.

At the request of Maralinga Tjarutja, the bill includes several amendments not directly related to the handback of section 400. The amendments deal with measures to improve governance by including the power for Maralinga Tjarutja to make a constitution and by providing a more precise statement of the capacity of the Maralinga Tjarutja Council to delegate powers and functions. Out of Maralinga Tjarutja’s concern about alcohol misuse and petrol sniffing, they also include the power for Maralinga Tjarutja to make by-laws (subject to the approval of the minister) to control alcohol, petrol and other regulated substances on the lands. The proposed changes will bring the powers of the Maralinga Tjarutja Corporation broadly into line with those of the equivalent peak body on the Anangu Pitjantjatjara Yankunytjatjara Lands as set out in the Anangu Pitjantjatjara Yankunytjatjara Land Rights Act 1981.

The transfer of section 400 represents the final chapter of a process that began in 1984 to return the Maralinga lands to the traditional owners. It will be an occasion of considerable significance to the traditional owners, who have been essentially forbidden from these lands for more than 50 years. I would like to acknowledge the patience and cooperation of the Maralinga Tjarutja people for negotiating in good faith over so many years for the return of their land. I would like to acknowledge the support of the member for Giles, who has stood by her community and advocated for it over these years, and I also acknowledge the role of the Premier who, as a former minister for Aboriginal affairs and, indeed, as an advisor on the staff of the former premier, played a central role in bringing justice to the Maralinga Tjarutja people

I commend the bill to the house and I seek leave to have the explanation of clauses inserted in Hansard without my reading it.

Leave granted.

Explanation of Clauses

Part 1—Preliminary

1—Short title

2—Commencement

3—Amendment provisions

These clauses are formal.

Part 2—Amendment of Maralinga Tjarutja Land Rights Act 1984

4—Amendment of section 3—Interpretation

This clause inserts definitions of key terms used in the measure into section 3 of the principal Act.

5—Amendment of section 5—Powers and functions of Maralinga Tjarutja

This clause inserts new paragraphs (j) and (k) into section 5(2) of the principal Act, conferring on Maralinga Tjarutja the power to make a constitution in respect of specified matters, and the power to take such steps as may be necessary or expedient for, or incidental to, the performance of Maralinga Tjarutja's functions.

6—Substitution of section 9

This clause substitutes a new power of delegation, replacing the existing power (which limited the persons to whom a power or function could be delegated to members, officers or employees of Maralinga Tjarutja) with one more consistent with current practices that gives Maralinga Tjarutja more flexibility.

7—Amendment of heading to Part 3 Division 1A

This clause amends the heading to Part 3 Division 1A to reflect the change of the name of the Unnamed Conservation Park to the Mamungari Conservation Park.

8—Amendment of section 15B—Establishment of co-management board

This clause makes a consequential amendment to reflect the change of the name of the Unnamed Conservation Park to the Mamungari Conservation Park.

9—Amendment of section 15D—Dissolution or suspension of co-management board

This clause makes a consequential amendment to reflect the change of the name of the Unnamed Conservation Park to the Mamungari Conservation Park.

10—Amendment of section 15E—Staff

This clause makes a consequential amendment to reflect the change of the name of the Unnamed Conservation Park to the Mamungari Conservation Park.

11—Insertion of Part 3 Division 1B

This clause inserts new Part 3 Division 1B, setting out provisions related to the Maralinga nuclear test site as follows:

Division 1B—Special provisions related to Maralinga nuclear test site

15H—Interpretation

This proposed section defines the management plan for the Maralinga nuclear test site to be the management plan annexed to the Maralinga nuclear test site handback deed, as varied from time to time.

15I—Guidelines related to Maralinga nuclear test site

This proposed section requires Maralinga Tjarutja, within 6 months after the commencement of the section, to prepare and submit to the Minister for approval guidelines to be followed in relation to the Maralinga nuclear test site. Subsection (4) sets out the required contents of the guidelines.

The proposed section also sets out procedural matters in relation to the guidelines.

15J—Immunity from liability

This proposed section confers immunity on the State and Maralinga Tjarutja for any injury, damage or loss caused by, or related to, the British Nuclear Test Program, or minor trials, conducted at the Maralinga nuclear test site. However, this immunity only operates in the event that the Maralinga nuclear test site handback deed either ceases to be in force, or for some other reason fails to provide indemnity for the State or Maralinga Tjarutja in relation to a particular claim for damages.

15K—Mining etc prohibited on Maralinga nuclear test site

This proposed section disapplies the Mining Act 1971, the Petroleum and Geothermal Energy Act 2000 and the Opal Mining Act 1995 in respect of the Maralinga nuclear test site.

This proposed section also prohibits the specified mining-related activities from being undertaken on, or in relation to, the Maralinga nuclear test site. The maximum penalty for a contravention is a fine of $120 000.

15L—Review of operation of Division by Minister

This proposed section requires the Minister to cause a review of the operation of this proposed Division to be conducted and a report on the results of the review to be prepared and submitted to him or her. The clause sets out consultation and other requirements in relation to the review.

15M—Evidence

This proposed section allows evidence of the Maralinga nuclear test site handback deed to be given by certificate in legal proceedings.

12—Amendment of section 17—Rights of traditional owners with respect to lands

This clause makes a consequential amendment to section 17 of the principal Act.

13—Amendment of section 18—Unauthorised entry upon the lands

This clause extends the operation of section 18(11) of the principal Act (which provides that that section does not apply to certain people) to include a person entering the land in accordance with, or to exercise a function under, the Maralinga nuclear test site handback deed, or a person assisting a person otherwise specified in the subsection.

14—Insertion of section 18A

This clause provides that certain specified people who may enter and remain on the lands under section 18(11) of the Act may reside on the lands where that is necessary or desirable for the purpose of carrying out their duties or functions. This is consistent with a similar provision in the Anangu Pitjantjatjara Yankunytjatjara Land Rights Act 1981.

