PLEA TO DEFEND THE NORTH

Pilbara Regiment members at Karratha. Photo Geoff Vivian, Ngaarda Media.

GEOFF VIVIAN

Local councils in the Kimberley and Pilbara are uniting to draw attention to our inability to defend ourselves in any future war fought in the North West.

“The country does rely on 50 per cent of the country’s exports coming out of the Pilbara, the Kimberley and the North West,” Derby West Kimberley shire president Geoff Haerewa said.

“You don’t have to be a rocket scientist to figure out we are really exposed on this side of the country with only four per cent of the defence forces personnel based over this end.

Mr Haerewa, who is also deputy chair of the North West Defence Alliance, said they wanted to see better coordination between Government and Industy.

“What we are looking at is what Government Infrastructure is in place and also mining and gas and oil,” he said. “And to do an audit on what the defence force could utilise from these businesses, or from the government, that’s already there. And maybe identify what gaps there are for communication, for helping the defence force do their job better.”

Mr Haerewa said he would like to see more local Aboriginal people in defence forces.

“It is their land, they would fight for it which they have been fighting for the last 200 years since colonisation,” he said. “If there was a foriegn force coming this way they would fight even harder.”