WELCOME TO PAM WIK WARRIORS YOTEM.AURUKUN CAPE YORK.

The Royal Flying Doctor Service Wellbeing Centre's are funded by the Australian Government Dept of Health and Ageing

The Wellbeing Centre Painting.This is the story by Dale Ampeybegan, prior to his passing, of what their art means to them.

This is what ‘Wellbeing’ means to Aurukun artists.

Myself and Nathan were known here in Aurukun as artists, as people say, we are also known as beach side people for we come from a clan well known here in Aurukun which is ‘Apalech”. Both of us being part of the clan means a lot to us for being recognized as Apalech Clan really means a lot. Even our mother recognizes us as Apalech Clan for our mother is Winchanum Clan which really doesn’t matter to me or Nathan as long as she’s our mother even though from another Clan. Myself and Nathan lived here in Aurukun all our lives and got into everything that was provided or even given or told to us by our parents, grandparents and so on. We respected all things that were shown to us and we believed in it. Listening to our parents and elders a gift was given to both of us as artists. It took us a long time to realize what it was for. Then remembering back to those years sitting and sharing a camp fire hearing the old stories being told by our grandparents we took more interest in it. We took it even further so we both started to paint. Remembering those stories being told to us through the years we thought we’d put them into art works or paintings –cause our writing and spelling weren’t too good. So we thought we’d do it with our art to tell people that we believe in those stories that were told to us and they do have a spiritual power in them. For myself and Nathan know very well that if we don’t do painting and art of our spiritual things I/we feel bad/sick, our bodies ache and even our minds play up.So doing our art about what our old people told us really helps us in so many ways and for that is the truth of our art on the mural. Dale Ampeybegan.

SOME OF THE WIK WARRIORS

AURUKUN

WHERE IS AURUKUN?Aurukun is one of the larger communities in the Cape with a population of approximately 1200. Most residents are Traditional owners of the shire and surrounding lands. There are 5 spiritual clan groups: Apalech, Winchanam, Wanam, Sara (Chara) and Puutch. There are 15 outstations that are occupied during the dry season.

Over 50% of the Aurukun population was under 25 in 2006, compared to less than 35% of the Queensland population. on the other hand less than 17% of the Aurukun population was over 44 years of age compared to over 37% of Queenslanders. only 3.07% of the Aurukun population was over 65 years of age, compared to 12.37% of Queenslanders.

Cairns

• The Wik Warriors has taken some time to gain traction in community. We have spent an enormous amount of time speaking with men in Aurukun about what they think can make Aurukun a stronger, healthier community with a positive outlook for the future.

• Wik Warriors aims to provide the men with a supportive group that not only assists with issues of drugs and alcohol, domestic violence, criminal activity and parenting problems but also with repairing the social breakdown that has occurred due to colonisation and the past practices of various governments and agencies.

We celebrate Aboriginal masculinities, and uphold our traditional values of respect for our laws, respect for elders, culture and traditions, responsibility as leaders and men, teachers of young males, holders of lore, providers, warriors and protectors of our families, women, old people, and children (http://nacchocommunique.com/2013/08/08/naccho-launches-aboriginal-male-health-10-point-blueprint-2013-2030/)

The Wik Warriors meet every second Tuesday at 530pm. We regularly have thirty plus men attending to watch Indigenous movies with a cultural message and have a yarn about whatever rocks your dugout. The men attending have shown a real interest in improving their lives and the lives of the people of Aurukun through a more cultural based approach to education, health, and lifestyle that is underpinned with the importance of valued future employment. Jonathon Korkaktain Elder and Cultural Advisor

AURUKUN CAPE YORKWik Warriors plans are to involve the local male elders and the younger males/youth in group activities such as cultural camps on country, spear and artefact making, community health education days, community movie evenings and fishing and hunting groups. All the above activities are designed to increase participation in community events and activities (to engender community spirit) as well as provide the cultural education that is being lost at an alarming rate due to the deaths of respected Elders.

“Self-reported benefits from involvement with Men’s Groups include improved social and emotional wellbeing, modest lifestyle modifications and willingness to change current notions of “gendered” roles within the home, such as sharing housework”. (2010, Indigenous men’s support groups and social and emotional wellbeing: asynthesis of the evidenceJanya McCalman, Komla Tsey, Mark Wenitong, Andrew Wilson, AlexandraMcEwan, Yvonne Cadet James, Mary Whiteside)

Photo John Riley

Men’s groups offer a justification for men who are interested in personal change to take greater control and gather support from each other. As advocated by Noel Pearson, men’s groups play a role in strengthening traditional social norms such as personal responsibility, mutual respect and family obligations which have collapsed as a result of passive welfare and the rise of substance abuse epidemics in Indigenous communities since the late 1960s (Pearson, 2006).Photo John Riley

Media representations are hugely detrimental to perceptions of men. Men are often represented as disposable or as buffoons. It is possible that this climate can make a man feel reasonably threatened and even more isolated. Models of masculinity that include competence in the emotional world are needed. (Jim Macnamara Media and Male Identity) (Palgrave Macmillan, 2006)

PHOTO COURTESY BRIAN CASSEY.