15—Amendment of section 20—Use of roads to traverse the lands

This clause amends section 20 of the principal Act to exclude from the roads that may be used on the lands a road that is in Section 400, Out of Hundreds within the Maralinga nuclear test site (whether or not the road is a continuation of a road that the person is entitled to use).

16—Substitution of section 20A

This clause disapplies Part 3 Division 4 of the principal Act (dealing with mining operations on the lands) in respect of the Maralinga nuclear test site.

17—Amendment of section 30—Road reserves

This clause makes a consequential amendment to reflect the change of the name of the Unnamed Conservation Park to the Mamungari Conservation Park.

18—Insertion of section 43

This clause inserts new section 43 into the principal Act, allowing Maralinga Tjarutja to make by-laws in respect of the following:

(a) regulating, restricting or prohibiting the consumption, inhalation, possession, sale or supply of regulated substances on the lands;

(b) providing for the confiscation, in circumstances in which a contravention of a by-law under paragraph (a) is reasonably suspected, of any regulated substance to which the suspected contravention relates;

(c) providing for the treatment or rehabilitation (or both) of any person affected by the misuse of any regulated substance;

(d) prohibiting specified forms of gambling on the lands;

(e) providing for any other matter that is prescribed by the regulations as a matter in relation to which by-laws may be made.

The clause sets out procedural and other matters in relation to making such by-laws.

19—Amendment of section 44—Regulations

This clause amends section 44 of the principal Act to allow regulations to be made regulating, restricting or prohibiting entry on, or any activity on, the Maralinga nuclear test site.

The clause also inserts new subsection (1a), allowing regulations made under section 44 to be of general application or vary in their application according to prescribed factors, and allowing such regulations to confer a discretion on the Minister or a specified body of persons.

20—Amendment of Schedule 1

This clause amends Schedule 1 of the principal Act, adding Section 44, Out of Hundreds to the Lands.

21—Substitution of Schedule 2

This clause amends Schedule 2 to make amendments to the prescribed roads consequential on this measure.

22—Insertion of Schedule 5

This clause inserts new Schedule 5 into the principal Act, and provides a map (for ease of reference only) of the Maralinga nuclear test site.

Schedule 1—Transitional provision

1—Maralinga nuclear test site excluded from mining tenements etc

This clause also makes a transitional provision—

(a) extinguishing any rights that existed in respect of the Maralinga nuclear test site under a mining tenement or permit under the Mining Act 1971, a precious stones tenement or permit under the Opal Mining Act 1995 or a tenement under the Petroleum and Geothermal Energy Act 2000;

(b) modifying any application for a prescribed tenement that seeks the conferral of any rights in relation to any part of the Maralinga nuclear test site so that it does not seek such conferral.

No compensation is payable in respect of the operation of the clause.

I table the following paper: the Maralinga Nuclear Test Site Handback Deed between the Commonwealth of Australia, the state of South Australia and the Maralinga Tjarutja.

Mrs REDMOND (Heysen—Leader of the Opposition) (11:12): I am very pleased to be here this morning to be able to speak to this bill. I am not the lead speaker for the opposition. That honour will fall to Dr Duncan McFetridge, the member for Morphett, who has a longstanding interest in matters of Aboriginal culture and land rights, and so on, in this state.

The Hon. M.J. Atkinson: He speaks Pitjantjatjara at Greek functions.

Mrs REDMOND: He does indeed speak some Pit language, because he has bothered to go to university to learn some Pit language so that he can converse directly when he is up on the lands, and I congratulate him on that. As I said, it is a pleasure to be here to be able to—

The Hon. M.J. Atkinson interjecting:

The SPEAKER: Order, the Attorney-General!

The Hon. M.J. Atkinson: He'll be brief.

The SPEAKER: The Attorney-General is warned.

Mrs REDMOND: It is a pleasure to be able to speak on such a significant bill because, as the minister pointed out in his second reading explanation, it is more than 50 years—indeed, it was the year I was born—since the tests started in Maralinga. So, it is well in excess of 50 years since the Maralinga people have been kept away from their lands, and section 400 is the last parcel of land to which they seek to regain access.

It has been a complicated and fairly lengthy negotiation process, which has involved the commonwealth and the state. If one thinks back to what happened 50 years ago, nuclear tests were conducted on land that belonged to the Maralinga Tjarutja people without so much as a by your leave, really, to them. Although in many ways this is quite a solemn occasion, I must tell the house of one somewhat humorous story that occurred when I was acting in the far West Coast native title claim. I was talking to one of the Maralinga Tjarutja elders one morning over a campfire at the back of Darcy O'Shea's house.

As we sat and chatted, he informed me that he had been part of the group that went to London to see The Queen about the Maralinga lands. The purpose of the trip was quite serious, but it was amusing that, until his travels overseas, he had never understood that there were other people of dark skin in the world because the world as he had experienced it was of people just of dark skin, but everywhere else there were people of much whiter skin.

It was only when he got to Bombay, and discovered an entire continent, and then got to London, and discovered a lot of other people, that he realised they were not in as significant a minority around the world as he had thought. So, I think of that gentleman—and I will not name him—often and very fondly in terms of the importance to him of that trip to London and what it meant in terms of getting the return of the original area of land.

This bill does several things and finally deals with the outstanding matters, notably the management of the land. As I understand the bill, it basically requires ongoing cooperation involving the commonwealth, the state and the Maralinga Tjarutja people, who are keen to participate in that. My experience of working with them through their lawyer over a period of years is that they are tenacious, good to deal with and more than willing to give undertakings that they will honour. I have no doubt of their good faith and goodwill in approaching the matter of ongoing management.

