Pukatja, South Australia
Encyclopedia
Pukatja (26.2925°S 132.1283°E) is an Aboriginal
community in the Anangu Pitjantjatjara Yankunytjatjara Lands
in South Australia
, comprising one of the six main communities on "The Lands" (the others being Amata, Pipalyatjara
, Fregon
/Kaltjiti
, Indulkana
and Mimili).
, west of the Stuart Highway
, about 30 km south of the Northern Territory
border. The community sits at an elevation of 676 metres.
Pukatja is about 1400 km by road from Adelaide
, including 200 km on unsealed roads.
Pukatja experiences summer maximum temperatures of an average of 34.5 degrees celsius in January and a winter maximum average temperature of 17.8 degrees celsius in June. Overnight lows range from a mean minimum temperature of 19.6 degrees in January to 3.3 degrees in June.
Annual rainfall averages 275.2 millimetres.
recorded a population of 332 in the 2006 census, up from 226 in the 2001 census and down from 470 in the 1991 Census.
PY Media reports that the population of Pukatja / Ernabella is somewhere between 500 and 700 people.
In the 2001 census, Pukatja was second only to sister community Mimili in having the lowest per capita income in South Australia
($174). Like a number of APY Lands
communities, Pukatja boasts one of the highest proportions of Australian-born residents (97.5%).
Anangu
people started gradually to come in from traditional life in the desert to live at the Mission after its establishment. The mission respected Anangu
culture and traditions and offered medical help and education, with no conditions attached.
Responsibility for the administration of Ernabella Mission was formally handed over to the Ernabella Community Council — later Pukatja Community Council — on 1 January 1974.
Ernabella Arts Inc is the longest continually running aboriginal arts centre in Australia. It has a school teaching Reception through to senior high school. Technical and further education (TAFE) facilities for the Anangu Pitjantjatjara Yankunytjatjara Lands
are based at Pukatja.
The community store sells grocery supplies, clothes and hot food, and has EFTPOS facilities. The garage has basic parts and diesel fuel. The clinic has three registered nurses and the doctor is based here, but often absent visiting other communities.
The medical clinic is staffed by a doctor and 3 nurses, as well as Anangu Health Workers.
A basic police station
exists at Pukatja, and is not permanently manned. In July 2007, the Police Association of South Australia
described the stations as "dirty" and "ill-equipped", and a "disgrace". The Pukatja station is due for replacement, though its preferential status is in doubt with apparent priority for a station upgrade at Amata
. In response to that criticism, a month later the SA State Government announced that it would spend A$
7.5 million at Amata and Pukatja for new police stations, court facilities and cells along with associated police housing and facilities .
Even in this remote area, houses have telephones, access to multiple television channels including (Imparja and ABC
), and mail is delivered twice weekly by air from Alice Springs.
As with most APY settlements, Australian Broadcasting Corporation
and Special Broadcasting Service
television are available.
The Uniting Church in Australia
has a congregation in Pukatja.
A permit is required for a member of the public to visit any community on the APY Lands, as they are freehold
lands owned by the Aboriginal people
.
was successfully introduced after several Ernabella artists travelled to Indonesia
in the 1970s. The Ernabella artists are now renowned for their batik work and printmaking. A substantial collection of Ernabella art can be seen at the National Museum of Australia
, including a range of fine ceramics also produced by the Ernabella artists. Ernabella Arts celebrated its 60th anniversary in 2008.
, known as 'warru' to the local population, faced extinction and 15 of the wallabies had been transferred from an undisclosed location on the APY Lands
and also from Pukatja to Monarto Zoo
. The article claimed there were only approximately 50 of the animal left in the wild. Work in monitoring the species' survival was said to involve Aboriginal tracker
s and schoolchildren from Pukatja to help track the wallabies' movements.
