Federal blow for Victoria Park stadium opponents as urgent appeals rejected

Opponents of a planned stadium at Victoria Park took advantage of the final day before it gets closed to the public, with hundreds turning out for a last-ditch rally at the inner-city parklands.

But as they voiced their frustration at the Crisafulli government’s broken election promise not to build a new stadium for the Brisbane 2032 Olympic and Paralympic Games, the Albanese government gave them another blow.

Federal Environment Minister Murray Watt rejected two First Nations appeals, made under section 9 of the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Heritage Protection Act, to urgently prevent work associated with the planned 65,000-seat stadium and National Aquatics Centre from starting from Monday.

It was then that the Games Independent Infrastructure and Co-ordination Authority would take ownership of the land to prepare for venue construction.

Watt said, in assessing the section 9 applications, he considered whether a significant Aboriginal area was under serious and imminent threat of injury or desecration.

“In accordance with federal cultural heritage law, I have decided not to make declarations under section 9 of the Act in relation to these applications,” Watt said in a prepared statement on Sunday afternoon.

“This is because, based on the information before me with respect to each application, I was unable to be satisfied that either application met the statutory requirements for a declaration to be made under the Act.

“Today’s decisions follow consultation with interested parties, and I acknowledge the importance of the area to the Turrbal and Yagara Peoples.”

Watt said four applications made under section 10, along with another section 9 application, remained under consideration.

In one of the largest anti-stadium protests at Victoria Park, more than 1000 people gathered to demand work stop at least until the section 10 applications, brought by local First Nations elders, were determined.

After demonstrating along Herston Road, the protest moved into the park. There, Gaja Kerry Charlton, an elder who had made one of the section 10 applications, welcomed them to “Barrambin” and thanked them for their support.

“We wanted to give that message to the government, to the nation, to the world, that this action is deeply wounding us and many different First Nations people here on Yagara Country,” she said.

Former premier Campbell Newman said he was “really disappointed” with the LNP government, members of which – including Premier David Crisafulli and his deputy, Jarrod Bleijie – served in his cabinet between 2012 and 2015.

“They’re acti