Are all Indigenous groups against the Wild Rivers legislation?
While it may seem like Indigenous people are on one side of the debate and conservationists are on the other, this is not the case. Some Indigenous people oppose the legislation, and others are in favour of it. For example, prominent activist Murrandoo Yanner of the Carpentaria Land Council has argued that many Aboriginal people don’t want large-scale development on their traditional land anyway: “The majority of the people … would rather have the sustainable rivers so we can continue as we have for thousands of years to draw our food and nourishment from those rivers.” David Claudie, a Northern Kaanju Traditional Owner, has told media that he is in favour of Wild Rivers legislation because it supports sustainable industries. Likewise, Gina Castelain, a Wik leader from the Aurukun community and managing director of Wik Projects Ltd, has said: “We want to protect our environment and our rivers. We are working hard to develop and maintain economic activity which does not harm our water
