![\"Why](\"https:\/\/travindy.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/11\/uluru-83961_640.jpg\")
<\/em><\/p>\nT<\/span>he Uluru-Kata Tjuta National Park board of management has announced that tourists will be banned from climbing Uluru from 2019. The climb has always been discouraged by the park\u2019s Traditional Owners (the Anangu people) but a number of tourists continued to climb the rock on a daily basis. Below, in English and Indigenous language, Sammy Wilson, chairman of the park board, explains why his people have decided to ban the climb outright.<\/em><\/p>\n THE Uluru-Kata Tjuta National Park Board has announced tourists will be banned from climbing Uluru, an activity long considered disrespectful by the region\u2019s traditional owners.<\/p>\n Anangu have always held this place of Law. Other people have found it hard to understand what this means; they can\u2019t see it. But for Anangu it is indisputable. So this climb issue has been widely discussed, including by many who have long since passed away. More recently people have come together to focus on it again and it was decided to take it to a broader group of Anangu. They declared it should be closed. This is a sacred place restricted by law.<\/p>\n It\u2019s not just at board meetings that we discussed this but it\u2019s been talked about over many a camp fire, out hunting, waiting for the kangaroo to cook, they\u2019ve always talked about it.<\/p>\n The climb is a men\u2019s sacred area. The men have closed it. It has cultural significance that includes certain restrictions and so this is as much as we can say. If you ask, you know they can\u2019t tell you, except to say it has been closed for cultural reasons.<\/p>\n What does this mean? You know it can be hard to understand \u2013 what is cultural law? Which one are you talking about? It exists; both historically and today. Tjukurpa includes everything: the trees; grasses; landforms; hills; rocks and all.<\/p>\n You have to think in these terms; to understand that country has meaning that needs to be respected. If you walk around here you will learn this and understand. If you climb you won\u2019t be able to. What are you learning? This is why Tjukurpa exists. We can\u2019t control everything you do but if you walk around here you will start to understand us.<\/p>\n Some people, in tourism and government for example, might have been saying we need to keep it open but it\u2019s not their law that lies in this land. It is an extremely important place, not a playground or theme park like Disneyland. We want you to come, hear us and learn. We\u2019ve been thinking about this for a very long time.<\/p>\n We work on the principle of mutual obligation, of working together, but this requires understanding and acceptance of the climb closure because of the sacred nature of this place. If I travel to another country and there is a sacred site, an area of restricted access, I don\u2019t enter or climb it, I respect it. It is the same here for Anangu. We welcome tourists here. We are not stopping tourism, just this activity.<\/p>\n On tour with us, tourists talk about it. They often ask why people are still climbing and I always reply, \u2018things might change\u2026\u2019 They ask, \u2018why don\u2019t they close it?\u2019 I feel for them and usually say that change is coming. Some people come wanting to climb and perhaps do so before coming on tour with us. They then wish they hadn\u2019t and want to know why it hasn\u2019t already been closed. But it\u2019s about teaching people to understand and come to their own realisation about it. We\u2019re always having these conversations with tourists.<\/p>\n And now that the majority of people have come to understand us, if you don\u2019t mind, we will close it! After much discussion, we\u2019ve decided it\u2019s time.<\/p>\n Visitors needn\u2019t be worrying there will be nothing for them with the climb closed because there is so much else besides that in the culture here. It\u2019s not just inside the park and if we have the right support to take tourists outside it will benefit everyone. People might say there is no one living on the homelands but they hold good potential for tourists. We want support from the government to hear what we need and help us. We have a lot to offer in this country. There are so many other smaller places that still have cultural significance that we can share publicly. So instead of tourists feeling disappointed in what they can do here they can experience the homelands with Anangu and really enjoy the fact that they learnt so much more about culture.<\/p>\n Whitefellas see the land in economic terms where Anangu see it as Tjukurpa. If the Tjukurpa is gone so is everything. We want to hold on to our culture. If we don\u2019t it could disappear completely in another 50 or 100 years. We have to be strong to avoid this. The government needs to respect what we are saying about our culture in the same way it expects us to abide by its laws. It doesn\u2019t work with money. Money is transient, it comes and goes like the wind. In Anangu culture Tjukurpa is ever lasting.