Importantly, this bill gives an indemnity to both the state of South Australia and the Maralinga Tjarutja people so that, were there to be any problem in future with, for instance, someone coming onto the lands or suggesting that their presence on the lands on a previous occasion had resulted in their getting cancer, for instance, they will not be able to sue the Maralinga Tjarutja people and the state; that will be indemnified by the commonwealth, so there is no potential liability for either the state of South Australia or the Maralinga Tjarutja people in taking back that land.

Possibly one of the most important parts of the bill is the fact that the Mining Act will be excluded but, as the minister has pointed out, this represents only 3 per cent of the Maralinga Tjarutja lands generally. The exclusion of mining is a self-evident proposition inasmuch as it makes no sense to bury on the lands all the contaminated material and give permission for prospectors to go in and dig it up, so it really is just a sensible proposition and one to which all parties have now agreed.

Also covered by this bill as it now stands is the wish of the Maralinga Tjarutja people to have the ability to control both alcohol and drug use on the lands. Although it was not something they initially had, they perceive it as being necessary at this time, and it is important that we support them in their desire to keep sufficient control so that they will be able to manage issues appropriately for themselves on the lands. I note that they will do that in accordance with the regime originally set up under the APY lands, and I think that will be a good model for them to follow.

Finally, the bill contains some governance provisions so that they can both set up a constitution, which they have not had the ability to do until now, and then delegate some of the powers so that they can act more efficiently in managing the lands; again, that simply seems a sensible provision. All in all, it is a straightforward piece of legislation and certainly is not lengthy. I have not had time to read the detail of it, and I am relying on the information with which we have been provided, and I have not had time to read through the explanation of clauses, given that we are suspending standing orders to allow this bill to pass as quickly as possible through this house.

I am pleased that the opposition is supporting the bill, and is acceding to the government's request for it to be passed without any undue delay. As I said, it is important that the Maralinga Tjarutja people know that they have the goodwill of both sides of this chamber in terms of the return of this piece of this land. To do other than support it would be unconscionable for those on this side of the house, who genuinely seek to do the best they can for the Maralinga Tjarutja people.

Apart from the fact that we have only today and then five more sitting days between now and the election, I note that, more importantly, one of the reasons for the urgency is that 18 December will mark the 25^th anniversary of the original handback of the lands, and I understand that it is hoped that somewhere around 18 December, in that week at least, we will have a formal handback ceremony. I know, from the work that I did for a number of years out on the far west coast, that it is important in Aboriginal culture generally—and Maralinga Tjarutja is no exception—that if you are talking about the land you should be on the land.

So it is very important that the ceremonial handback occurs, and it is important that it occurs out on the lands—notwithstanding that there will be some logistical and possibly temperature difficulties likely to arise from holding such a ceremony there at that time of year. Nevertheless 18 December is a significant date, being the 25^th anniversary, and in my view it is therefore important that this bill be passed in time for that handback and that ceremony to occur. Indeed, the ceremony is really as important as the legislation itself in terms of recognition and symbolism, from the Maralinga Tjarutja point of view.

With those few words, while I am not the lead speaker, it has been my pleasure to be here to indicate the opposition's support for this bill. I commend its speedy passage through this house.

Dr McFETRIDGE (Morphett) (11:22): It is my pleasure to be the opposition lead speaker for this bill. I will not take a long time but, as the shadow spokesperson for Aboriginal affairs, it gives me the greatest of pleasure to be a participant in what has been a very long and protracted part of Aboriginal history in South Australia—that is, the handing back of these lands to the Maralinga Tjarutja people. It is the handing back of the lands—it is not transferring the lands to them, it is not allowing them to go back on the lands, it is giving the land back to the people, and that is very important not only for all South Australians but particularly for the Maralinga Tjarutja people.

I have had the pleasure of going to Oak Valley and Yalata on a number of occasions, and meeting many community members over there. I have also had the opportunity to go to the Maralinga village—and you could land a 747 on that runway. I remember living out at Salisbury as a child and watching the Vulcan bombers and the Handley Page bombers going over. Even back then we knew they were going over to Maralinga.

The Maralinga village and the Maralinga lands are just as important to the Maralinga Tjarutja people as every other part of that large expanse of South Australia. The fact that it was taken away, the way it was taken away, and what it was used for are matters of history now, but we need to recognise the fact that the Maralinga lands belong to the Maralinga people. This act will give all the land back.

Significant portions of the land were handed back in 1984. The Maralinga Tjarutja Land Rights Act was passed on 12 December 1984 through this place, and large sections of the land were handed back on 18 December 1984.

Some land at Emu (section 1486), Maralinga (section 1487) and section 400 were not handed back because of the heavy levels of contamination of the land that was used for atom bomb testing and some trigger devices. I have flown over those sites now and seen the extensive clean-up that has been done but, of course, because of the highly radioactive materials that have been left behind, there is a legacy of contamination that will go on for we do not know how many years. Unfortunately, that is a disgraceful legacy to leave for all of Australia but particularly for the Maralinga Tjarutja people who are so close to their country that is difficult for us to comprehend.

I was very fortunate to have been taken out by the Tjilpis to some very special sites. It is a very moving experience; it is a religious experience to accompany people who have such a close affiliation with their land and their culture. To be able to be part of this parliamentary session and dealing with this bill and handing the land back today is a wonderful experience for me. I thank my colleagues for cooperating with me and with the government in making sure this does happen.

The minister in his second reading explanation and the Leader of the Opposition in her speech have outlined most of the issues that are involved with this bill. I will not go through those. I wish merely to express the fact that this is a very significant occasion.

I say to the Maralinga Tjarutja people, 'Naratja manta Nyuntumpa manta—rawa.' I have just said to the Maralinga people, 'That land over there is your land and will always be your land.' It is a very significant thing that we do today. I thank all members of the house for their cooperation.

