Kaurna Elder calls for mass burial ground at Riverlea to be left alone: ‘Who would want to live on a burial ground?’

Aboriginal ancestral remains removed from a mass burial grave at the Riverlea housing development site should be put back in the ground, Traditional Owners say.

Aboriginal ancestral remains removed from a mass burial grave at the Riverlea housing development site just north of Adelaide should be put back in the ground, Traditional Owners say.

At least 31 individual remains were pulled out of the ground and stored in an on-site shipping container after the discovery of the mass grave in July this year.

Former head of Aboriginal Heritage for the state government, Kaurna Elder Ian Carter says there are many from his community who want the development to stop.

“That needs to stop. They can’t go digging up our ancestors,” he said.

“Spiritually, we don‘t interfere with bones and take them out of the ground, we leave them there.”

The remains uncovered were in two separate areas of housing blocks which have already been sold to homebuyers.

Aerial images of intersection of Riverlea Boulevard and Port Wakefield Rd, marking the entry to the $3 billion Riverlea housing development. Picture: Supplied by Walker Corporation

Speaking on ABC radio on Wednesday morning, Kaurna Elder Lynette Crocker said it was not a place for people to live.

“Who would want to live on a burial ground?,” she said.

“I believe that wherever they were found, we have to try and leave them there or near as possible to where they were found.”

The remains uncovered were in two separate areas of housing blocks which have already been sold to homebuyers.

Mr Crocker says the state government should restore the burial site and compensate the landowner who has already purchased the block.

One woman and landowner, who wished to remain anonymous, said she and her partner would not have bought in Riverlea if they knew there was a mass burial site there.

She said there needed to be more “respect” shown to the First Nations people.

“It‘s very upsetting because I wouldn’t have purchased it there, if that was disclosed beforehand,” she said.

”It made me feel very upset about it all because I have very close friends and their family as well who are Indigenous.”

She said whatever was “respectful to the Traditional Owners of the land is what the state government and Walker Corporation should do.

The Walker Corporation has applied to the Minister for Indigenous Affairs, Kyam Maher to build for another 25 years.

Aboriginal Affairs Minister, Kyam Maher said the state government was “committed” to protecting Aboriginal heritage across the state and was working closely with Traditional Owners and the Walker Corporation.