Perth Voice Interactive

The heroes a nation ignored

November 14, 2014

MAYLANDS locals are pushing for a plaque to recognise the contributions of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander service personnel at the local war memorial.

Around 1000 Aborigines are believed to have served in WWI and 5000 in WWII, but the figure could be far higher, as at the time the department of veterans affairs was only required to list names and not cultural backgrounds.

In 2005 indigenous Vietnam veteran John Schnaars established the Honouring Indigenous War Graves, a non-profit group.

Since its inception the group has successfully lobbied for the acknowledgement of more than 100 indigenous veterans throughout WA: “I have to try to right a small wrong from many years ago that happened to these veterans,” he says.

“I believe it was the veterans who went away to war then, who had no rights in this country to vote or anything, and that it was those men and women—the few women that went away—that changed the course of history on the way Australia felt towards Aborigines.

“In my view, they were the people who led the change of history in Australia, towards Aboriginals being able to vote and have rights. It’s for that reason, I think, that we owe them a lot…”

During WWI and the early stages of WWII the 1903 defence act excluded people who were not of European origin from enlisting, but the rules were relaxed after the Allies suffered heavy casualties.

Upon their return to Australia, instead of recognition some Aboriginal diggers endured ignorance and racism, and were ineligible for returned servicemen land grants and RSL membership.

• Vietnam veteran John Schnaars and partner Jan Rawangdee get ready to pay their respects at the Maylands war memorial on Remembrance Day. Photo by Matthew Dwyer

Some returned service personnell discovered the government had removed their children while they had been defending their country.

The indigenous veterans plaque has the backing of the local Bedford-Morley RSL branch, which has around 96 members.

“Our sub-branch members all agree that the services of these people should be recognised,” wrote branch member Colin Robb.

The 82-year-old says he’s heard plans are afoot to erect a similar tribute at Elizabeth Quay.

Terry Gaunt, a member of the Maylands Historical Society, credits his wife Pam with the idea for the tribute.

“Having read many books on Australian servicemen in various areas of war Pam was always concerned about the lack of recognition of the many Aboriginal men who had served Australia with great courage during many wars,” he says.

“I was aware there was federal funding for war memorials for the Anzac anniversary in 2015, however it ran out fairly quickly.

“We approached the City of Bayswater six months ago, and although they agreed a tribute would be good, we are concerned that there is now insufficient time to have the plaque in place for the 100 year anniversary of Anzac Day 2015.”

Bayswater council will vote on whether to approve the plaque later this month.

If approved it will be installed at the war memorial, on the corner of Eighth Avenue and Guildford Road, before Reconciliation Week next year.

by STEPHEN POLLOCK
New rabbi not pulling rank

November 14, 2014

TEMPLE David in Mount Lawley has a new rabbi.

Israeli-born Adi Cohen says he took on the job in Perth because it represented a challenge to strengthen the local Jewish community.

“When I came here for the final interview I saw the potential in the place,” he says.

“It’s very easy to take a role in a well-established congregation where your work is mostly maintenance, but I was looking for a challenge to turn a great congregation into an innovative congregation.”

Temple David is part of Judaism’s more progressive wing. More orthodox traditions have strict rules on who’s Jewish, holding that it’s passed down only through the mother.

The progressive school has a wider definition and accepts patrilineal descent for people who grew up in a Jewish home with a Jewish identity.

It also constantly re-examines the original Torah in new contexts.

In his office bookcase, Rabbi Cohen has books stretching back thousands of years with progressively updated interpretations of how the texts should be seen in new eras.

“We’re an egalitarian congregation,” he says, “one of the things we cherish here is pluralism and a non-judgmental approach.

• Adi Cohen at his new home temple. Photo by David Bell

“I believe one of the roles I took upon myself … is to provide people a way to live a full Jewish life in the modern era.

“We’re living in a world that’s different from 50 years ago, 100 years ago.

“The question is not how I preserve the Jewish world and shield it from change, my task is how do I bring the Jewish world into modern life while holding onto our traditions.

“It’s about forming our present from the bricks of the past—being respectful and knowledgeable toward it, but not living in the past.”

He’s previously been a rabbi in New Zealand and Israel, and before that served in the Israeli Defence Force’s navy and then as a search and rescue officer.

As to the never-ending conflicts back home, Rabbi Cohen says he loves his country and that’s why he’ll criticise its actions when he thinks it’s done wrong.