As the shadow minister the only thing that would make me perhaps a bit happier is if I was the minister. I would like to thank the minister for his cooperation and bipartisan approach in this. I look forward to accompanying him on the 18^th (or thereabouts) with other members of parliament to the Maralinga Village to participate in the ceremonies. With that, I wish the bill a speedy passage.

Ms BREUER (Giles) (11:27): I have great pleasure in standing here today to talk about an area which is probably one of the most important parts of my electorate and for which I have developed a real passion and love.

I am very glad to see people here today from Maralinga Tjarutja, from the Oak Valley area. It is a pleasure to have you here and I am very proud to see you here. I am glad that you are able to be with us today to see this significant piece of legislation go through.

Oak Valley community is a long way from here. It takes a long time to get here, and it is a hot trip. I have done it many times, and I imagine it was a very hot trip coming over this week. Oak Valley community was settled in about 1985. People were able to go back to their land after the tests that occurred at Maralinga between 1956 and 1963.

First of all I want to pay tribute to somebody who helped to get Oak Valley on the map and get it going and who worked with that community for many years: Dr Archie Barton. I think he needs to be mentioned today, because he played a very significant role in guiding that community for many years. I know that he is missed in the community.

I know it is especially significant for these people to be here today. They are here because the old man who passed away last week wanted them to be here. He was waiting and wanted to come himself but, unfortunately, he was finished last week. However, they have come here today to represent him because that is what he wanted, and also it is very important for them to be present. It is especially significant that they have come over this week after their dreadful loss last week. It is a very sad time for them.

I spoke about this old man when we were in parliament last week and mentioned how important he was to that community. I know he was, and I am proud that they are able to come here today not only representing themselves but also to honour his role in all of this. Of course, my sincere sympathy goes out to his wife Hilda Moodoo and to the community of Oak Valley for their sad loss. They must be feeling it here today listening to this.

The Oak Valley Maralinga Tjarutja community is amazing. When the director, Nerida Saunders, was given her role, I mentioned to her that, if she wanted to work with Oak Valley, which at the time was going through a very traumatic time, she could turn it into a model community and that it could be a showpiece for her. I pay tribute to Nerida for the work she has done with the Oak Valley community in helping them to get through the crisis and back on their feet and to get the community really moving again.

People from Oak Valley are smart and very passionate about their land issues, and I have noticed this during the time I have spent with them. I understand that things are now moving along very well in Oak Valley, and I know it has a great future—a future for their children and a future for their community. I congratulate the community on their tenacity in getting through all of that and for their will to make things right.

I also want to thank minister Weatherill for his role in listening to me when I went to see him about what was happening over there. At times, I probably sounded a bit manic, but he was very nice, he did not tell me to leave or get lost; he listened to me and acted on it. So, I also thank him for that.

There are people such as Chris and Annette Dodd who hang in there against all the odds and work very well. Also, the old man who has now finished, and Hilda Moodoo worked very hard. Dickie LeBois, Keith Peters, the Queamas and Mima Smart took a role in this—there are so many people. I probably should not have mentioned anyone because I have probably left out people, and I am sorry if I have. However, I know you all worked extremely hard and really just hung in there and kept your community going.

The Maralinga story is very sad. From a white perspective, we have never really appreciated the impact those tests had on the life of the Anangu in that area. People from that area have told me stories about when the tests began and how they rounded up the Aboriginal people from that area and put them in trucks. I cannot remember who told me this story, but they were rounded up with their family and put on a truck. They were absolutely terrified; they had no idea what was happening to them. They were not told where they were going or why they were being shifted. They truly believed, because there were soldiers with guns, that they were going to be shot. So, it must have been an horrendous time for them. They were taken down to Yalata. Some were taken over to Tjunjuntjara in Western Australia, and I think a few went to other places as well.

Imagine if that happened to us. I often think about the fact that, if people came into Whyalla and rounded us all up, put us in trucks and carted us off somewhere without telling us what was happening, it would be just so frightening—and these were people who really had very little exposure to white communities and what was happening in the world. They must have thought that we were mamus coming to round them up and take them away.

Yalata suffered for many years because of these events. It was a very dysfunctional community for many, many years because the people were missing their land and their communities. They were put in this little place near the sea, and they really wondered what was happening. So, we do not really fully understand the passion those people from that area have for their land and their passion for the return of that land. They have never forgotten their land, and they wanted it back. There are still very deep cultural beliefs and ties in this area.

As the member for Morphett said, I have been involved in some of the business that happens there. The member for Little Para and I spent three or four hours out in the bush, sitting under bushes out in the sun, with Annette Dodd while some women's business was going on. We were not allowed to leave until the young women got up and took part in this business. So, we sat there for over three hours, and it was quite an experience and one that I will never forget. We also learned a lot on that day, and we really understood a lot better the culture and what was happening with those people. So, I have got to know the people very well, and it is a very important community to me.

I know this legislation is extremely important to them—they have been talking about it for years—they have wanted their land returned to them. There has been some criticism about whether they should have it back because, quite frankly, despite the clean-up, there are some areas there that you would not want anyone to go near; it is extremely dangerous. However, these people understand that, and they will make sure that people are not out in those areas. Their young people will be told and they will keep tourists out of the area, etc., because it is extremely dangerous. However, other areas there are not dangerous; they are okay.

I have visited Maralinga on a number of occasions. I was shown around when the clean-up was happening and I saw all these dead trees. I was told that very often people think that the dead trees are due to the bomb blast, but they are not at all: it is just a natural thing that happens in the desert. Some people still believe that the trees are radioactive, but most of the area is not like that, although in some places it is extremely dangerous. So, that is something that the community will have to be very careful about, and I know that they will. They will organise that and work it out very well.

