Island visit pledge

By Tania Martin
SHIRE of Yarra Ranges’ Lyster Ward councillor Robyn Hale recently spent two weeks teaching life skills to residents of Gawa, a village on Elcho Island, 600 kilometres from Darwin.
The trip was part of council’s Vista Leadership program which offers experiences to enhance leadership skills.
Cr Hale said in the 1960s the Federal Government built a town and moved the inhabitants of Elcho Island to that town.
The residents were taken away from their traditional homelands to the town in the south of the island, which was named Gailwin’ku.
However, by the late 1980s, many residents began to leave Gailwin’ku to return to their homelands.
Cr Hale said Gawa was one of the tribes that decided to return home, but many were missionraised and lacked basic life skills. She said the Gawa Elders then decided to build a school so the community could become self sufficient and, if possible, teach their grandchildren their own culture.
Cr Hale said one of the reasons the Elders had moved back to the homeland was to distance the children from problems associated with Gailwin’ku, such as alcoholism and petrol sniffing.
“The children’s parents have mostly lost their generation to drugs and the Elders wanted their grandchildren to grow up away from these influences,” she said.
Cr Hale said 40 indigenous people now live in Gawa.
The school has a fulltime teacher and the children are learning English and their native language of MalaYolnu.
Cr Hale and a couple of scientists experienced in water quality, a teacher, a builder and a worker from the Life Ministry Church spent two weeks in Gawa.
She said she helped to set up a commercial kitchen as the community are fed a hot lunch.
“I feel very privileged to have spent two weeks with these wonderful people and I am absolutely determined to help lift the profile of the plight of many indigenous people in Australia,” she said.
Cr Hale said indigenous males have a life expectancy of 36, with many dying of diabetes or heart failure.
“There is so much that can be done to help this little community (Gawa).
By working in partnership with the Life Ministry Church, Northern Territory Christian School Association and lots of working parties, we can achieve so much,” she said.