“We’re not afraid to criticise Israel… [but] I think that although Israel is far from being perfect, it is the only state in the world where the culture, its day to day life, its language, is rooted in Judaism,” he says, and that makes it important to Jews who live elsewhere in the world.

As for taking up the top job at the temple, he says he’s not there as a “boss” exactly but to help guide the conversation of where the congregation wants to go.

“In a progressive world, the rabbi is not calling the shots.

“It’s not about pulling rank, it’s the wind leading the clouds.”

by DAVID BELL
Locals fume over Morley tower plan

November 14, 2014

PLANS to erect a 29-metre telecommunications tower near a Morley suburban street has the local ratepayers’ association fuming.

Commander Telephone Services wants to erect the tower beside its warehouse on Boag Road, 185m from houses on Drake Street and around 210m from residences on Walter Road West.

The tower would be used for private communication between two sites owned by Commander and have a maximum transmission of 500 megawatts.

Tony Green, president of the Bayswater City Residents’ Association, says the tower is over-specced.

“Unless its other factory is on Mars, then 500 megawatts is well over the top,” he says.

“You could fry an egg on Jupiter with that.

“We need some clarification on the radiated power that would be used—there’s homes nearby and the tower would back onto Bunnings.”

• Above: Tony Green beside the site of the proposed telecoms tower.

Bayswater council officers wrote the tower is at odds with the council’s 2010 Morley city centre master plan.

“The majority of development adjoining the subject site does not have a height greater than two storeys and will not mask the appearance of the tower; rather the tower will be clearly seen from residential areas which is considered to have an undue impact on the aesthetics and amenity of the locality,” staff wrote.

Councils have no powers when it comes to most towers: they are merely consulted and their views taken into account, but companies enjoy sweeping powers under federal law to override objections.

“Low-impact” facilities—defined as those below 5m in height which are not too visibly obtrusive—are under the purview of the federal government.

As the tower is less than 250 metres from a residential area it will come before council for a vote later this month.

by STEPHEN POLLOCK
Letters 15.11.14

November 14, 2014

Far from perfect
ARTHUR MISTILIS draws a long bow saying Stirling is “a perfectly working council” (Voice Mail, November 1, 2014). One doesn’t have to look far to find that assertion wrong.
1. The council dithered over the Scarborough foreshore revitalisation for about 20 years. Finally the Barnett government had to appoint the MRA to take over and now things are moving.
2. The council has increased rates and decreased services. Take the chaos it created with verge junk and greens collections when, without warning, they were reduced from twice to once per annum.
3. Until caught out by a ratepayer who’d discarded jewellery in her bin, the council disgracefully hid from all residents the fact rubbish from its much touted one-bin recycling system was in fact all going to landfill for almost one year.
4. The council allows suburban amenity to constantly deteriorate by not controlling illegally parked vehicles, boats and trailers plus builder materials obstructing verges and footpaths. It runs a reactive rather than proactive regime by not appointing enough rangers for the city’s size to control local laws.
5. The mayor scaremongers “rates will rise” due to boundary changes. I can’t recall Stirling ever reducing the money we pay for rates, plus annual levies for rubbish collection and security service. They always rise!
6. Not to forget the council pays bonuses to city officers simply for doing their job.
Far from “perfectly working” the underlying problem seems to be Stirling is too large for council and city officials to properly manage. Let’s hope a smaller city allows the council to better manage Stirling.
Sid Breeden
Abbett St, Scarborough

Let’s stick together
MODERN Mount Lawley is a coalescence of nine distinct areas that started as colonial land grants (or parts of those grants) which became unified under that name more than 100 years ago.
These total 568.9 hectares, making Mount Lawley the largest inner-city suburb of Perth. In the absence of published areas in the latest WA government metropolitan boundary revisions, it seems 13 per cent ends up in the City of Vincent, 26 per cent in the City of Stirling and 61 per cent in the City of Bayswater.
This wouldn’t matter if we were talking about state or federal government electorates where boundaries reflect wider political concerns, but local government municipalities are quite different. Municipalities deal with matters close to the everyday lives of the communities they serve.
It would seem logical to me that communities/suburbs should be distributed among municipalities in ways that strengthen community coherence and identification with those municipalities.
This revision has sought to do just the opposite. It can hardly be argued that splitting Mount Lawley across three municipalities, with their separate policies, town planning schemes, traffic policies, etc will further the coherence of the suburb and foster its sense of community.
Mount Lawley is notable for the high degree of positive involvement it shares with its local government. Why does the state government work against this desirable outcome?
As far as Mount Lawley (and maybe for those other suburbs/communities similarly affected) is concerned, this is not boundary reform: it is negative social engineering.
Barrie Baker
Patron, Mt Lawley Society