Across society young men need to be empowered to recognise and express emotions.As a result of male social conditioning, many men have learnt to suppress and repress their emotions and are not so in touch with their feelings. Since we rely on our own emotional sensitivity to tune into the emotions of others, these men lack understanding of, and empathy towards, their partner’s and children’s emotional needs.

Photo John Riley

Anger can result from men being unable to process and contain emotional arousal and distress (especially in intimate relationships). To support greater emotional awareness by men there is a need to challenge social norms that are reinforced through the media and sport. This issue highlights the importance of role-modelling and education to re-frame masculinity. Men often do not understand the consequences of their expressions of negative emotion, and anger can be a mechanism of power and control within relationships. Many men lack the capacity to reflect and express it verbally, even though it is an important skill. (2010, Janya McCalman, Komla Tsey, Mark Wenitong et al)

Sunset at Obon. Photo John Riley

Wik Warriors is an important move forward in the community of Aurukun as it gives ownership of the group to the local people. It is guided in its direction forward by the local men who give the advice and ideas for activities and events as well as giving the cultural knowledge that is so important in this time. We are seeing numbers of males passing away who have not had the opportunity to pass on their tribal knowledge and as such we are seeing these important cultures lost. Wik Warriors wants to be one of the supportive posts for this cultural advancement and renewal in the community of Aurukun, with the view to doing most of this work out of community, on country, where the men feel at ease and away from the pressure cooker of community dynamics.

Archer River Photo John Riley

Wik Warriors plans to make the group self sustaining financially in the future through spear and artefact making and then selling those items to the various service providers and visitors to Aurukun.

Wik Warriors is in the process of approaching locally owned and operated companies/organisations to assist us financially and we hope that this will show community that local groups that are successful can be supportive of local ideas and activities.

Spears, Firesticks and Grass Skirt Photo John Riley

This combines well with the good work Aak Puul Ngantam Cape York and Wik Projects are doing on Wik land enabling locally owned companies and organisations such as them, to provide the employment opportunities working country for all our community members. Both these companies/organisations are supportive of the Wik Warriors. PHOTO COURTSEY BRIAN CASSEY

We have had hard times with staff leaving and new staff coming in with their own ideas about how things “should be”. We have had hard times where we had no men coming due to having to change the day of the meetings. We had an extremely hard eight month period where we had to rebuild the Men’s Group after this.

JONATHON KORKAKTAIN AND GRANDCHILD

We have had good times with a program where the youth who have community service orders work with the Justice Group, Youth Justice and the Aawuch Ngangk Kemp Min Aak (Aurukun Wellbeing Centre) to catch fish or go hunting and then assist with preparing the meal for men’s group. We have been lucky enough to have had visits to the Wik Warriors by entertainers such as Sean Choolburra and the legendary Archie Roach.

We are working closely with the Aurukun Shire Council to facilitate the erection of the Wik Warriors Men’s Shed. This will give us the space and independence to have our meetings and gatherings in a Men’s only area. Wik Warriors Men’s Group has now been allocated land and, at this stage, an open shed has been erected (see image below).

The proposed Men’s Shed Photo John Riley

The shed requires walls, power, water, cooking facility, bush furniture, landscaping and other facilities to enable the men of Aurukun to have a space that is solely theirs. We have support from Aurukun Shire Council Mayor Mr Derek Walpo and have been having discussions with Council’s Works Manager in regards to what the men want in their shed how the floor plans should look. It is hoped that by the direct involvement of the Wik Warriors Men in the construction of the shed that we will see positive ownership of the building by the men and in time see it utilized by all men in Aurukun as a place of safety and healing. Kup Murri Photo John Riley

So comparing pre-2010 with 2014 we think we can be very proud of the journey we have travelled so far and we look forward to becoming a strong voice for the Wik men and their future sons.This we all know is central to a culturally strong, spiritually strong, Wik community.The Blowhard family Photo John Riley

The Royal Flying Doctor Service Wellbeing Centre's are funded by the Australian Government Dept of Health and Ageing

Contact details:John Riley- jriley@rfdsqld.com.auPh 0409839135

Vince Koomeeta- vkoomeeta@rfdsqld.com.auPh 0427169233

QUESTIONS?