Old Parliament House fire: Indigenous activists can’t deflect blame

Fire damage at the facade of Old Parliament House. Picture: NCA NewsWire / Gary Ramage

On December 30, protesters set fire to Old Parliament House. They shouted about Indigenous rights and colonisation, clashed with police and flew the Aboriginal flag. They were heard yelling “let it burn” as the fire took hold. In the immediate aftermath, officials questioned whether the fire was deliberately lit, or just a smoking ceremony gone wrong. Now members of the media are questioning whether the protesters were motivated by Aboriginal rights or were duped by the alt-right.

Scott Morrison said he was “disgusted and appalled” by the attack. He was joined by Labor leader Anthony Albanese, who condemned the events. On the same day as the fire, Indigenous members of the longstanding Aboriginal Tent Embassy condemned the smoking ceremony, saying it was conducted without their knowledge or consent.

Greens senator and Indigenous activist Lidia Thorpe struck a different tone, tweeting: “Seems like the colonial system is burning down. Happy New Year everyone.” Thorpe came to fame last year after reportedly smearing Liberal senator Hollie Hughes during Senate debate with the comment: “At least I keep my legs shut.” She has removed the tweet about the fire and apologised for the comment directed at Hughes. Speaking to Nine newspapers last week, Thorpe had a revised take on the Old Parliament House attack, saying: “The people responsible for the fire have disrespected Ngunnawal Traditional Owners. There is no place for anti-vaxxers and conspiracy theorists in the struggle for First Nations sovereignty.”

Misogyny, militancy and the destruction of heritage-listed sites might impress diehard activists, but it will not endear broader Australia to the cause of Indigenous rights. The cooler heads in the struggle know it. Tent Embassy leaders have repeatedly disavowed the fire. But the attempt to blame-shift the violence to white supremacists or conservatives is problematic because it involves denial of militant elements within the Indigenous movement that could endanger the broader cause of Aboriginal rights.

A firefighter outside Old Parliament House on December 30. Picture: NCA NewsWire / Gary Ramage

Several arrests have been made. Nicholas Reed is accused of carrying kindling and loads of “hot coals” to the front of the building. Prosecutor Angus Brown said he had a pending charge in Victoria that apparently involves political protest and court documents refer to him having “sovereign citizen-style beliefs”.

Aboriginal-owned media company IndigenousX ran with the theme that protesters involved in the attack on Old Parliament House were motivated by the alt-right rather than Aboriginal concerns. Lynda June-Coe wrote: “The Aboriginal Tent Embassy is under attack by white supremacist groups, they infiltrate and influence through subterfuge.” She described protesters as “members of the anti-vax movements and right-winged extremists”. And the anti-vax movement described is apparently a front for racism as well as the “extreme right, conspiracy theory and conservative groups”.

In The Age, Indigenous affairs journalist Jack Latimore wrote a fascinating piece on the unfolding events. He delved into the figures at the heart of the protest, demonstrating they were both Indigenous and white converts to an emerging politics of sovereignty that differs from traditional Aboriginal activism. His initial depiction of the group as a coalition of alt-right groups mounting a hostile takeover of the Aboriginal Tent Embassy gave way to a more nuanced account of its key figures. They include Indigenous man David Cole, who is part of the Original Sovereign Tribal Federation. The OSTF was founded by a non-Indigenous man who was inspired by the ideas of an American who claimed to be the king of Hawaii. But Bruce Shillingsworth leads the new protest group, according to Latimore, and his involvement should raise questions about its characterisation as alt-right.

Shillingsworth is an Indigenous and environmental activist. In a 2019 video posted on the Socialist Alliance Facebook page, ”Uncle Bruce Shillingsworth” is shown leading a chant with a comrade at a climate protest. He is described as a “Socialist Alliance militant” by the group.

Socialist Alliance magazine Green Left weekly quoted Shillingsworth on the Murray-Darling Basin: “First Nations people are rising up to take back control. We are sending a message to the Australian government and greedy corporations that we have had enough and we need water back in the rivers.” He said Aboriginal people needed to be where the decisions were made and “have the right of veto”.

In another video I watched, Shillingsworth makes his case for broader Indigenous control over the management of the Murray-Darling Basin. He was eloquent, moving and persuasive. His presentation was at odds with the idea that the Old Parliamentary House protesters are dupes of the alt-right.

The notion that Indigenous people who stand for Aboriginal sovereignty and against mandatory vaccination are under the spell of alt-right or white conspiracy theorists strikes me as paternalistic. The desire to distance Indigenous activism from its more militant expression is understandable. However, the existence of diverse views among Indigenous people, or any ethnic group, is generally held to be indicative of political maturity even when those views are irrational or rejected by the mainstream.

The activists involved in setting fire to Old Parliament House should be held responsible for it. Those who facilitated the attack by inciting the violence, shielding the assailant or trying to obstruct police or emergency services workers should also be held accountable. At least some of the protesters were Aboriginal rights activists who oppose the democratically elected Australian government. The moment they set fire to the heart of our democracy, they lost the war for their cause.