Mrs Isaacs lonely grave at Wilson's Patch, WA
Met Victor Isaacs back in 1990 and the following years saw first hand the work he and his wife did to help their community.
Victor and his wife visited us at our camp 3 kilometres to the East many times as they passed by on their way to shoot a kangaroo to feed their mob back at their camp. (Some may remember the domes/buildings and water tower on the right on Darlot Road just after turning off the Goldfields Hwy 70 km's north of Leonora.)
The below link shows how red tape can be so wrong, how can Australia become one if a husband and wife can't be laid to rest together?
Mrs Isaacs lays in a lonely grave at Wilson's Patch and Victor in a lonely grave in Leonora, they should have been laid together.
https://www.mediastatements.wa.gov.au/Pages/Gallop/2002/04/Wilson's-Patch-burial-request-denied.aspx
Wilson's Patch burial request denied
Friday, 19 April 2002
19/4/02
Indigenous Affairs Minister Alan Carpenter has upheld a recommendation by the Aboriginal Lands Trust to deny permission for a deceased Aboriginal man to be buried at Wilsons Patch, near Leonora.
The Ministers decision is in line with a strong expression of views by the lands traditional owners in the Leonora area.
The family of Victor Isaacs had sought permission for him to be buried at the site, where Mr Isaacs wife, Joan, was buried in 1990. The lands traditional owners opposed the request.
Mr Carpenter said he was saddened by the circumstances of the matter.
He said the case was a tragic example of how Western Australia was still dealing with the historically ad-hoc and deficient approach to Aboriginal issues in this State.
The traditional owners are of the view that Mr Isaacs is not a traditional land owner, and that neither he nor Mrs Isaacs should have been allowed to be buried at Wilsons Patch, he said.
For whatever reason, the wishes of the traditional owners were not taken into account in 1990. Today, in line with our new approach to indigenous affairs, traditional owners are listened to.
If I rejected the trusts recommendation, I would be denying the traditional owners their right to have a say in the decision-making process.
Mr Carpenter said he realised the Isaacs family would be disappointed by the decision, and he could understand their grief.
I also understand that the family has rejected a suggestion that Mrs Isaacs be exhumed, so she may be buried alongside her husband at another location," he said.
"Such a step is certainly not ideal, but the offer remains in place.
Mr Carpenter acknowledged the good work which Mr and Mrs Isaacs performed in the Leonora area.
The Isaacs were tireless workers for the Aboriginal community, he said.
I will ask the Department of Indigenous Affairs to prepare some options for the State of WA to acknowledge their efforts and their achievements properly.
The Minister thanked the members of the Aboriginal Lands Trust for their efforts in dealing with the issue.
This has been a difficult matter, with no room for compromise, he said.
A decision had to be made, and any decision was always going to result in one of the parties being aggrieved.
The trust members have carried out their duty well.
Minister's office: 9213 6806