There are all sorts of options for the Maralinga Village and what could happen there. I know we have talked about all sorts of things. I would like to see it developed as a cultural centre. I think people will want to go there, particularly my generation, who do remember the Maralinga tests. I was only very young, but I remember being carted up the back yard on my dad's back, then put on his shoulders and he said, 'They are going to let off a big bomb', and we looked west. How we ever thought we would see the bomb at Maralinga from Whyalla I do not know, but I remember it quite distinctly; it is one of my earliest memories. I think I was about five or six at the time. I did not see the bomb blast but I gather that the fallout did come over Whyalla around that time, as it came over a lot of South Australia.

I have read a lot of reports on the Maralinga tests. I am reading a book at the moment about Maralinga by Judy Nunn, which is a really interesting book. I do not know how much is factual; I think that quite a bit of it is not factual, but it is a really interesting and an easy-to-read book. For people who want to know about it, it is probably a lot easier than reading a lot of the reports that are around relating to Maralinga. It is a good story about what actually happened over there.

Those tests were quite significant but, goodness, how much we have come on in the last 50-odd years. Obviously, there was no real understanding of the dangers of radioactive waste and no real understanding of the dangers of that testing, but there was also, I think, an arrogance about people's lives, and an arrogance about the lives of the Aboriginals who lived there. They were not seen as people; they were just Aborigines wandering in the bush. There was no real significance given to them.

But I refer also to the servicemen, and particularly the Australians, who served there. I think the British looked after themselves fairly well, but Australian servicemen were certainly exposed to tests and all sorts of things that should never have happened. The legacy has lived on and over the years hundreds of those men have died from cancer and other related illnesses. I suppose we just did not know, but is ignorance an excuse? I do not think it is. I hope that nothing like that ever happens again, and certainly in Australia we should never allow it to happen again.

Of course, some of the forgotten people there are the Aboriginal people who were exposed at the time. They never got true credit for what they were exposed to either. We looked after some of the servicemen but we did not pay much attention either to the Aboriginal people who were living in the area at the time or to their descendants, who I think in many cases are still suffering from this.

So, we have a lot to answer for regarding that period in our history and I really hope that it never happens again. I think this legislation today gives the people of Maralinga Tjarutja hope to get back on their feet and hope for their future and the future of their children. They will be able to take great advantage of the mining industry in that area, and there are jobs in the future for them. I have every faith in those people, I am pleased to see them here today, and I certainly recommend this legislation.

The Hon. G.M. GUNN (Stuart) (11:38): I support the bill, as it will put into effect commitments that were made a long time ago relating to the people who previously lived in that part of South Australia. I think I am the only member left who was in the chamber when the original agreement was put into effect. I recall going to Maralinga in about 1972, and the place was virtually as the British had left it. The colonel's serviette rings were still in the little boxes up on the wall.

It was an interesting place to visit and one could not help but be amazed at the cost inflicted on the British taxpayers. Needless to say, at a later stage I actually bought some of the telephone lines. In those days, where I lived, we had to put up our own telephone lines, so we bought some of the British Army telephone poles. The only problem was that they had little gaps in them and when the wind blew through them at night it made a considerable noise. There were various facilities. If you drive around South Australia, the hall in Andamooka came from Maralinga. There is a plaque with my name on it, but that is a side issue. The Lutheran church at Nunjikompita came from Maralinga.

Mr Venning: Is there a plaque?

The Hon. G.M. GUNN: No, not on that one. If you look at Lake Wangary, there is a building that I think came from Maralinga, the aluminium buildings that the British put there. However, the important significance of today is that the community is going to receive back this land to put it their own use.

I also knew one of the people who was involved in shifting the communities to Colona Station, which Yalata is a part of. That was the late Hans Gaden, who ran the Koonibba organisation for the Lutheran church for many years. He was, I understand, assisted by range officer McDougal from Woomera. It was interesting talking to him in relation to that particular matter. At that time, they really did not have any idea of what was going to take place there. Of course, as time went on they soon learnt. My understanding, from people who were out there at the time, is that every time tests were being conducted at Maralinga there were Russian trawlers out in the Great Australian Bight; obviously they were not catching fish.

This measure is being put through the house in a quick fashion, and there is nothing wrong with that, because everyone agrees that this is the right course of action to adopt. I can understand why it is necessary to have these other measures attached to it. If the community wants to control alcohol consumption on the lands, that is their right, and I do not have a problem with it. I understand that people have been involved in sly grogging, and that has taken place for a long time. There is a need to ensure that the police have adequate powers to deal with these people as with the use of illicit drugs.

At the end of the day, I sincerely hope that this piece of land can be put to good productive use for the communities, that they can get an income from it, and that they can encourage people to go there and create jobs for the next generation of Maralinga people. Having driven out through that part of the state and flown out there on a number of occasions, as others have pointed out, it is a long way.

I remember flying out of Oak Valley one day when the temperature was about 53°. I can say that there were more potholes up there at 5,000 feet than there were on the ground. I turned to the part-Aboriginal person who was with me and I think he was whiter than I was. He said to me, 'How long before we're going to get down?' I said, 'Well, we're going straight out to sea to get over it, because there's not going to be as many bumps out there.'

It is a very interesting part of the lands. When you drive through there you see very well what Giles put down. There is a great deal of history. Obviously, I would hope that Australia would never again agree to such a course of action being carried out on this landscape.

There are a couple of other interesting points. Some years ago I went to Lyndhurst in my electorate, and one of my constituents introduced me to his new wife, who happened to be the daughter of Lord Tom Stanley. We had an interesting discussion, and a few days later my wife and I happened to be in London and we met him. It was through that contact that we were able to assist Andrew Collett and the team of people representing the Maralinga people to get the right contacts in London so that compensation could be paid. I think that the involvement that Tom Stanley had in relation to that matter may have been small at that time, but it did open some doors, and it was important that those doors were opened.

