Rocky relationshipsPeople here are ignoring the facts and do not want to hear the plain truths of problems. Anyone investigate the relationship with Native groups or past dealings ??? ......NOPE .....Troubles in paradise Andrew Forrest's FMG keeping $1.9m in royalties from Indigenous owners, Juukan Gorge inquiry told ABC Pilbara / By Karen Michelmore Posted Tue 13 Oct 2020 at 8:38amTuesday 13 Oct 2020 at 8:38am An iron ore mine in the Pilbara. The Wintawari Guruma Aboriginal Corporation says the mine at Mount Brockman is next to a highly significant site.(Supplied: Wintawari Guruma Aboriginal Corporation) Andrew Forrest's Fortescue Metals Group (FMG) is withholding $1.9 million in royalties from a group of Pilbara traditional owners because they asked for more information about a mining proposal, a Federal inquiry has heard. Key points: An inquiry into Indigenous heritage destruction has been told FMG is withholding $1.9m in royalty payments owed to native title holders The Eastern Guruma people were paid $7m for mines that are estimated to generate $10b annually for Rio Tinto FMG says it is committed to open and transparent engagement around outstanding royalty payments The Wintawari Guruma Aboriginal Corporation (WGAC), representing the Eastern Guruma people, has accused FMG of deliberately withholding information about its plans and only complying with the agreement "when it suits them". The corporation is among a number of Aboriginal organisations that have given evidence before a parliamentary committee investigating Rio Tinto's destruction of 46,000-year-old rock shelters at Juukan Gorge. The Eastern Guruma's country covers 6,500 square kilometres of land and is next to Puutu Kunti Kurrama Pinikura (PKKP) country as well as Rio Tinto's Brockman 4 mine, which sparked the inquiry. WGAC director Joselyn Hicks told the hearing Eastern Guruma country is one of the most heavily explored locations in Australia, and that 93 per cent of the land is covered by mining tenements. A woman with dark skin and short black hair, smiling. Eastern Guruma woman Joselyn Hicks told the hearing miners had shown the traditional owners "little respect".(ABC Pilbara: Karen Michelmore) Relationship 'one-sided' The group has agreements with Rio Tinto and FMG, but Ms Hicks and other representatives described the relationship as one-sided, saying "little respect" was shown by the miners. WGAC has issued a number of dispute notices accusing FMG of non-compliance, including claims of unauthorised impacts to its sites. "FMG routinely withholds information from the corporation, contrary to the terms of our agreement," Ms Hicks said. "The impact of this is that we are unable to participate in government decision-making processes, such as programs of works applications to the Department of Mines. "FMG has been withholding our royalty payments, amounting to $1.9 million, since February 2020, because we have simply asked for information about their plans for some mining leases they have applied for. "These mining lease areas contain numerous sacred sites. "We have asked FMG to reconsider their position and they have advised us that they will only pay the royalties when we sign off on the mining lease. "We know that when FMG is granted their mining leases, then we have no power to stop them destroying our sites and causing damage to places we care about." A river banked with green grass and native trees stretching up towards a blue, slightly cloudy sky. Eastern Guruma country, in the east Pilbara, has been heavily impacted by mining activity, the traditional owners say.(Supplied: Wintawari Guruma Aboriginal Corporation) 'Commitment to transparency' WGAC director Tony Bevan said the royalties related to existing agreements on Eastern Guruma land. "FMG are currently doing what they like on Eastern Guruma country and paying nothing for it," he said. Australia's human history is being wiped away The destruction of ancient Indigenous sites like the Juukan caves is not new for Western Australia. Read more He said WGAC had started issuing "dispute notices" to FMG when they breached their agreement, and had sent six notices over the space of a year. But the because the notices carried no penalty or meaningful impact the group had stopped sending them. "The dispute notices go nowhere," he said. FMG chief executive Elizabeth Gaines said the company took its relationship with traditional owners seriously. "We are committed to open and transparent engagement to facilitate the outstanding royalty payment, in accordance with the contractual agreement and the obligations of both parties," she said in a statement. "Our primary objective at all times is to work on a cultural heritage avoidance basis." Access denied At least 434 heritage sites on Eastern Guruma country had been destroyed by mining activity, while a further 285 were in "very close proximity" to current operations and were inaccessible to traditional owners, Ms Hicks said. Has Rio Tinto learnt its lesson from the destruction of the Juukan Gorge caves? Man holds boomerang in the air Why did the company commit this egregious act of cultural vandalism? There are several layers to the answer. Read more "Access to our traditional lands has diminished to the point that it is impossible to visit many of our important places and look after country," she told the hearing. "We have to ask, sometimes implore FMG and Rio not to destroy our sacred places. "Sometimes they agree, sometimes they don't. "The Government always supports them." Rio Tinto operates six mines and three rail lines and FMG owns the Solomon mine and is building 90km of its Eliwana railway across the country. Both companies are planning further mine expansions. Red, rocky hills in the Australian desert. WGAC says FMG avoided this 23,000-year-old site at Spear Hill, but that it is sandwiched between a new rail access road and the Eliwana railway.(Supplied: Wintawari Guruma Aboriginal Corporation) Second-hand cars for native land Ms Hicks told the hearing Rio Tinto pays compensation on only three of its mines. When the first commercial arrangement was struck in 2001, the Eastern Guruma people gave up most of their rights for $7m in benefits, including two houses in Karratha, two second-hand Toyota LandCruisers and $300,000 per year in compensation. The deal was revisited in 2007, when WGAC agreed to give up all of its rights to claim compensation on the existing three mines in return for compensation on the Nammuldi mine, which started operating in 2006. "We now know that this was a decision that benefitted Rio far more than us," Ms Hicks said. "Because we think that the royalties on those three mines are worth more than $20 million per year, but we get nothing." Find more local news Tell us your location and find more local ABC News and information Native title 'effectively taken away' WGAC believes Rio Tinto mines 90m tonnes of iron ore from its lands each year, which would be worth about $10 billion a year at current iron ore prices. "People say, 'Why did the corporation sign these one-sided agreements with FMG and Rio?'" Ms Hicks said. "The answer is, we do not have the power or resources of FMG or Rio Tinto. "In 2001 and 2009 we did not know the level of destruction of our country that would result. "When we see what we have given away to FMG and Rio, we feel like we have been taken advantage of. "Our elders and old people fought hard for our native title we thought it would enable us to protect our country and our sites. "These agreements have effectively taken away our native title." Related Stories 'Gag order' warning delivered by Rio Tinto lawyers to traditional owners before caves destroyed, inquiry hears Rubble lies over the site of the Juukan Gorge caves after they were destroyed. ANALYSIS 'Does it reflect poorly on us? Absolutely': Juukan blast sends shockwaves through resources industry A composite image showing Juukan Gorge in 2013 on the left, and then in 2020 on the right after land was cleared of vegetation. MP Warren Entsch puts Andrew Forrest's Fortescue on notice over sacred sites