Muckaty (Manuwangku) in the Barkly Tablelands in central Australia was where traditional owner Dianne Stokes waged a mammoth struggle against a nuclear waste dump. I interviewed Dianne Stokes in 2013 when the federal government tried to put a nuclear waste dump on her traditional lands. Ten years later Dianne is running for Barkly council to give her people a voice at local government level. Here is what she had to say when I met up with her in the Northern Territory.
Ya, arni ngini Nampin Dianne Stokes.
I’m a Warumungu and Warlmanpa woman who has lived and worked in the Barkly my entire life. Since 2021, I’ve been the Deputy Mayor of Barkly Regional Council.
Locals will remember I helped to lead a decade-long successful community campaign to stop Federal Government plans to impose a nuclear waste dump at Muckaty near Tennant Creek.
I am committed to helping local families stay connected through well-resourced Family Centres that can support parents, carers and young people to stay together and out of the welfare and criminal justice system. I advocate for better services for homelands residents so they can stay on Country with opportunities for work, healthcare and education instead of being forced to move to town, putting pressure on housing and other services in Tennant Creek.
I will fight to protect Country from damaging activities like gas fracking and to ensure safe drinking water for all communities.
I live in Karlumpurlpa and I currently represent residents of Patta Ward in Barkly Regional Council, which includes Tennant Creek and surrounding Northern and Western communities.
Her niece Kylie Sambo made this song about Muckaty.
Ian Curr
4PR – Voice of the People
11 Sept 2023
Condolences to Diane Stokes and her family on hearing of the death of her grandson. We post her story from the ABC program Jurnkkurakurr residents fight overcrowding climate change – Ed., 18 June 2024.
Photojournalist Rachel Mounsey follows Warumungu traditional owners in Jurnkkurakurr (Tennant Creek) as they tell stories of generational housing displacement — and their ambitious plan to reclaim their home. Overcrowding and ‘heat caves’ plague these communities. They’re now bringing home back to Country
Mounsey follows the lives of Warumungu traditional owners in Jurnkkurakurr (Tennant Creek) on a journey out of a centuries-long housing crisis. Read the full story