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Aurukun locals sitting on $120m trust

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'The richest poor people on Earth': Aurukun locals sitting on $120m trustWe’re sorry, this feature is currently unavailable. We’re working to restore it. Please try again later.DismisscloseAdvertisementBy Log in, or to save articles for later.Normal text sizeLarger text sizeVery large text sizeAdvertisementAustralia's most-troubled Aboriginal community, Aurukun on western Cape York in Queensland, has locals living in abject poverty, yet a trust set up to help pay for health, education and other essential infrastructure has more than $120 million in cash and assets that remain untouched.Influential locals are questioning why the Western Cape Communities Trust, which made a $16 million net profit last year from royalties earned from Rio Tinto's mining of bauxite on its land, has not done more to advance the lives of the 1000 or so Aurukun residents.Aurukun is one of the nation's most disadvantaged communities and has for decades been the scene of social dysfunction including riots and murders. Numerous attempts have been made to reduce violence and lawlessness, increase school attendance and improve social conditions. On New Year’s Day, a man was stabbed to death. Two teenagers gave themselves up to police the next day. They have been charged with his murder.The incident brought about uncontrolled rioting by one section of the community, with up to 12 houses either partly or completely burnt. Hundreds of men, women and children fled into the night, afraid they would be attacked by the arsonists who were roaming the streets in uncontrolled mobs. A further 29 locals were charged with a total of 129 offences, most relating to arson and destruction of property. They are yet to be dealt with by the court.It was reported that up to 400 people left Aurukun, with some hiding in the surrounding bush, and the majority moving to the township of Coen, with another 150 or so heading to Cairns more than 800 kilometres south. Many have since returned, but the houses remain burnt or damaged, causing severe overcrowding in the remaining homes.One source of tension in the community is the payment of royalties each year from Rio Tinto to traditional owners in Aurukun. The Anglo-Australian mining giant pays the royalties for the right to operate massive bauxite mines on their land. The royalties deal was struck on March 14, 2001, between the Aboriginal councils on whose land the bauxite mining was taking place (Aurukun, Napranum and Mapoon), the traditional owner groups, Cape York Land Council, Comalco (the mine operator before Rio Tinto) and the Queensland government.AdvertisementThat trust deed set out that money could be spent on “enterprise development, community infrastructure, educational, health and social development and cultural development’’. It was also set up to provide a ranger program, bursaries and the protection and promotion of cultural heritage.The trust deed permits investments in stocks and securities. At the conclusion of the 2019 financial year, the total investment in shares, unit trusts and bonds was $60 million. That was up from $51.3 million the previous year. Cash in the bank and term deposits totalled $47.1 million.The trust's accounts disclose that it is exempt from paying annual income tax. It made a gross profit on investments last year of $19 million and after expenses, delivered a net profit of $16 million. The trust distributed $1.5 million to each of its three member regional trusts. The accounts do not disclose how that money was spent.On Friday, newly elected Aurukun Shire Council mayor Keri Tamwoy said the trust could do more to advance the community, but that would have to be a decision of the traditional owners who run it."I was too young when this agreement was negotiated and I cannot answer for how the community generally feels about it," she told The Sydney Morning Herald and The Age . "I would have to put that to the 1200 people here. It is a charitable trust and there are no major capital works that it has provided."Under the agreement, traditional owners are able to request funds to build a home on their own country out of the community and several have done that. I don't know how many.''Ms Tamwoy said she felt the fund "could be utilised better''."The Aurukun Shire Council has put applications to the fund managers for certain projects but nothing has eventuated yet,'' she said. "Any changes to the trust would have to be the decision of the traditional owners involved who would have to meet and discuss it. That is not an issue I can comment on as mayor.''Although it is difficult to get an exact figure on the beneficiaries of the royalties, a lawyer who worked on the trust said some 12 family groups were involved, amounting to about 400 men, women and children.The families in the traditional owner groups who are also represented on the trust board include: Chevathen, Ngakyunkwokka, Bond, Walpo, Brown, Martin, Koomeeta, Owokran and Bandicootcha. Because the Rio Tinto bauxite mining lease extends past the Aurukun tribal area, a small number of traditional owner clan groups from the neighbouring Napranum community are also beneficiaries of the Western Cape Communities Trust. They include the John, Charger, Guivarra, Lifu and Port families.“Each year or so, they get a distribution of white goods from the trust – freezers, fridges, airconditioners, TV sets and so on, and they can also get vehicles, boats or travel or funeral payments," the lawyer said.“But there is more than $120 million in assets in the trust and it is increasing every year. You really do have to ask why [some of] these people don’t have adequate housing, access to health care and education for their children, and why they are still dependent on welfare payments to live. In truth, these are the richest poor people on Earth.’’He said there was no suggestion of mismanagement or misuse of the trust funds. There is also no suggestion of any illegality.A representative of one traditional owner clan group, Bruce Martin, last year produced “Aurukun 2030” – which details his 10-year vision on resourcing for the Aurukun community and policies to achieve real advancement.He said the original document establishing the trust was deficient because it was not inclusive of the whole Aurukun community. In his power-point presentation to government and council and community members, Mr Martin identified the key outcome being that everything has to be “accountable to the Wik people and Aurukun residents’’.“My personal view is that the Western Cape Trust should be playing a more proactive role in assisting Wik traditional owners address some of the acute issues facing the community right now as well as investing in opportunities to ensure success into the future,’’ he told The Sydney Morning Herald and The Age. “It is not good enough to just say we have $120 million in the bank. What use is it when a place like Aurukun continues to be plagued with the issues we face day-in and day-out.“In my view the deficiencies with the WCCA Trust and the relationship with Rio Tinto are even more pronounced as Rio have invested in the Aurukun project – mining Wik land – with minimal input from, and benefit for, Wik people. Both Rio Tinto and the WCCA Trust need to be more accountable to Wik people and understand our needs and help invest in innovative solutions to address issues and invest in opportunities with us.’’The most important news, analysis and insights delivered to your inbox at the start and end of each day. Sign up to , to and&nbsp;.Log in, or to save articles for later. is Investigations Editor at The Sydney Morning Herald. Advertisement

'The richest poor people on Earth': Aurukun locals sitting on $120m trustWe’re sorry, this feature is currently unavailable. We’re working to restore it. Please try again later.DismisscloseAdvertisementBy Log in, or to save articles for later.Normal text sizeLarger text sizeVery large text sizeAdvertisementAustralia's most-troubled Aboriginal community, Aurukun on western Cape York in Queensland, has locals living in abject poverty, yet a trust set up to help pay for health, education and other essential infrastructure has more than $120 million in cash and assets that remain...

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Michael Evans

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Aurukun locals sitting on $120m trust

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