Aborigines (1981)

From the October 1981 issue of the Socialist Standard

Very often large firms engage costly public relations consultants to influence public opinion in a way favourable to what they deem to be their shareholders’ interests. In Western Australia a subsidiary of the giant mining company RTZ—Ashton Joint Venture (AJV)—has engaged the services of one of the most expensive public relations firms in the world, Eric White Associates, to off-set unfavourable publicity on AJV’s snatching of Aboriginal lands in the Kimberly region of Western Australia.

Before it settled its plans to steamroll into Aboriginal settlements, AJV managed to “persuade” four members of the local community, whom it recognised as the traditional owners of its potential main mining site, to sign away their rights to the land. But since that agreement it has been claimed that at least 35 Aboriginals have rights to the land signed away to AJV, and a fierce quarrel has arisen with AJV steadfastly clinging to its ownership by virtue of the signed agreement.

So in this dispute the Aboriginals, who are not yet familiar with the ruthlessness of the profit-system, will largely be left to fend for themselves, while AJV will award their PR company 315,000 Australian Dollars to mount a lobby with state and federal government ministers, MPs and appropriate members of the public service in an effort to ensure that the mining company now have valid, legal ownership of the settlement lands.