“This is one of the freest places on this continent, because we have the ability to be who we want to be here.”
Wangan and Jagalingou man Coedie McAvoy has kept a fire continuously alight near the site of the Adani Carmichael mine in Queensland for more than a year. This is his story of non-violent protest.
We don’t have native title here, but we didn’t sign a treaty and there’s no deed of sale. We created a border circle on 26 August 2019, a few kilometres east. Then on 26 August 2020, we set up a border ring inside a pastoral lease. We built a fire in the middle of the road and blocked the road for about a week. Adani brought the police in and they removed us. My father, Adrian Burragubba, went to Brisbane and put in a complaint to the Human Rights Commission. The police wrote a letter of regret, which gave us recognition of who we are. They said they understand that my old man and his family represent a group of Wangan and Jagalingou people aggrieved by Adani’s occupation of their tribal lands. They put us into being.
Once we got that piece of paper, I created an event called the Tour de Carmichael, in March 2021. We rode 100 pushbikes into the place where I got kicked out, to prove a point to Adani and the police and the government. I thought, Why don’t we build a border circle and have one person sit inside it the whole time? We have a fire going and there’s no foreign objects inside the circle. It became a ceremony.
The police will need to take me to court to get me out of here. As long as we stay here we’ve got the moral authority. We’re sitting on top of a berm and there’s a fire. We’re not interfering with the mine because we’re outside the blast radius of one kilometre. The police have never come over the berm wall so this is one of the freest places on this continent, because have the ability to be who we want to be here.
When we arrived, we assumed that we would be here for a week but it evolved: we live here, this is our home. I’ve been living here for a year. I’m obviously a permanent resident of the area. Four lines of succession are living here. We have the right to life. And we have the right to not be forcefully assimilated.
We have the right to protect our environment, our coastal seas and our waterways. We have the right to develop our culture in any way that is in our capacity to do.
There’s more here for my family than they’d have back in the city. Evenutally, we want to turn this area into a cultural reserve. That means no cattle, no cutting down of trees. It means growing and harvesting our native fruits and berries and grasses and seeds. Protecting our totemic trees. It’s not about me. We’re connected through songlines all across this Country. It’s a massive responsibility, but at the same time, it’s a fulfilling journey. We’re the start of something bigger.
I fight the government with a smile on my face. While being friendly, I’ll take back my property. It’s been effective for 369 days now. The fire’s still burning, we’re still here and we’re not going to leave until Adani leaves. And then we still won’t leave because this is our home. I’m here to fight for Country and protect my homelands. And to tell other mobs about what we’re doing.
As told to Kirsty de Garis for Dumbo Feather issue #71: Beyond Ego.
Photographer: Almos Bechtold