<\/p>\n Years ago, Anangu went to work on the stations. They were working for station managers who wanted to mark the boundaries of their properties at a time when Anangu were living in the bush. Anangu were the ones who built the fences as boundaries to accord with whitefella law, to protect animal stock. It was Anangu labour that created the very thing that excluded them from their own land. This was impossible to fathom for us! Why have we built these fences that lock us out? I was the one that did it! I built a fence for that person who doesn\u2019t want anything to do with me and now I\u2019m on the outside. This is just one example of our situation today.<\/p>\n You might also think of it in terms of what would happen if I started making and selling coca cola here without a license. The coca cola company would probably not allow it and I\u2019d have to close it in order to avoid being taken to court. This is something similar for Anangu.<\/p>\n A long time ago they brought one of the boulders from the Devil\u2019s Marbles to Alice Springs. From the time they brought it down Anangu kept trying to tell people it shouldn\u2019t have been brought here. They talked about it for so long that many people had passed away in the meantime before their concerns were understood and it was returned. People had finally understood the Anangu perspective.<\/p>\n That\u2019s the same as here. We\u2019ve talked about it for so long and now we\u2019re able to close the climb. It\u2019s about protection through combining two systems, the government and Anangu. Anangu have a governing system but the whitefella government has been acting in a way that breaches our laws. Please don\u2019t break our law, we need to be united and respect both.<\/p>\n Over the years Anangu have felt a sense of intimidation, as if someone is holding a gun to our heads to keep it open. Please don\u2019t hold us to ransom\u2026. This decision is for both Anangu and non-Anangu together to feel proud about; to realise, of course it\u2019s the right thing to close the \u2018playground\u2019.<\/p>\n The land has law and culture. We welcome tourists here. Closing the climb is not something to feel upset about but a cause for celebration.<\/p>\n Let\u2019s come together; let\u2019s close it together.<\/p>\n Anangungku iriti kanyiningi ngura Tjukurpa tjara panya. Tjinguru kulipai, \u2018ai,ai, ah, nyaa nyangatja? What is Tjukurpa?\u2019 Putu nyangangi panya. Palu Tjukurpa pala palula ngarinyi Ananguku. Ka palunya kulira wangka katiningi tjutangku. Kutjupa tjuta not with us panya. Kuwari wangka katiningi, wangka katiningi munuya kaputura piruku wangkanyi ka wiya, Anangu tjutangka piruku wangkara wangkara kati. Uwa ngalya katingu Anangu tjuta kutu. Ka Anangu tjutangku wangkangu palya, patila. Ngura miil-miilpa.<\/p>\n Not only the board meeting kutjuya wangkapai, meeting time kutju but meeting out in the campfire, waru kutjara. Waru kutjaraya malu paulpai tjana wangkapaitu still.<\/p>\n Uwa Tjukurpa wati tjutaku uwa\u2026 wati tjutangku patini, that\u2019s it, Tjukurpa palatja patini. Nyaa palatja, nyaa panya? You know sometimes it\u2019s hard to understand panya: Tjukurpa nyaa? Which one? Ngarinyi tjukurpa, iriti tjinguru ngarinyi, Tjukurpa and he\u2019s still there today. You know Tjukurpa is everything, its punu, grass or the land or hill, rock or what.<\/p>\n Palula tjanala kulintjaku, uwa kulinma nyuntu: \u2018Uwa ngura Tjukurpa tjara\u2019. Respect ngura, the country. You walk around, you\u2019ll learn, understand. Tatini nyuntu munu putu kulini, nyaa nyuntu? What you learning? Pala palutawara; Tjukurpa. Ka we can\u2019t tell you what you\u2019re doing but when you walk around you understand. Kulini.<\/p>\n Some might be\u2026 you know, tourism, government-ngka, \u2018no, leave it open, leave it\u2019 Why? palumpa tjukurpa wiya nyangakutu. This is a very important place nyangatja panya. Not inka-inka, not to come and see the Disney land. Wiya come and learn about this place. Ngapartji ngapartjila tjunu, to work together, but they gotta kulinma panya. Munta-uwa, tjana patini nyangatja, ngura miil-miilpa. Uwa. If I go some sort of country tjinguru ngura miil-miilpa, some place in the world they got miil-miilpa, I don\u2019t climb panya, I respect that place. Pala purunypa nyangatja Ananguku panya. Ka tourist nganana stop-amilantja wiya; tourist welcome palu these things, nyangatja nyanga, panya.<\/p>\n Uwa, tour-ngkala ankupai. Visitors-ngku kulu kulu wangkapai, you know sometimes we was working with tourism panya, tourist-angka and, \u2018why these people climbing? Kana, \u2018Something is coming\u2019. I always talk panya. Ka, \u2018why don\u2019t they close it?