Sad sentiment
THAT a ratepayer seems to think he/she has precedence over a non-ratepayer, I can only echo the headline to the letter, “So sad” (Voice Mail, November 8, 2014) that responded to the article featuring me and my dog on the front page the previous week.
I suggest your correspondent do their homework: my landlord pays his rates, I pay my landlord—I am on the electoral roll, I have worked in the past, paid taxes, when not working I have done volunteer work for several organisations.
I have lived at my present address for more than 28 years, I have known all the mayors, from Jack Marks to John Carey. If your correspondent had done a “simple background check” he/she will have read about me before, in the same paper, (with a different dog) back in 1997, Friday December 5.
Well, as the letter-writer seem to have no problem “forking out” $1000 toward moving a doggie bowl such a short distance, perhaps he/she might push for a safety fence around the playground on the same reserve, now the dogs can have free-range, when no sports in progress
Just wondering, how long has your correspondent lived in the area of Charles Veryard Reserve and Smiths Lake?
Caroline Powell-Pepper
PS. I’ve had nothing but positive feedback about the article—and they were ratepayers.

Better off RET
DEATH might be coming early for the Australian renewable energy industry if the federal government goes ahead and breaks an election promise it made to keep the current renewable energy target.
Investors have spent more than $10 billion on big renewable energy projects such as wind and solar farms under this policy, and now they face being ripped off if the government changes the rules halfway through the scheme and pushes through a cut to the target of almost two-thirds.
As the government’s own analysis showed, any cut to this policy would drive up power prices for Australians so a few old coal companies can make more money.
Kane Thornton
Acting CEO Clean Energy Council
Well teated!

November 14, 2014

FROM the comfort of our footpath table we watched the queue outside Milkd lengthen down the street and thanked our lucky stars we’d beaten the morning rush.

Then everyone realised the person at the head of the queue wasn’t queuing at all but merely leaning against the wall waiting for someone inside. Doh!

Our table was well placed to watch the subsequent comic antics and comings and goings, and further observation revealed Milkd does a rip-roaring trade in coffee and muffins to go. It doesn’t do its own juices, which is disappointing, however, I was assured the OJ ($7) was freshly squeezed (elsewhere). And I have to say I couldn’t fault it—I just would have liked more choice than orange and apple.

Service was languid but then it was a Sunday and we had nowhere else to be and there was plenty to watch on this Eighth Avenue hub. Hip 20-somethings, with fashionably half-shaved heads (men and women) middle-class matrons with designer dogs, groovy young mums and bubs, and a range of customers in between mingled at this trendy little eatery, illustrating the wonderful community vitality of Maylands in 2014.

Milkd gets its bread from the New Norcia bakery, including a particularly good sourdough. Poached eggs and sourdough ($13) are a match made in heaven my other half mumbled as rich golden yolk soaked obligingly into his lightly scorched bread.

As I sank my teeth into the zucchini, artichoke and feta on grilled bread ($11.90) I concurred that sourdough does indeed rock.

The combination of zucchini and artichoke made for happy bedfellows and the zing of feta, garlic butter and a sweet/sharp mango chutney on the side ensured this was a delicious way to start the day.

The last member of our trio mixed and matched his meal with poached eggs, beans and avocado ($21). Milkd makes its own version of baked beans (nothing like the soft beans in sugar-tomato glop we grew up with) and they were fantastic, the navy beans soft and buttery and the tomato sauce rich and sharp. The avocado a brilliant addition.

Having lingered long we were up for trying the toasted banana bread and toasted mango and coconut bread ($5). The banana bread was a classic version, moist and slightly spicy, while the mango bread was lighter, soft and fluffy with a powerful coconut flavour.

A couple of very good coffees ($4) ensured a well rounded finish to a most enjoyable breakfast.

Milkd
45 Eighth Avenue, Maylands
9272 4041
open Mon–Sun 6.30am–6pm
All voice no words

November 14, 2014

WHY give an exhibition a name nobody can say and which causes immense difficulty for keyboard-challenged journalists on old computers?

