Cassy O'Connor MP | Greens Leader
It has taken seven years, hundreds of thousands of wasted taxpayer dollars, and a damning Aboriginal heritage assessment for the Gutwein Government to find the courage to tell its Braddon constituency that it won’t be reopening three tracks through priceless heritage in Takayna/Tarkine.
This ‘policy’ was always going to fail because of the national heritage protections over the area, and the certainty that reopening the tracks would cause permanent damage to one of the world’s richest archaeological sites.
They were closed under the Labor-Green government in 2012 for good reason, based on advice from Aboriginal heritage experts and the Parks and Wildlife Service.
Regrettably, it suited the Liberals to whip up a frenzy over the issue in Braddon in 2014, and to make a promise they were never going to be able to keep.
Let’s hope this provides an opportunity for a genuine reset with Aboriginal Tasmanians and that their priceless heritage is never again kicked around like a political football for short term gain.