Activist group Anticolonial Asian Alliance led the protest which called on the NSW government to drop its support for the Shenhua Watermark coalmine project, earmarked for the Liverpool Plains region of NSW.
Locals say that the development, which is being spearheaded by the Chinese state-owned mining company Shenhua Group, would threaten several sacred Gomeroi sites, including cultural items, burial grounds and sites of "colonial massacres".
Gamilaraay man and Native Title applicant for the Gomeroi people, Raymond Weatherall, said that legislative changes by the NSW planning department have effectively denied the Gomeroi their voice.
He was one of almost 200 people who have applied to the federal government through Aboriginal Heritage Protection laws.
The protest against Shenhua Group in Sydney. Source: SBS Mandarin/Edgar Lu
“The NSW government are very well aware of our ATSIHP application and protracted battle to protect and defend our sacred places yet these appear to be deliberately ignored,” he said.
“Legislation and processes [are] developed which in effect sidestep or excuse the government from taking protection action.”
A spokesperson from the Asian Alliance said a key aim of the protests was to send a message of solidarity to the NSW and Chinese governments.
“Gomeroi mob have been fighting to reclaim stolen lands for over 200 years. As Asian settlers, we need to recognise whose land we’re on, and who’s profiting the most off this."
The project is located 25km south-east of the town of Gunnedah and has drawn controversy because of the location in a primarily agricultural region.
valued at A$1 billion, the project, once operational, was expected to extract 10 million tonnes of coal per year and have a 30-year live span.
The protest against Shenhua Group in Sydney. Source: SBS Mandarin/Edgar Lu
The protest against Shenhua Group in Sydney. Source: SBS Mandarin/Edgar Lu
The protest against Shenhua Group in Sydney. Source: SBS Mandarin/Edgar Lu