Indigenous Australians
Indigenous Australians are the original inhabitants of the Australian continent and nearby islands. The Aboriginal Indigenous Australians migrated from the Indian continent around 75,000 to 100,000 years ago....
community in the Anangu Pitjantjatjara Yankunytjatjara Lands
Anangu Pitjantjatjara Yankunytjatjara
Anangu Pitjantjatjara Yankunytjatjara is a large Aboriginal local government area located in the remote north west of South Australia...
in South Australia
South Australia
South Australia is a state of Australia in the southern central part of the country. It covers some of the most arid parts of the continent; with a total land area of , it is the fourth largest of Australia's six states and two territories.South Australia shares borders with all of the mainland...
, comprising one of the six main communities on "The Lands" (the others being Amata, Pipalyatjara
Pipalyatjara, South Australia
Pipalyatjara is an Aboriginal community in the Anangu Pitjantjatjara Yankunytjatjara Lands in South Australia, comprising one of the six main communities on "The Lands"...
, Fregon
Kaltjiti, South Australia
Kaltjiti is an Aboriginal community in the Anangu Pitjantjatjara Yankunytjatjara Lands in South Australia, comprising one of the six main communities on "The Lands" ....
/Kaltjiti
Kaltjiti, South Australia
Kaltjiti is an Aboriginal community in the Anangu Pitjantjatjara Yankunytjatjara Lands in South Australia, comprising one of the six main communities on "The Lands" ....
, Indulkana
Indulkana, South Australia
Indulkana is an Aboriginal community in the Anangu Pitjantjatjara Yankunytjatjara Lands in South Australia, comprising one of the six main communities on "The Lands"...
and Mimili).
Geography
Pukatja is in the eastern Musgrave RangesMusgrave Ranges
Musgrave Ranges is a mountain range in Central Australia, straddling the boundary of South Australia and the Northern Territory , extending into Western Australia. It is between the Great Victoria Desert to the south and the Gibson Desert to the north...
, west of the Stuart Highway
Stuart Highway
The Stuart Highway is one of Australia's major highways. It is a segment of Australia's Highway 1 extending from Darwin, Northern Territory, in the north, via Tennant Creek and Alice Springs, to Port Augusta, South Australia, in the south—a distance of...
, about 30 km south of the Northern Territory
Northern Territory
The Northern Territory is a federal territory of Australia, occupying much of the centre of the mainland continent, as well as the central northern regions...
border. The community sits at an elevation of 676 metres.
Pukatja is about 1400 km by road from Adelaide
Adelaide
Adelaide is the capital city of South Australia and the fifth-largest city in Australia. Adelaide has an estimated population of more than 1.2 million...
, including 200 km on unsealed roads.
Climate
Climate records for Ernabella / Pukatja have been kept since 1971.Pukatja experiences summer maximum temperatures of an average of 34.5 degrees celsius in January and a winter maximum average temperature of 17.8 degrees celsius in June. Overnight lows range from a mean minimum temperature of 19.6 degrees in January to 3.3 degrees in June.
Annual rainfall averages 275.2 millimetres.
Population
The Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS)Australian Bureau of Statistics
The Australian Bureau of Statistics is Australia's national statistical agency. It was created as the Commonwealth Bureau of Census and Statistics on 8 December 1905, when the Census and Statistics Act 1905 was given Royal assent. It had its beginnings in section 51 of the Constitution of Australia...
recorded a population of 332 in the 2006 census, up from 226 in the 2001 census and down from 470 in the 1991 Census.
PY Media reports that the population of Pukatja / Ernabella is somewhere between 500 and 700 people.
In the 2001 census, Pukatja was second only to sister community Mimili in having the lowest per capita income in South Australia
South Australia
South Australia is a state of Australia in the southern central part of the country. It covers some of the most arid parts of the continent; with a total land area of , it is the fourth largest of Australia's six states and two territories.South Australia shares borders with all of the mainland...
($174). Like a number of APY Lands
Anangu Pitjantjatjara Yankunytjatjara
Anangu Pitjantjatjara Yankunytjatjara is a large Aboriginal local government area located in the remote north west of South Australia...
communities, Pukatja boasts one of the highest proportions of Australian-born residents (97.5%).
