By Kishor Napier-Raman and Liam Mannix
Last month, CBD revealed multinational mining company Rio Tinto was bankrolling the Mabo Centre at the University of Melbourne, a new initiative to support Traditional Owners and First Nations people named after the iconic Indigenous land rights campaigner Eddie Mabo.
For the company, funding the centre is the next step in a campaign to repair its relationship with First Nations Australians, which was tainted by its destruction of 46,000-year-old Indigenous rock sites at Juukan Gorge in 2020. The incident brought Rio worldwide opprobrium and led to the resignation of its chief executive Jean-Sebastien Jacques.
Unfinished business: the late Eddie Mabo, whose successful challenge to terra nullius did not remove all major impediments to Indigenous advancement.Credit: Jim McEwan
But despite efforts to buy back goodwill with Indigenous communities – the company donated millions to the Yes campaign in the 2023 Voice referendum – not everyone has forgotten Rio’s recent past.
This week, six of Mabo’s grandchildren signed a scathing statement condemning the company’s backing of the Mabo Centre, which it accused of betraying his vision.
“We are mortified that the Mabo name is tied to something so hypocritical,” the statement, written by artist Neta-Rie Mabo, and co-signed by her cousins Mahalia, Maria, Hannah, Cathryn and Peta, read.
“We cannot reconcile our family’s name being tied to a centre funded by the very forces our grandfather fought against,” they said.
“A centre in his name now accepts money from Rio Tinto, a corporation that has desecrated sacred sites and disregarded Indigenous sovereignty. He would be appalled.”
The statement exposes a division among Mabo’s descendants. His daughter Gail Mabo and grandson Kaleb Mabo both attended the launch. Gail, a prominent artist, was also featured in an article dropped to The Australian about the centre.
The six Mabo grandchildren want the centre to cut all ties with Rio Tinto.
“Anything less is a betrayal. Our grandfather’s name deserves better. His legacy is not for sale”.
The Mabo Centre Advisory Board said senior members of the Mabo family “were aware of the investment by Rio Tinto ahead of the decision to gift the name”.
“Rio Tinto does not have a governance role in the Mabo Centre,” it said. “Their support is made through their social investment program.”
The company declined to comment.
Pit Stop
Anthony Albanese needs no help winning in inner Sydney.
Perhaps it was a sign of Labor hubris after Peter Dutton’s crummy start to the election campaign that the prime minister’s travelling circus stopped off at the opening of Hay St, the newly refurbished food precinct at Sydney’s Paddy Markets.
Anthony Albanese and Tanya Plibersek at the opening of Paddy’s Markets.Credit: Steven Siewert
It’s right in the heart of the electorate held by Environment Minister and Albo’s great mate Tanya Plibersek. A real coup for businessman Paul Signorelli, executive chair of Doltone Hospitality Group, whose venues are the go-to for extravagant weddings, Liberal Party fundraisers, and which is now in charge of the upgraded Paddy’s Market.
Plibersek introduced the PM on Wednesday morning, and the pair were joined by Premier Chris Minns, NSW Sports Minister Steve Kamper and Sydney Lord Mayor Clover Moore, whose million-year reign over in the Harbour City must give the Labor types pangs of jealousy.
A few Liberal types even made it, but mainly sat shyly in the corner. The blue contingent included state Opposition Leader Mark Speakman, kept company by close friends and fellow moderate comrades Sutherland Shire Councillor Haris Strangas and Bayside Councillor Jerome Boutelet. They seemed to be enjoying the outing, despite being well and truly outnumbered by the Labor faithful.
Among the ex-Liberals, our spies spotted former minister John Sidoti, dumped from the party after being found by the Independent Commission Against Corruption to have engaged in serious corrupt conduct. Also, former Sutherland mayor and one-time CBD regular Carmelo Pesce, was seen in conversation with the council’s new Labor mayor Jack Boyd.
Speak Off
The Liberals like to make it known that they are the party of free speech. But some free speech enthusiasts have recently found their attempts to clap back at Mark Speakman stymied, with the NSW opposition leader closing comments on nearly all his recent X posts.
Now, turning off the comments is a pretty common practice among media outlets hoping to avoid legally risky comments on sensitive stories. But among pollies, hoping to engage with the punters? Not so much.
NSW Opposition Leader Mark Speakman, living rent-free in the heads of social media trolls.Credit: Kate Geraghty
In Speakman’s case, the social media shutdown followed a post last month backing the Minns government’s controversial hate speech laws, which attracted the ire of anti-establishment conservatives and libertarian types.
The opposition leader’s statement promising not to support a repeal to the laws drew a flurry of angry comments from the kind of accounts that now dominate on Elon Musk’s Twitter, accusing him of cowardice and several other things too unsavoury for us to print.
After that, you’d want out, and since then, comments are off on all of Speakman’s posts barring two.
But the Liberal leader had a fiery response of his own to the haters.
“I’m not here to run a therapy session for traders in anonymous bile. I’m focused on fixing Labor’s real-world failures – skyrocketing bills, housing chaos, and a state going backward,” he said.
“Let them scroll, I’ll get on with the job. If that means living rent-free in their heads – great.”
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