Girl’s Seizure Incites Brawl
(N.Z. Press Association—Copyright) MELBOURNE, August 18. Five aborigines were gaoled for a month this week after an all-in tribal brawl near Alice Springs. The battle raged for three hours.
The battle ended when police seized every spear, nulla nulla, knife, boomerang, stick and iron bar in sight. Two natives received spear wounds. Others suffered minor cuts and bruises. The battle took place at the Areyonga native settlement, about 140 miles west of Alice Springs. The battle began about 4 p.m. last Tuesday and raged until about 7 p.m. An Alice Springs correspondent said police raced to the settlement after a frantic radio appeal for help. Detective-Sergeant L. Cossons, who headed the police party, told reporters the trouble started over a young man named Oomula. The old men of the settlement had gone walk-about some weeks before to Ernabella native mission in South Australia, to attend a “young man” initiation ceremony. During the old men’s absence Oomula returned to Areyonga and ran off with a young lubra from the settlement—against tribal taboos. When the old men arrived back at the settlement last
Sunday they were angry with Oomula. After a tribal conclave it was decided that Oomula must be disciplined as tribal law demanded. The battle started when a young man named Mianma challenged Oomula and struck him on the head with a nulla nulla. Then Oomula’s father, Kenda, stepped in an speared Mianma in the leg. Mianma retaliated by spearing Kenda in the leg. In another section of the fight a young man named Kiwi attacked a native, Tommy David, with a spear and drove it through David's leg. At this stage the women joined in. When a bush court sat on Thursday six women and seven men appeared before it on charges of common assault. The six women were convicted, cautioned and discharged.
Five men were sent to prison for a month, and each was fined £2 10s. The old man, Kenda, was convicted, cautioned, and discharged.
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Bibliographic details
Press, Volume CII, Issue 30213, 19 August 1963, Page 11
Word Count
332Girl’s Seizure Incites Brawl Press, Volume CII, Issue 30213, 19 August 1963, Page 11
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