History
Ernabella has been an Aboriginal community for a long time. It was established as a Presbyterian mission in 1938. The principles for the establishment of the mission at that time were:
Dr. Charles DuguidCharles DuguidCharles Duguid was a Scottish-born medical practitioner and Aboriginal rights campaigner who recorded his experience working among the Australian Aborigines in a number of books.-Early career:...
, the
advocate for the establishment of Ernabella laid down the following principles:
There was to be no compulsion nor imposition of our way of life on
the Aborigines, nor deliberate interference with tribal custom ... only
people trained in some particular skill should be on the mission staff,
and ... they must learn the tribal language.
Anangu
Anangu
Anangu, more accurately "Aṉaŋu" or "Arnangu" is a word found in a number of eastern varieties of the Western Desert Language , an Australian Aboriginal language of the Pama–Nyungan family, spoken in the desert regions of western and central Australia. Before the arrival of non-Aboriginal people in...
people started gradually to come in from traditional life in the desert to live at the Mission after its establishment. The mission respected Anangu
Anangu
Anangu, more accurately "Aṉaŋu" or "Arnangu" is a word found in a number of eastern varieties of the Western Desert Language , an Australian Aboriginal language of the Pama–Nyungan family, spoken in the desert regions of western and central Australia. Before the arrival of non-Aboriginal people in...
culture and traditions and offered medical help and education, with no conditions attached.
Responsibility for the administration of Ernabella Mission was formally handed over to the Ernabella Community Council — later Pukatja Community Council — on 1 January 1974.
Facilities
Mail is delivered twice a week by air mail bag.Ernabella Arts Inc is the longest continually running aboriginal arts centre in Australia. It has a school teaching Reception through to senior high school. Technical and further education (TAFE) facilities for the Anangu Pitjantjatjara Yankunytjatjara Lands
Anangu Pitjantjatjara Yankunytjatjara
Anangu Pitjantjatjara Yankunytjatjara is a large Aboriginal local government area located in the remote north west of South Australia...
are based at Pukatja.
The community store sells grocery supplies, clothes and hot food, and has EFTPOS facilities. The garage has basic parts and diesel fuel. The clinic has three registered nurses and the doctor is based here, but often absent visiting other communities.
The medical clinic is staffed by a doctor and 3 nurses, as well as Anangu Health Workers.
A basic police station
Police station
A police station or station house is a building which serves to accommodate police officers and other members of staff. These buildings often contain offices and accommodation for personnel and vehicles, along with locker rooms, temporary holding cells and interview/interrogation rooms.- Facilities...
exists at Pukatja, and is not permanently manned. In July 2007, the Police Association of South Australia
South Australia
South Australia is a state of Australia in the southern central part of the country. It covers some of the most arid parts of the continent; with a total land area of , it is the fourth largest of Australia's six states and two territories.South Australia shares borders with all of the mainland...
described the stations as "dirty" and "ill-equipped", and a "disgrace". The Pukatja station is due for replacement, though its preferential status is in doubt with apparent priority for a station upgrade at Amata
Amata
Amata , in Roman mythology, was the wife of King Latinus of the Latins. She and Latinus had a daughter, Lavinia, and no sons. When the hero Aeneas sued for Lavinia's hand in marriage, Amata opposed him because she had already promised Lavinia to Aeneas' nemesis Turnus. At the same time she was...
. In response to that criticism, a month later the SA State Government announced that it would spend A$
Australian dollar
The Australian dollar is the currency of the Commonwealth of Australia, including Christmas Island, Cocos Islands, and Norfolk Island, as well as the independent Pacific Island states of Kiribati, Nauru and Tuvalu...
7.5 million at Amata and Pukatja for new police stations, court facilities and cells along with associated police housing and facilities .
Even in this remote area, houses have telephones, access to multiple television channels including (Imparja and ABC
Australian Broadcasting Corporation
The Australian Broadcasting Corporation, commonly referred to as "the ABC" , is Australia's national public broadcaster...
), and mail is delivered twice weekly by air from Alice Springs.