The other interesting aspect was that, with respect to one of those parliamentary delegations that came out to South Australia, I was given the task of organising various places in the Outback they might like to see. We took them to Commonwealth Hill Station and then we took them out to Maralinga so that the joint delegation could see it first-hand. They met representatives of the people from Maralinga, and it was made very clear to that delegation that that community was not happy with the way they had been treated. They were not happy with the way the land had been left and they wanted some compensation.

Those two particular courses of action did have some role to play in ensuring that some restitution was made. I sincerely hope that this legislation is effective, that it carries out the wishes of those communities, that it will enhance their ability to improve their standard of living and create opportunities for their next generation and that they will be able reasonably to enjoy the land and to have the ability to manage it themselves. Obviously, they will need some support from the state government because it is one thing to own the land but you must have an income. They will need some support. They will need some support to maintain the road system.

Obviously, there will be a need for policing arrangements and whether it is necessary to have police officers permanently placed at Maralinga or on a rotation basis. A great deal of work has been done in the AP lands; however, there is a need to ensure that alcohol consumption is prevented, as well as other illegal activities, and the only way to do that is to make sure that we have a police presence—that is important, as is supporting those other agencies which will no doubt need to be there.

I am looking forward when I leave this place to doing a trip out through there myself to refresh my memory of the place and to look at it first-hand. This legislation has been a long time coming. I sincerely hope that this is the final chapter in recognising that, in the past, the people out there have not been well treated. There is a need to ensure that their wishes are complied with and that the State of South Australia accepts its responsibilities in this matter and ensures that adequate funds are available for those people who wish to live out there so that they can be supported in a reasonable fashion and allowed some degree of economic independence.

There is no doubt that the mining industry has that potential. I agree that it would be unwise to allow mining activity on section 400 because of what is there. I do not think that anyone is 100 per cent sure of what is there. In the short term, at least, there should be no mining activities. There is some need to control access to certain elements in certain areas in the lands because we do not want people getting lost. In that country at this time of the year, if you get lost that will be the end of you.

I am happy to support the speedy passage of this bill. I am pleased to see that representatives of the community are here today to see this process take place. I look forward to renewing my association with those communities on the lands in the future. I look forward to the handover. Hopefully, I will organise myself to get there, and I know that my former federal parliamentary colleague Barry Wakelin would also like to be involved in any handover. I support the bill. Obviously, it will not be long before it is passed by both houses and receive royal assent so that the process can be completed.

The Hon. L. STEVENS (Little Para) (11:49): I am honoured to be a part of this parliament and a part of passing this legislation, which finally transfers the remaining parts of the Maralinga area to the Maralinga Tjarutja people. It is really good that representatives of the community are here to hear this happen today in this parliament. I guess what we can say is that we are moving here to make as right as possible the wrong that was done to those people over half a century ago. I, too, have vague memories as a small child of the bombs and testing that was done in that area and of hearing the talk of the black cloud but I really knew nothing about the people who actually lived on that land. Little account was taken of them and the effects and, also, the after-effects on them. As the member for Giles pointed out, it is something in our past which is quite shameful and which in this small way is being righted.

As a member of the Aboriginal Lands Parliamentary Standing Committee during this term of the parliament, I have had an opportunity to visit Oak Valley and the Maralinga Village on, I think, two occasions. As the member for Giles said, we have had long conversations with the community and community leaders—Chris and Annette Dodd, in particular, but also other people in the community. The member for Giles and I had the opportunity to experience some women's business, and the member for Morphett had the opportunity to experience men's business. We thank the people there for giving us that opportunity to learn more of the culture.

It was there that we heard how important this land transfer is to the people. As the member for Giles very sincerely and eloquently stated, for those of us of European heritage, this great link to the land is something that is not familiar, but it is clear that it is of great importance to Aboriginal people and needs to be acknowledged.

During the visits to the Maralinga Village I was bowled over by just how extensive it is. I guess I had never really thought about just what was there until I actually went there and saw how extensive the buildings are and how many people actually lived there when it was a going concern. It has a massive runway that can take large planes, even now, and there was an amazing settlement there. During our time there the committee was shown some of the lands that had been remediated, and we know that, even now, some of that land will still be off limits and the community knows it will have to be kept like that for the protection of the public.

I am pleased to see that there are some further amendments from the community in relation to governance for the future. I also hope that this real but also symbolic action will be a beacon of hope for the future of the Aboriginal communities in the area. I think there will be the opportunity to develop tourism. I know that some funding has come through to enable and support the tourism ventures that may result from this transfer, and I hope that will come to fruition. I agree that there will be some positive opportunities through the mining industry, and hope that community members can work together to ensure a great future for themselves and their children. I am sure that the government, opposition and all parties in this parliament will want things to go well for the future for the people of the Maralinga Tjarutja.

Finally, it is a great pleasure to have been able to speak to this bill. Congratulations to the people of the communities concerned. It has been a long process, but it is here at last. I am hoping that I will have the opportunity, along with other members of the Aboriginal Lands Parliamentary Standing Committee, to accompany the minister, the Premier and other dignitaries to the final proclamation on your lands.

The Hon. M.D. RANN (Ramsay—Premier, Minister for Economic Development, Minister for Social Inclusion, Minister for the Arts, Minister for Sustainability and Climate Change) (11:56): I want to acknowledge the traditional owners, the Maralinga Tjarutja people. I also want to acknowledge the spirit of bipartisanship in which this very important issue is being addressed. I have had a fairly long history with the Maralinga Tjarutja people. I was an adviser to three former premiers who were involved in this issue, and I attended the handover in 1984 under the first Maralinga Tjarutja land rights act when the first large piece of land was returned to the traditional owners. I will always remember that occasion, when John Bannon was the premier, Greg Crafter was the minister for Aboriginal affairs, Mick Young was present and other former ministers like Barbara Wiese were there. It was an extraordinarily moving ceremony.

