Who are the Martu?

The Martu are a traditionally nomadic, hunting-gathering people living in the Pilbara desert of Western Australia, about 1200 km north of the west coast city of Perth.

They have lived in the area for at least 40,000 years, making them among the oldest living culture in the world today. Many still move in very small groups. Essential to a nomadic desert life, they know where the rock holes are for water.

The Martu encompass six different language groups who have English and Martu Wangka as common languages, and 20-30 different "skin groups".

In the 1970s and 80s, government initiatives encouraged them to move into about 11 small communities. Some moved into Jigalong, originally a 1940s supply depot for the construction of what is called the Rabbit Proof Fence. This is a 3,250-km fence constructed to stop rabbits and other pests from migrating from the east to parts of Western Australia. The total Martu population is about 2,500, and about 500 currently live in Jigalong. There is a large young population, similar to Saskatchewan's north, and training and education are badly needed. If the mine goes ahead, Cameco will be involved in that.

The Martu have similar values to our Cree and Dené peoples: their first priority is the land, family and their spiritual connections. Their traditional diet is also based on available game, mostly kangaroo, bush turkey and wild camel.

In 2002 they received Native Title to their land, called an Aboriginal Lands Trust Reserve, and government payments stopped. Kintyre, if developed, will be the first mine under native title, which gives them the right negotiate compensation and royalties with Cameco.

Previously, the Martu opposed mining, but they also had no rights. With Native Title, the picture has changed. Besides Cameco, they are also consulting with Newcrest Mining, who operate the Telfer gold mine in the area.

There are also coal and copper mines nearby.

by Gill Gracie, publisher and editor of Opportunity North, a business magazine published in La Ronge, Saskatchewan, Canada. Gill interviewed Martu visitors in July, 2011 along with their legal representatives from the Western Desert Lands Aboriginal Corporation (WDLAC). This is her Opportunity North magazine article about these visitors to Canada and why they are interested in how Cameco mines uranium in Canada.