As with most APY settlements, Australian Broadcasting Corporation
Australian Broadcasting Corporation
The Australian Broadcasting Corporation, commonly referred to as "the ABC" , is Australia's national public broadcaster...
and Special Broadcasting Service
Special Broadcasting Service
The Special Broadcasting Service is a hybrid-funded Australian public broadcasting radio and television network. The stated purpose of SBS is "to provide multilingual and multicultural radio and television services that inform, educate and entertain all Australians and, in doing so, reflect...
television are available.
The Uniting Church in Australia
Uniting Church in Australia
The Uniting Church in Australia was formed on 22 June 1977 when many congregations of the Methodist Church of Australasia, the Presbyterian Church of Australia and the Congregational Union of Australia came together under the Basis of Union....
has a congregation in Pukatja.
A permit is required for a member of the public to visit any community on the APY Lands, as they are freehold
Fee simple
In English law, a fee simple is an estate in land, a form of freehold ownership. It is the most common way that real estate is owned in common law countries, and is ordinarily the most complete ownership interest that can be had in real property short of allodial title, which is often reserved...
lands owned by the Aboriginal people
Indigenous Australians
Indigenous Australians are the original inhabitants of the Australian continent and nearby islands. The Aboriginal Indigenous Australians migrated from the Indian continent around 75,000 to 100,000 years ago....
.
Ernabella Arts
Ernabella Arts, established in 1948, is one of Australia's longest continuously running Aboriginal arts organisations. The purpose of the organisation is to provide a place “where senior women and men and young women and men practice and develop our art, in order to sustain, support and promote our cultural heritage, and to improve the lifestyle of our community’s members.” During the 1950s and 1960s, art and craft using locally produced wool was the predominant artistic form produced by the Ernabella artists. BatikBatik
Batik is a cloth that traditionally uses a manual wax-resist dyeing technique. Batik or fabrics with the traditional batik patterns are found in Indonesia, Malaysia, Japan, China, Azerbaijan, India, Sri Lanka, Egypt, Nigeria, Senegal, and Singapore.Javanese traditional batik, especially from...
was successfully introduced after several Ernabella artists travelled to Indonesia
Indonesia
Indonesia , officially the Republic of Indonesia , is a country in Southeast Asia and Oceania. Indonesia is an archipelago comprising approximately 13,000 islands. It has 33 provinces with over 238 million people, and is the world's fourth most populous country. Indonesia is a republic, with an...
in the 1970s. The Ernabella artists are now renowned for their batik work and printmaking. A substantial collection of Ernabella art can be seen at the National Museum of Australia
National Museum of Australia
The National Museum of Australia was formally established by the National Museum of Australia Act 1980. The National Museum preserves and interprets Australia's social history, exploring the key issues, people and events that have shaped the nation....
, including a range of fine ceramics also produced by the Ernabella artists. Ernabella Arts celebrated its 60th anniversary in 2008.
Faunae
The Adelaide Advertiser reported on Monday 1 October 2007 that the black-flanked rock wallabyBlack-flanked Rock-wallaby
The Black-flanked Rock-wallaby , also known as the Black-footed Rock-wallaby or Warru, is a kind of wallaby, one of several rock-wallabies in the genus Petrogale.-Description:...
, known as 'warru' to the local population, faced extinction and 15 of the wallabies had been transferred from an undisclosed location on the APY Lands
Anangu Pitjantjatjara Yankunytjatjara
Anangu Pitjantjatjara Yankunytjatjara is a large Aboriginal local government area located in the remote north west of South Australia...
and also from Pukatja to Monarto Zoo
Monarto Zoo
Monarto Zoological Park is an open-range animal sanctuary that is administered by the Royal Zoological Society of South Australia, along with the Adelaide Zoo. It has an area of . It is located in Monarto, approximately from the city of Adelaide...
. The article claimed there were only approximately 50 of the animal left in the wild. Work in monitoring the species' survival was said to involve Aboriginal tracker
Aboriginal tracker
In the years following British settlement in Australia, aboriginal trackers or black trackers, as they became known, were enlisted by settlers to assist them in navigating their way through the Australian landscape...
s and schoolchildren from Pukatja to help track the wallabies' movements.