Central Land Council

No return of Strehlow objects

The Central Land Council and Aboriginal traditional owners have once again called on the Northern Territory Government to return secret/sacred objects held in the controversial Strehlow collection. The call came after NT Arts and Museums Minister Daryl Manzie returned from talks on a successful national repatriation programme, still determined that the Strehlow collection in Alice Springs remain exempt from the process. At a meeting in Adelaide last February, Cultural Ministers from around Australia agreed to seek renewed funding for the program.

But just days later, a spokesperson for Mr Manzie said the Strehlow collection would not be returned to traditional owners. Aboriginal custodians are deeply disappointed the NT Government is continuing to ignore their persistent requests to have the objects returned. They have also refuted claims by the NT Government that returning the objects would mean people would be hurt, and disputes would arise.

Out of step Central Land Council and custodians say there is no reason why the Strehlow collection should not be repatriated to its rightful owners.

"Museums around Australia are repatriating objects and ancestral remains and have been doing it for some time, " CLC director Tracker Tilmouth said. "This is another example of the NT Government actively ignoring Aboriginal people's wishes over matters which are of immense cultural significance. "There is no reason why the objects cannot be returned, other than the NT Government's intransigence. "Our experience shows returning secret/sacred objects is a delicate but not impossible process. "Portions of the Carl Strehlow (Carl Strehlow is the son of anthropologist Ted Strehlow) collection have already been returned. "So clearly, returning secret/sacred objects is not only possible, it is being done now and it is a continuing process.

"The NT Government should show more respect for Aboriginal culture and law." "These objects belong to the custodians, they are an integral part of their culture and identity. "They do not belong to the NT Government." So far, the repatriation program has already identified around 20000 secret/sacred objects and ancestral remains that are still being held in museums throughout Australia. The Northern Territory Act which set up the Strehlow Research Centre prohibits the collection from being broken up - but the Act could be amended. A spokesperson for Mr Manzie said Professor Ted Strehlow had been given most of the items by Aboriginal people in the 1920s and 1930s.