Senator Malarndirri McCarthy speaks to Neil MItchell on 3AW about the Uluru climb closure.
NEIL MITCHELL 3AW: On the line is Senator Malarndirri McCarthy, good morning.
MALARNDIRRI MCCARTHY, NORTHERN TERRITORY SENATOR: Good morning Neil and good morning to your listeners.
MITCHELL: Now youre a Yanyuwa woman, whats youre feeling about this?
MCCARTHY: Look I'm feeling enormously proud of the Anangu and I just want to congratulate them on their strength of culture and ceremony and just their generosity over many the decades to teach people about the importance of their culture so yeah feeling a little bit emotional really.
MITCHELL: So why is today an important day? Why is it emotional?
MCCARTHY: Emotional in the sense I was only a teenage girl when the Rock was handed back to the Anangu in terms of Northern Territory Aboriginal land rights. So when at the time I was still at school I just thought, wow wow you know. And you kind of grow up with that sense of Australia is looking good. Its starting to recognise the First Nations people and acknowledge the importance. It was certainly a difficult time then Neil where criticism was said if you hand the Rock over, the skys going to cave in and its the end of the world. Ive seen a little bit of that similar kind of conversation in the last couple of months leading up to this but I think Australias a much better place in terms of wanting to understand and appreciate our first people.
MITCHELL: Have you climbed it?
MCCARTHY: No, never, never.
MITCHELL: You wouldnt.
MCCARTHY: No, it just never was important to me, I respected the Anangu. I always knew that it was special to them and a sacred place and I guess it just reminds me of places out on Yanyuwa country back in the Gulf of Carpentaria where I know there are just some places are sacred and you just respect that.
MITCHELL: I know youre not a local but can you explain to me why it is sacred to the locals?
MCCARTHY: Sure, for the Anangu, and its always best for it to come from an Anangu but what Ive learnt from them and I thank them for that, is that its really about what they call the Tjukurrpa. And the Tjukurrpa for your listeners means songlines. In my language, we call it the Kujika and the songline is the map, the story of country. And there are so many than interrelate in terms of the surrounding areas of Uluru. And they come to gather there. And whenever I go to Mutitjulu, which is the community right next to the Rock where the Anangu families are, they do explain in great detail the significance of sites around The Rock in terms of stories thatve belongs to them from thousands of years.
MITCHELL: What will happen to people who insist and try to climb the rock? Will they be charged, will they be fined?
MCCARTHY: Well I imagine they would be, Neil. In fact that is something I will be asking when I go out there at the weekend because the closing ceremony is actually Sunday evening at Sunset and these are important questions. What does happen from here in terms of the safety of people but also the fact that if people cant climb what are the punishments that come with that? And I think its important to get those messages out and I know Parks Australia will certainly have that ready
MITCHELL: Thank you very much for your time. I certainly appreciate it. Senator Malarndirri McCarthy, a Yanyuwa woman.