The people of Maralinga Tjarutja had been put through an experience that no-one should ever be put through. They had nuclear weapons tested on their traditional and sacred lands. They were forced off their lands against their will and were put into a situation which took away from them important parts of their belief systems and community. Imagine this happening to anyone in the world. Imagine a situation where a group of people are removed from their lands, put into another place, and then not only dispossessed of those lands but having nuclear weapons tested there. It is an extraordinary story. It is a blot on the history of Australia and on the history of this state.

I was a member of the Aboriginal lands committee before I became minister for Aboriginal affairs, and I believe that that committee, which has always operated in a bipartisan way regardless of who was in power, played a critical bridging role between the Maralinga Tjarutja people and the various governments of the day. When I was minister for Aboriginal affairs, I was approached by Maralinga Tjarutja who were concerned that, in the transfer of the original land back in 1984—and we are now going forward to the end of 1989 and early 1990—one critical section of the lands had been omitted, and they were the lands around Ooldea. They are the lands perhaps made famous for most Australians as the camp for Daisy Bates and all the apparent links between Daisy Bates and Breaker Morant and others; whether or not those stories are true, I am not sure.

Much more importantly than that, an anthropological study, which was commissioned in advance of the transfer of the Ooldea lands, found out what had happened at Ooldea with two of its soaks. The Ooldea soaks—one, a good source of water, and another which was a different kind of source of water—unfortunately were damaged, if not destroyed, by the building of the railway when drilling had broken the seal on one of the soaks. For thousands of years, Ooldea had been a meeting place; a place for the exchange of goods; a place that was where different Aboriginal peoples came together; a place of meeting. Some described it as an Aboriginal parliament. In fact, they found artefacts there that came from different parts of Australia, I was told.

It was very important to pass that legislation because one key portion of the area on a particularly sacred part of the Maralinga Tjarutja Lands had been omitted, and I was very pleased and proud not only to have passed that legislation but also to have been able to return to the Maralinga Tjarutja Lands for a very important ceremony of the handback which was performed at the site of Daisy Bates's camp.

Always, however, there had been the problem of section 400. It had been addressed by a royal commission—the McClelland royal commission—and section 400 obviously could not be handed back, because it was irradiated with plutonium. I remember going there with former national Aboriginal affairs minister, Robert Tickner. Again, we went there and there was a television program called Secrets in the Sands produced by the BBC (in fact, by the Bristol unit that produces David Attenborough's famous series) that told the story of Maralinga Tjarutja.

I remember my discussions with Archie Barton and others and with Andrew Collett, their lawyer, and I want to pay tribute to his and others' tireless work on behalf of the Maralinga Tjarutja people over many years. Of course, one of the things we wanted to do was to bring the issue of a clean-up and compensation front of mind to not only the Australian people but also the British people. That is why the BBC documentary was important: it was seen by millions of people. That is why it was important for us to see a delegation of Maralinga Tjarutja elders led by Archie Barton go to Westminster.

I will always remember the photograph and the incredible enthusiasm with which they were welcomed, and I remember that they actually had an opportunity to see The Queen go riding by. Also, I went to Britain in 1990, from memory, or maybe 1991 to meet with and have negotiations with the British defence department in regard to South Australia's concerns in relation to clean-up compensation.

We had seen a hoax clean-up when Des Corcoran was premier back in 1979 and some VC10 arrived, and apparently the plutonium had been taken away. It was all for show. It was all for show, because it was found out that there was an enormous amount of dispersed plutonium, americium and strontium 90 and other radioactive substances. The land had been poisoned, and the British pretended that they had cleaned up and taken away that poison, and that was not the case.

I remember meeting with the Rt Hon. Nick Brown, now government whip for Gordon Brown, former cabinet minister under Tony Blair. He also deserves a mention today, because he was one of the people who came here with a British committee that eventually led to a proper clean-up of the area, which took a long time with negotiations by so many people.

A lot has happened. Just before I ceased being minister for Aboriginal Affairs, I made a promise to Archie Barton, the elders, Andrew Collett and others, and the promise that I made was that I would also pass legislation for the unnamed conservation park to be handed back to the Maralinga Tjarutja people. That area is about the size of Sicily. It is a very significant area of land and I am pleased that we are able to honour that promise.

When we got back into government and I was Premier, I did say to Archie Barton and others that I was sorry it had taken so long to honour this promise, but he did remind me that Aboriginal people have a much longer time horizon and that they were pleased that we were there so that I could pour the sand through the fingers of the elders and also, most importantly, of the children who had gathered around after playing football with Che Cockatoo-Collins. I remember one little boy of about three yelling out, 'Kick 'em up, Cockatoo.' That day was also significant, but there remained one part of the jigsaw, and that was section 400.

I want to congratulate my friend and colleague the Minister for Aboriginal Affairs. I want to congratulate the federal government on its resolve but, most of all, I want to congratulate the Maralinga Tjarutja people on their patience, and also the people who have supported you, and I have mentioned the legal team. This is a job well done. This is righting a historical wrong. What we are doing today is the right thing, and both sides of parliament deserve great credit for supporting it. This is about doing something right. It is about putting aside politics and saying, 'This is the right thing to do.' A terrible deed was done. Great harm was done to the Maralinga Tjarutja people—dispossession, the poisoning of their land—and this is an important step forward. I applaud the minister and I applaud the bill, which has my strong support.

Ms CHAPMAN (Bragg) (12:06): Quite often, law students do not appreciate the significance of great events. Today, I wish to acknowledge the significance of this debate. I indicate that I will be supporting the bill and wishing it a speedy passage through the parliament.

In 1978, I was a law student. At that time, I was able to witness the extraordinary reform in Australia of severing Australian citizens' rights to appeal to the Privy Council. It was a very significant event in legal history, and the matter now before us is no less important because, today, we are going to close the chapter on a 50 year event. It is an event which started with the dispossession of the Maralinga Tjarutja people, and we need to appreciate the significance of that fact.