\u2019 Ka uwa its coming always, ngaltu tourist tjuta, visitors. Some people, \u2018I want to climb\u2019 sometimes visitors climb Uluru munu ngalya pitjala on tour, why I climb? Alatji, why don\u2019t they close it. Ka wiya, it\u2019s coming now you know, nintintjaku, visitors kulintjaku munta-uwa. Uwa minga tjutangka wangkapai, always.<\/p>\n Uwa kuwari nyanga kulini, kulini, everybody kulinu, munta-uwa wanyu kala patila. Wangkara wangkarala kulini, munta-uwa.<\/p>\n Visitors-ngku panya kulilpai, \u2018ai nyangatjaya patinu ka nganana yaaltji yaaltji kuwari? Nganana wai putu kulilpai\u2019. Wiya, Tjukurpa ngarinyitu ngura, outside. Not only this park unngu kutju palu tjukurpa nganananya help-amilalatu ngapartji ngapartji ka nganana ngapartji katinyi visitors tjuta. Some reckon nobody living in the homelands but this good story to tell to the visitors panya. Ka nganananya help-amilantjaku kulu kulu. Government gotta really sit down and help. We got good places up here.<\/p>\n Ngura kulunypa tjuta nyarakutu ngarinyi but he got Tjukurpa tjara. Not Tjukurpa panya nyanga side but only this side, the public story. Uwa. Uwa. Ka tourist tjinguru kulilpai, \u2018ah, I done nothing in this place\u2019 but katira nintini, sit down and talk on the homeland, uwa. Nyinara wangkara visitors kulira kulira, they\u2019ll go happy, \u2018munta-uwa I learnt a lot about Anangu\u2019.<\/p>\n Money is the land whitefella see, ka Anangu see the ngura, the land is Tjukurpa. Tjukurpa wiyangka tjinguru wiya. Culture kanyintjikitjala mukuringanyi. Culture tjinguru mala, another fifty years tjinguru panya, another hundred years, culture is gone, ma-wiyaringanyi. Nyara palula we gotta be strong. Ngapartji ngapartji panya government will understand, munta-uwa, what they saying. It doesn\u2019t work with money. Money will go away, it\u2019s like blowing in the wind, panya. Walpangku puriny waninyi. Culture panya Ananguku culture – Tjukurpa is there ngarinyi alatjitu.<\/p>\n Iriti Anangu bin go and work on the stations. They work for the station manager he want his land, block of land and uwa munta-uwa nyangatja nyangatja. Anangu was camping there, putingka. Building their fence because its boundary. Boundary palyanu that\u2019s the law, whitefella-ku law to look after cattle or sheep or whatever oh that\u2019s the law, Anangu was building it, Anangu working and Anangu now is sitting outside, he can\u2019t get in! malaku, ngura nyakuntjikitja. Putulta kulini, \u2018ai? Why? nyaakula fence-ingka patinu? That was me! I built a fence for that bloke and that bloke don\u2019t like me, I\u2019m outside now. Munta nyanga purunypa, same, what I\u2019m saying.<\/p>\n Tjinguru nyaa kulintjaku you know\u2026 I built a coca cola factory here. That coca cola factory might say no! Hello, close it otherwise he\u2019ll take me to court. Pala purunypa is Ananguku panya.<\/p>\n Iriti they bring this rock without knowing. They bring the rock from Devil\u2019s Marbles to Alice Springs. Palunya ngalya katingu ka Anangu tjutangku putu wangkara wangkara that tjinguru paluru iriti righta \u2018wai! Why that thing from here is over here?\u2019 Wangkara wangkara wangkara wangkara wangkara wangkara, some pass away-aringu palu purunypa people understand, \u2018hey we gotta take this back!\u2019 Tjukurpa paluru tjana kulinu.<\/p>\n That\u2019s the same as here, wangkara, wangkara hello, palya patinila. You know, ngura look out-amilani tjungu, still the same panya, government and Anangu. Anangu is the government too but this government, whitefella government, panparangu nguwanpa. Wiya, panparangkuntja wiya please, we gotta be tjungu. Respect.<\/p>\n Iritinguru Anangu nguluringanyi nguwanpa, nguluringanyi, ah! someone is watching us like with a gun: \u2018Don\u2019t close it please\u2019\u2026 don\u2019t point me with a gun. Pukularintjaku Anangu and piranpa, together, tjungu, uwa munta-uwa, patinu palya nyanganyi the playground.<\/p>\n Ngura got Tjukurpa. – vistors nyangatja welcome ngura. Tjituru tjituru wiya nyangatja – happy palyantjaku.<\/p>\n This article was originally published on The Conversation<\/a>. Read the original article<\/a>.<\/strong><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Sammy Wilson, chairman of the park board, explains why his people have decided to ban the climb outright. (in English and Pitjantjatjara)<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":5,"featured_media":21543,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[131,16,535],"tags":[2487],"yoast_head":"\n![\"Why](\"https:\/\/images.theconversation.com\/files\/192922\/original\/file-20171101-19847-wu0av4.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip\")
In Pitjantjatjara language<\/h2>\n
\nOnly Tjukurpa kutju, uwa Tjukurpa tjarala patini, miil-miilpa. If you ask some people, kutjupa tjapini ka, you know they can\u2019t tell you, palu tjinguru patini, Tjukurpa.<\/p>\n
\nRawangkula kulilkatira kulilkatira everywhere.<\/p>\n![\"The](\"https:\/\/counter.theconversation.com\/content\/86755\/count.gif?distributor=republish-lightbox-basic\")
Wiya, come together, wiya come together patintjaku.<\/p>\n