just 'cultural vandalism' or bamiyan buddhas 2 ?

Was it just arson  - just a simple, deliberately lit, fire?  Or is it  actually more than even the  "Cultural vandalism" it has been called ?  Does this fiery act actually beg to be  compared to the destruction of the  Bamiyan Buddhas, by the Taliban, in Afghanistan?

I think so. A fire in the remote Australian Outback  may not be as loud as the Taliban dynamiting of the ancient Buddhas. A dynamiting that was heard, and still echoes, around the world. The effect of  the cultural destruction, though, is the same. Or does a UNESCO Heritage Listing make one more valuable than the a sacred site that was about to  "Protected" by local Authorities ?

 I think it is something much more than mere 'cultural vandalism' because this is part of a continuing pattern of  the destruction of a Peoples and their Culture.A Culture that saw these trees as Sacred.

 Can one ignore the continuing destruction (with tons of dynamite  of sacred Aboriginal sites by money mad mining  companies.? A Destruction that was deepened and Depth charged by the  takeover of  their lands( under the pretext of 'protecting their children")  by a right wing  Howard government . A take over that the slightly left Labour Government, did nothing to reverse.

I  find the language used in the  Australian media reports fascinating. Compare the report in the Sydney Morning Herald with the  reports in the right wing,  Murdoch owned,  Australian and News.com.  Look at how the  right wing media limits the  critical cultural fallout  by constructing a narrative of  a loss limited to  the just  the admirers of  Albert Namatjira and his paintings.  A Namatjira they still sell as a "Symbol of Unity" in a,still largely White, Australia.

A FIRE that destroyed two sacred ghost gums featured in an Albert Namatjira landscape was arson according to the Northern Territory bushfire authority, the Department of Lands, Planning and the Environment.

A spokeswoman said a report would be referred to police. ''But our initial investigations indicate the fire was deliberately lit.''

The gums were also listed as a sacred site of the western Arrernte people by the Aboriginal Areas Protection authority. Alison Anderson, the member for Namatjira and Minister for Indigenous Advancement in the NT government, described the arson attack as a ''sad time'' for Aboriginal people because the gums held special significance for Arrernte people.

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Fairfax Media understands this is not the first incident involving the deliberate killing and vandalising of significant and sacred trees in and around Alice Springs in recent years. In other incidents river gums in the Todd River have been burnt and ancient Coolabah trees drilled and poisoned.

''There is no doubt somebody set out to destroy the trees. It was announced in December they had been approved for heritage listing and that had apparently made them a target,'' a source close to the investigation said.

Located 16 kilometres west of Alice Springs on historic Larapinta Drive, the ghost gums, regarded by Arrernte people as living spirits, had been hit by dieback and were part of a restoration program.

Malcolm Connolly, a senior heritage officer, said he had been involved with traditional owners and the Central Land Council in plans to save the trees and to protect them from unnecessary tourist intrusion

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They were regarded as a deeply significant landmark, synonymous with Namatjira's depiction of the desert country around Hermannsburg and ghost gums as living spirits.

Susan McCulloch, the author of the Encyclopedia of Australian Art, said the destruction of the ''majestic ghost gums'' that appeared in so many of Namatjira's most well-known and much-loved works was an appallingly tragic act of cultural vandalism.

http://www.smh.com.au/environment/weather/fire-that-destroyed-sacred-gums-confirmed-as-arson-20130104-2c8wj.html

Namatjira's ghost gums burn down

• From:AAP 
• January 04, 2013 6:06PM

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Two ghost gums made famous in the artwork of Albert Namatjira have been damaged in a fire. Source: AAP

TWO ghost gums near Alice Springs made famous in the artwork of Albert Namatjira have been badly damaged in a fire.

The gum trees appear in some of Namatjira's best known works and were also featured on a stamp and are included in the song I Am Australian.

The Northern Territory government said it was thought the fire was deliberately lit, but police later said there was no arson investigation.

Northern Territory Minister for Indigenous Advancement Alison Anderson says the trees are special to many people who love and admire the artist.

"In his watercolours he brought the beauty of the Central Australian landscape to the world and helped make it a symbol of Australian identity," Ms Anderson said.

Kriss Borgan from the Mbantua Gallery and Cultural Museum in Alice Springs said it was sad the iconic gums had been burned down.

http://www.theaustralian.com.au/news/breaking-news/namatjiras-ghost-gums-burn-down/story-fn3dxiwe-1226547607491




The Northern Territory's Minister for Indigenous Advancement, Alison Anderson, said on Thursday the loss of the trees would sadden many Territorians

"The twin Ghost Gums were a wonderful reminder of his connection to the land and many who visited the site would have felt a connection to this great Territorian," she said in a statement.

Ms Stowe said the Department of Lands, Planning and the Environment notified police who believed the fire may have been deliberately lit.

"Only recently work was done around the trees to try and protect them from fires and allow as much moisture as possible to get to their roots," she said.

SYMBOL OF UNITY: Aboriginal artist Albert Namatjira at work on a painting in circa 1956.

http://www.news.com.au/national/loss-of-namatjira-gum-trees-mourned/story-fndo4eg9-1226547431415