Point Pearce

The Hon. T.T. NGO (14:40): My question is to the Minister for Aboriginal Affairs. Will the minister update the council about the draft master plan being developed by the Point Pearce Aboriginal community and the Yorke Peninsula Council?

The Hon. J.M.A. Lensink interjecting:

The PRESIDENT: Order! I want to hear the minister's answer, please. Attorney-General, let's go.

The Hon. K.J. MAHER (Attorney-General, Minister for Aboriginal Affairs, Minister for Industrial Relations and Public Sector) (14:41): I thank the honourable member for his question and his ongoing interest in this area. After the end of the last sitting week, I had the opportunity to visit Narungga country to meet with members of Aboriginal groups and communities across the Yorke Peninsula. One of the most rewarding parts of the job as Minister for Aboriginal Affairs is the opportunity to get out across the state to meet with Aboriginal people on their country and to hear firsthand about their concerns and aspirations.

During that trip, I was able to see some good examples of practical work being done towards reconciliation. The Yorke Peninsula Council has partnered with the Point Pearce Aboriginal community to prepare a master plan for that community: the Bookooyanna Master Plan. As some members will be aware, Point Pearce on the Yorke Peninsula was the site of the Point Pearce Aboriginal mission from 1868. In 1972, the lands of that site were returned to the Aboriginal people through vestment with the Aboriginal Lands Trust.

Point Pearce has been and is home to a strong community and has huge significance not just to members of the Narungga community who live there but to many people with connections to that site and that area. The Community Coordinator, Aunty Kaylene O'Loughlin, serves as a very strong advocate for her community and I am grateful for her giving me the time and explaining some of the opportunities she sees for Point Pearce.

It speaks volumes about the forging partnership between Point Pearce and the local council that the first visit Aunty Kaylene suggested to me was to stop at the council office in Maitland to meet with the council with her and to go through their master plan. It is an important piece of work outlining the past and present of Point Pearce community and, importantly, identifies 20 projects for the community that could have investment in the future.

The projects include things such as repairs to the youth shed to provide important recreation and learning opportunities for younger people in the community; upgrades to the community hall and church, a much-used site in the community that is in need of some attention and restoration; and a whole range of other projects that will make a difference to the community.

The master plan is just a draft at this stage, but it's already a high-quality document that will be a great tool for looking at upgrades in the future at Point Pearce. It really is a testament to the Yorke Peninsula Council that they are forging this relationship with the Aboriginal community at Point Pearce. I was impressed by how closely council staff have worked in partnership with that community, working on these projects and providing support for the master plan in setting a vision for the community.

Some of those projects have already come to fruition, such as the metal warriors that greet visitors when driving into the community, protecting the community and reminding visitors of the long Aboriginal heritage in the area. As we come towards the end of Reconciliation Week, I think what's important, as we have mentioned in this chamber already this week, is ways we can put that reconciliation into practice, and Yorke Peninsula Council in their partnership with Point Pearce community are doing just that.

I wish to applaud everyone at Point Pearce community—in particular, Aunty Kaylene O'Loughlin and Uncle Eddie Newchurch—and those at the council, including Mayor Darren Braund and CEO, Andrew Cameron.