Two NSW men have been fined almost $9000 each for using oily hands to damage sacred cave art at Uluru.
The ABC reported the two men, Shawn Bartley and Richard Jarrett, were charged with a string of offences relating to an incident in 2022.
Both men claim to be “sovereign citizens”, a fringe group of people known for misinterpreting and co-opting First Nations cultures who, as The Conversation reported, *literally* believe the law doesn’t apply to them .
The court heard on August 11 2022 the men drove into the Uluru-Kata Tjuta national park, parked in a no-stopping zone, and climbed a fence with their two dogs.
The men then went into Warayuki, a sacred cave site associated with Anangu Men’s Business that is prohibited to the public.
Using a jar of “unidentified oily liquid” the men made two hand prints on the cave walls, covering a section of ancient Anangu rock art.
Ew. Just ew.
To make matters worse, the court heard the men used leaves, tree nuts and coals to light a fire in the cave, before drawing on the floor.
Bartley and Jarrett were spotted by a tour guide, who alerted park rangers, who involved Anangu traditional owners.
Commonwealth prosecutor Ryan Bocock informed the court Jarrett told traditional owners they had come to the site to “make treaty with my people.”
Bocock told the court one traditional owner responded Jarret and said “what’s wrong with you?”
The prosecutor informed the court the traditional owner said the men had “no shame coming to our place, you have no culture, you have no language.”
Bartley and Jarrett didn’t even rock up to Alice Springs Local Court when they were due to be sentenced on Thursday.
The men also did not enter pleas to any of the charges.
This meant the sentencing proceeded ex parte. Legalese for just because you’re avoiding it, doesn’t mean its not happening.
Judge David Bamber found both men guilty of the charges against them, including entering a prohibited area, damaging and defacing, lighting a fire on and taking animals onto a Commonwealth reserve.
Justice Bamber described the actions of the men as “quite a blatant attempt to thumb their noses both at general law, and show … contempt to the the culture of the traditional owners.”
“This is a case where we have two persons who have these wrong-headed notions of sovereign citizenship, whatever that means.”
Both men were convicted and fined $8600 each.
So two morals of the story. Don’t damage sacred sites. And don’t think avoiding court will mean you’ll avoid getting sentenced.
Image source: Getty Images / Chris Jackson