To demonstrate that the Perth arts community isn’t silenced by the closure of many of its galleries in recent years, says Merrick Belyea.

“We are not silenced we still have a voice, but it’s an abstract voice,” he says.

Belyea and artist mate Miic Green used symbols rather than a name for an exhibition of theirs last year.

With more galleries having closed since then they’re doing it again, this time for artists Don Walters and Thomas Heidt—with an unpronounceable title comprised of letters and symbols.

And once again Green, an Artsource board member, is throwing open the roller door of his studio to bring one of Maylands many laneways into the mix.

“It’s too good an opportunity to pass up—the chance to transform my studio into a gallery for the weekend, support Western Australian artists, and enliven the back lane ways of Maylands,” he says.

Green and Belyea won’t be exhibiting their own art, instead they are the curators and organisers, media spruikers and general dogs’ bodies.

People often think of artists as self-absorbed, Belyea, a member of Art Collective WA, says.

“We see it as a community, helping each other…this is our response and a chance to move from traditional gallery space.”

• Don Walters and Miic Green. Photo by Matthew Dwyer

Belyea says German-born Heidt’s works are about complex issues around chaos theory and random numbers, “turned into solid objects”.

“I have a lot of respect for his rigorous attention to his work,” he oohs.

Fremantle-based Walters moved west from Melbourne some years ago and this will be his first gallery showing.

The sculptor, painter and graphic artist explores the use of abstract shapes and bold colours.

“Both [artists’] images are different but rely on repetition,” Belyea says.

“[They] are highly proficient artists, very professional about the way they do their works.”

All work is for sale, and the curators aren’t taking commission but 20 per cent of sales goes straight to the Hamlin Fistula Ethiopia organisation.

Fistula, caused by long and difficult births, has a devastating impact in developing countries on the lives of affected women who are rendered incontinent and often shunned.

“It’s a good cause, and one I believe people in a country like Australia should be supporting,” Belyea says.

The exhibition is on at Miik Green Studio, the rear laneway behind 64 Crawford Road, Maylands.

It opens Saturday November 29, 6pm and will be open on Sunday November 30, 1–5pm.

by JENNY D’ANGER
Rejoice

November 14, 2014

THIS year’s Pride parade is set to be the biggest yet, with a resurgence of interest from the many and varied sides of the the LGBTIQ community (lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, intersex, queer).

“It’s going to be fabulous…a lot of colour and a lot more participants,” Pride co-president Michelle Rigg says.

Perth’s cultural centre will be pumping with an after-party at the Urban Orchard.

This year’s parade marks 25 years since 300 people marched on parliament house in 1989 during fierce debate over whether to decriminalise homosexuality.

The following year, more than 200 took to the streets of Northbridge in a joyously colourful parade that became a tradition, as people from all walks of life and sexual orientations flocked to watch the spectacular.

Australia has a reputation of being one of the western world’s most “homosexual” friendly countries, and with the closet door open, the ranks of those marching have swelled to include transgender and bisexual people, who are able to feel more comfortable with their orientation, Ms Rigg says.

The increase in sub-groups saw a new Pride mission statement this year, and a look at a range of issues affecting the community, including ageing.

“The biggest challenge is aged care facilities. They don’t cater for same-sex or diverse genders,” Ms Rigg says.

Transgender people are the most vulnerable, she says.

“There are a lot of health issues that they experience as they age.”

The high suicide rate amongst young GBTIQ men is also a big concern, Ms Rigg adds.

This year’s theme “reflect, rejoice, renew” is about remembering past triumphs and the renewal that followed, but keeping an eye on the future, Ms Rigg says. “[It] embodies the current state of the organisation in a positive and exciting way…saluting those who led the way and those who have contributed so much over the last 25 years.”

Pridefest kicks off with a film festival, Friday November 14 and winds up Sunday November 23.

The parade is on Saturday November 22 heading down William Street from 8pm.

For the full program go to pridewa.com.au

by JENNY D’ANGER
Magical Maylands

November 14, 2014

NO sooner had the vendor of this Maylands home mentioned dolphins than two appeared—as if by magic.

Actually it really was magic watching the pair working the still waters for fish.

With a couple of pelicans, an assortment of water birds and maggies warbling overhead, Harry Potter couldn’t have conjured a more mesmerising scene.

