Australian Government dismantles part of World Heritage Site

[Norfolk Island, South Pacific, Sunday 14 February 2016, 1400 AEST]

It has emerged that the Australian Government on Norfolk Island has dismantled part of the fabric of the World Heritage listed Kingston and Arthur’s Vale Historic Area (KAVHA) site on Norfolk Island. KAVHA is a key site among the eleven Australian Convict Sites across Australia which have been inscribed as a group on the World Heritage List. This action (and others taken) have the potential to throw into jeopardy the World Heritage listing of the eleven sites as a whole.

This action in fact and in spirit, contravenes Articles of the Burra Charter developed by Australia ICOMOS (1) for the conservation and management of sites of cultural significance, contravenes Articles of UNESCO’s Managing Cultural World Heritage manual, and may also contravene Articles of the 1972 World Heritage Convention. At least one of the actions taken on the site appears to be illegal under the Commonwealth’s Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act (EPBC Act).

At some time in September 2015 the entire contents of the Norfolk Island Legislative Assembly in the Old Military Barracks in the KAVHA site were removed – furniture and fittings, democratic symbols, memorabilia – including the horseshoe Assembly Chamber table and chairs, the Speaker’s Bench, the large committee room table, furniture, flags and decorated wall holders, gifts, plaques, coats of arms, photographs. As objects that related to the Government of Norfolk Island from its inception in1979, they are amongst the most significant cultural heritage materials of the Norfolk Island people who settled here from Pitcairn Island in 1856.

The only known publicly available record of this dismantlement is a posting on Facebook.(2) The work was undertaken without community announcement or consultation.

All the removed cultural heritage items were in place when the World Heritage Council granted World Heritage listing, and represent an important and perhaps world-noteworthy experiment in small-island democracy which persisted for over 35 years. The items removed also enshrined a proud and much longer Norfolk Island democratic tradition, namely the according of equal voting rights to men and women in community decision-making since the arrival from Pitcairn Island in 1856 (and on Pitcairn Island before that).

These actions have recently been brought to the attention of Commonwealth Minister for the Environment, the Australian Heritage Council, Australia ICOMOS, and others.

The Norfolk Island Legislative Assembly as a democratic institution was extinguished on 17 June 2015 following the passage through the Australian Parliament of legislation that brought to an end the limited form of self-government enjoyed on the Island since 1979.

(1) ICOMOS is the International Council on Monuments and Sites.
(2) Robin Adams, “Heritage whisked away”, at: https://www.facebook.com/robin.adams.16121471/posts/914735075272403.
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Chris Nobbs, an independent commentator, Norfolk Island