In recognising the government, the minister and the members of the community who have worked so hard over the last 50 years or so to restore the situation to the way it was before the events of the early 1950s, I wish also to recognise the work of Andrew Collett and his law student, James Krumrey-Quinn. It is a momentous occasion and, as probably the youngest person present in the chamber here today, I hope that he appreciates the significance of this event.

The delegation received by the opposition this morning—to present the urgency of supporting this legislation and, of course, passing it—was essentially recorded by Keith Peters, the chair of the council, who said quite simply, 'The community wants section 400 back.' We saw the dispossession of indigenous Australians who had occupied that area some 50 years ago. We saw the subsequent pollution and poisoning of their land. We saw a tardy, at best, restoration and reparation by the British community over the next 20 or 30 years, after occupying, using and polluting it, and then we have seen the goodwill of successive governments at the commonwealth and state level working with Maralinga Tjarutja since 1984 to bring about the final transfer.

The event in 1984 was significant, but the poisonous bottom paddock was left out, and it was left out for very good reason: because until the occupiers—trespassers as they may have been, but with the consent of the commonwealth government of the day—cleaned up that paddock, it was not to be transferred. I think it is to the credit of the indigenous community, which insisted upon this, and successive state governments, with the support of the commonwealth, in insisting on the clean-up ultimately—as best it could be described as a clean-up—by the British.

In the past four or five years, it has been important to secure three things. First, that the mess which is still there will be maintained at a responsible level, with full indemnity by the commonwealth government—and the requirement that this be in place as part of the deed which the minister has tabled today and which I look forward to reading. That will secure the commonwealth's obligation in this area. Secondly, to ensure that the commonwealth has an ongoing financial commitment to the maintenance and caretaking of the infrastructure and support needed on the property going into the future and, of course, with that, a full indemnity that any subsequent contamination which is found—which surely will be—including the compensation that may result from pit collapses and so on is maintained. Thirdly, a responsible and important transfer of the governance that the Maralinga Tjarutja people will need to have to operate and manage what they have received with this last parcel. Clearly, their governance does need some reform and some extra powers to ensure that their people are socially protected.

I understand that these things have come together only as late as in the past week or so. The urgency that was pressed upon us this morning in passing legislation in light of that final agreement between the relevant parties is to ensure that there is an opportunity for a celebration of the final transfer of the title on 18 December this year. Those having come together, the opposition agrees not only to support the bill but to support its speedy passage through the parliament and, as best we can, create an opportunity for those celebrations to be completed on the day in question.

Going into the future, whilst this closes a chapter on the shocking history that has been recounted by other speakers, there is an opportunity, but an enormous responsibility has been placed squarely on the Maralinga Tjarutja people and the council that represents them. They will be vested with significant responsibility. They will need a lot of help in a number of these areas, and it will be incumbent upon the people who sit in government within this parliament to ensure both now and in the future that that is given. I wish them well in their endeavour. It will be a challenge, but they have the last paddock and I expect they will look after it.

Mr HANNA (Mitchell) (12:13): I support this legislation which will give back the final piece of land to the Maralinga Tjarutja. These are the people who live in the central and western parts of South Australia. We are honoured to have some of them present in parliament today to witness this legislation going through. I will make two points. First, this is an occasion to remember what happened in the 1950s with the nuclear testing. Previous speakers have explained the situation quite well. I add that I have spoken to some of the elderly ladies who were alive at the time and who remember the events of the 1950s. They were rounded up like animals and sent to different parts of South Australia. The indigenous people were refugees within South Australia, yet they were from South Australia. It is certainly worth recording that as late as the 1950s these were still very dark times in terms of our civilisation and our response to Aboriginal people.

Secondly, the stories that some of the old people can tell about the impacts of the radiation are horrific. I heard one account of a kind of mist passing through people as they were walking across the land. Many of the men, in particular, from those groups died prematurely. They were people who had not had much contact with white civilisation, so we cannot blame petrol sniffing or cannabis or any of the other things that white people have brought to this country for the early demise of many of those people.

On a brighter note, it is pleasing to note the opportunities of the Maralinga township site. It has been pointed out that this tiny little village was built by the British in the 1950s—and it is pretty well still there. Quite a few members of this parliament have visited the site, and I feel privileged that I have had the opportunity to walk around the area and also to fly over the test sites. It is absolutely amazing to fly over the markings of where the test sites were.

The white markings make it look like some alien landing ground, and I am sure that, because of the significance and history of the site, and also those amazing markings on the ground, it could be a very successful, small tourism venture. I am pleased to hear that there will be funding for an interpretive centre and that maybe a kind of caravan park accommodation facility will be available. These are great plans and I hope they come to fruition.

I wish the Maralinga people well, now that they have this last piece of the jigsaw put in place, and, finally, I thank Andrew Collett, their lawyer who briefed me so well on this legislation.

The Hon. J.W. WEATHERILL (Cheltenham—Minister for Environment and Conservation, Minister for Early Childhood Development, Minister for Aboriginal Affairs and Reconciliation, Minister Assisting the Premier in Cabinet Business and Public Sector Management) (12:17): I thank all members who have contributed to this historic debate. In particular, I acknowledge the opposition and the bipartisan support it has shown for not only the bill but also its speedy passage through the parliament. Of course, we reserve our most significant acknowledgment for the Maralinga Tjarutja themselves, who regard themselves and the land as one. When one understands that then one understands that the question of loss is difficult to describe in our terms. It is more than the loss of property: it is the loss of something much deeper. It is a great privilege to play my part in restoring this land and making the Maralinga Tjarutja whole again. I commend the bill to the house.

Bill read a second time and taken through its remaining stages.