“Feel the serenity,” the vendor says, with an apology to Aussie film The Castle, as we gaze over his front gate taking in soaring gum trees and rolling green grass to watch the action on the glistening river.

“It’s like country living, but you’re 10 minutes from the CBD.”

It’s rare for the homes in this row of townhouses to come up for sale the vendor says: “The last time was five years ago.”

The five-bedroom/two-bathroom home has a beach house theme, with bleached timber floors in the lounge and on the kitchen cupboards, and plenty of ocean blue touches to the otherwise crisp white decor.

With the vendor heading to new ventures overseas almost all the furniture, rugs, ornaments and pictures are part of the sale.

Signed photos of the likes of Joe Cocker, BB King, the Stones, Elton John, Dave Bowie and Willie Nelson gaze down from the wall of the open dining/kitchen area and the vendor is happy for them to stay too.

With floor-to-ceiling glass on to the garden and river the dining area is a great spot to enjoy the view on inclement days.

But for every other day there’s a covered patio, with timber decking, from which to enjoy the peaceful scene.

The kitchen is a spacious domain with plenty of bench space and a six burner stove, clearly a space to indulge the inner master chef, especially for friends looking for somewhere special to celebrate a big day.

“I have had five weddings here,” the vendor says.

Four of the bedrooms are at the rear of the home, where you’ll find the main bedroom, a generous space with walk-in-robe and ensuite.

Clever conversion of roof space has created an attic currently used as a study, but with sloping ceilings, and cupboards under the eaves it would make a delightful kids’ bedroom.

The Maylands cafe strip is just up the road, and the heritage-listed Tranby House and its cafe is virtually in the front yard.

Just imagine wandering through this idyllic scene to grab a coffee in the morning. Now, that’s magic.

by JENNY D’ANGER

12/3 Heritage Waters, Maylands
EOI
Paul Owen 0411 601 420
Acton Mt Lawley 9272 2488
Perth Kurds denounce ISIS

November 7, 2014

AROUND 100 Perth Kurds—a quarter of the city’s estimated Kurdish population—marched through Perth’s CBD on Saturday to protest against Islamic State.

Joined by supporters, the marchers carried placards opposing IS’s oppression of Kurds in the northern Syrian town of Kobane.

IS militants have taken hundreds captive over the past year as part of a brutal campaign to take over predominantly Kurdish areas of northern and eastern Syria.

An international rights group reported that IS members tortured and abused captive Kurdish children earlier this year near Kobane, beating them with hoses and electric cables.

Perth Kurdish Community liaison Ismet Aslan says he knows many Kurds with family from Kobane: “ISIS are thugs,” Mr Aslan says. “Kobane is under siege at the moment and we want to raise awareness of what our fellow Kurds are going through. It’s everyone’s responsibility to tackle these ISIS thugs, they shouldn’t even belong to this world, all this beheading people and rampaging around—it’s disgusting.”

Another march is being organised for the near future.

by STEPHEN POLLOCK
FTI cuts claim 4

November 7, 2014

THE Film and Television Institute has sacked four managers with a combined 20 years’ experience.

The FTI board’s October 30 decision follows the Abbott government’s decision to slash $240,000 in funding, about 15 per cent of FTI’s budget.

The people to go are business, marketing, production support and customised training program managers.

Last month FTI CEO Paul Bodlovich said he wanted to avoid job cuts: “To make up for the loss in core funding we will need to generate between $1.5 and $2.5 million extra in revenue, and effectively double in size,” he’d told the Voice.

“We’re still working out how to bridge the core funding gap without having to make cuts.”

FTI announced in a statement this week the abandonment of efforts to bridge the gap.

“We can now focus our efforts on continuing to improve the delivery of services in the core areas of production support, providing advice and referrals, and knowledge and network development,” it said.

“The pressure of replacing the [Screen Australia] funding from other revenue sources would have seen that focus dissipated, and in the end may well have been a bridge too far in any case.”

FTI recently relocated from Fremantle to the second floor of the state library in the Perth Cultural Centre and pays a “cheap commercial rent”.

Recently the FTI appointed Kate Raynes-Goldie as its games interactive director.

“The global games market reached $93 billion in 2013 and continues to grow,” Dr Raynes-Goldie said. “We want WA to tap into that market.”

by STEPHEN POLLOCK