STORIES about the kidnapping of Aboriginal women by sealers at Point Nepean and their being taken to islands in Bass Strait were recounted last month for about 50 members of Southern Women’s Action Network (SWAN).
The presentations by Bunurong woman and community educator Aunty Jillian West and Aunty Deb Mellett, a Gurindji woman from the Northern Territory were made a week after this year’s NAIDOC (National Aborigines and Islanders Day Observance Committee ) Week at SWAN’s 21 July meeting at Mount Martha Community House.
“Aunty Jillian is a descendent from Point Nepean, and Palawa from the Islands of Bass Strait. Her address, entitled Transformation Through Truth and Justice, provided important insights about the historical impact of non-Indigenous settlement on the Mornington Peninsula, and helped participants to reflect on truth–telling in our local context,” SWAN facilitator Diane McDonald said.
The second speaker was Aunty Deb Mellett, a Gurindji woman from the Northern Territory who grew up on Larrakeyah land, was an elder and general manager of Nairm Marr Djambana Aboriginal Gathering Place in Frankston.
“Aunty Deb spoke of the enduring intergenerational trauma experienced by First Peoples emanating from the appallingly shameful colonial legacy that included removing children from their families,” McDonald said.
“Both speakers recounted the story of how Aboriginal women were kidnapped by non-Indigenous sealers from a beach near Point Nepean and taken to islands in Bass Strait where they were treated like slaves and forbidden to speak their language or engage in traditional cultural practices. “They spoke too about the massacres that took place at Point Nepean, Boona-djalang, a sacred site for birthing and maternity practices.”
McDonald said issues raised by West and Mellett would be would be featured at a future gathering or workshop for non-Indigenous participants to learn more about the traditional and colonial history of the peninsula.
Details: swanwomen@outlook.com
First published in the Mornington News – 6 August 2024
