A landmark case has resulted in Parks Australia having to pay more than $700,000 in fines and compensation after pleading guilty to disturbing a sacred site in Kakadu National Park.
Sitting by Gunlom Falls on Wednesday, Judge Elizabeth Morris ordered Parks Australia to pay a $200,000 fine for building a walkway near rock art without permission from sacred sites watchdog, the Aboriginal Areas Protection Authority.
She found Parks Australia did not "wilfully disregard" traditional owners' knowledge who asked for the walkway to deviate away from the sacred site.
However she did not accept it was "reasonable" for Parks Australia's project manager to not realise the consequences of her actions.
"True consultation lies at the heart of all of the agreements and management plans that have been tendered to this court. It cannot be perfunctory," she said during her judgment at an on-country hearing.
Judge Morris said in this case there was clearly a "reliance of trust" between the parties that had been breached.
Parks Australia has already paid $500,000 compensation via the Northern Land Council to traditional owners for lost earnings since Gunlom Falls was closed to tourists in 2019.
The judgment ends a five-year battle, in which the Commonwealth appealed all the way to the High Court, and sets new precedent in case law for damage or disruption of sacred sites.
Parks Australia Kakadu director and Djungan man Ronald "Ricky" Archer was visibly remorseful when addressing media.
"As an Indigenous person, I take the protection of sacred sites to heart and it's something I culturally and personally and professionally will be doing as much as I can to ensure we learn lessons and improve," he said.
He said since beginning in the role in 2023 he was happy at the way trust was being rebuilt with traditional owners and custodians.
In her findings, the judge accepted evidence by custodians and traditional owners that Parks' actions had caused harm to "individuals and the community".
Aboriginal Protection Areas Authority chief executive Benedict Scambary said it had been a difficult journey for custodians.
"Today's decision, which levies the highest fine ever levied under the Northern Territory Aboriginal Sacred Sites Act, is very welcomed," he said.
"A key point of this is that the Northern Territory has very well developed heritage laws ... designed for the protection of safe sites; those laws work."
But for those like Bolmo traditional owner Rachael Willika, the judgment only goes part way to healing, to bringing the animals, fish and people back to country.
"Healing takes place within our spirit, our ancestors and country," she said.
"When we come back and do the things and speak to our ancestors, call out to them, and do all those things, then that's healing."
After that, and once the termites have been removed from the current walkway, Gunlom will again welcome national and international tourists.
"Visitors will be back here next year," Wurrkbarbar man and traditional owner Joshua Hunter said.
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