Dingo fence has damaged sacred sites, say Aborigines
Construction of a controversial dingo fence around resort areas on Fraser Island, one of Australia's leading tourist destinations, is to continue despite objections from Aboriginal traditional owners.
The 6ft-high fence is intended to protect visitors to the World Heritage-listed island off Queensland from the 150 or so dingoes that roam its rainforests and beaches. A nine-year-old boy was killed by two dingoes on Fraser in 2001, and there has been a spate of attacks since, most recently in April last year, when a four-year-old girl was bitten.
The island is home to Australia's purest-bred dingoes, and the £360,000 fence is unpopular with some local people, who claim the animals are harmless – and with tourists, who regard them as one of Fraser's attractions. Now Aboriginal leaders have called for a halt to construction, saying that bulldozers have damaged sacred sites and burial areas.
Read entire article at Independent (UK)
The 6ft-high fence is intended to protect visitors to the World Heritage-listed island off Queensland from the 150 or so dingoes that roam its rainforests and beaches. A nine-year-old boy was killed by two dingoes on Fraser in 2001, and there has been a spate of attacks since, most recently in April last year, when a four-year-old girl was bitten.
The island is home to Australia's purest-bred dingoes, and the £360,000 fence is unpopular with some local people, who claim the animals are harmless – and with tourists, who regard them as one of Fraser's attractions. Now Aboriginal leaders have called for a halt to construction, saying that bulldozers have damaged sacred sites and burial areas.