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A dozen “potential burial-like anomalies” have been discovered through a follow-up survey at a bus stop on the West Australian holiday idyll of Rottnest Island where human bones were found earlier this month.
A ground-penetrating radar survey, in addition to anthropological and archaeological work, was conducted at the main bus stop construction site where remains consistent with Aboriginal ancestry were discovered on April 8.
Following the original discovery, Rottnest Island Authority and Whadjuk Aboriginal Corporation collaborated to ensure cultural protocols were followed and to protect and manage the site.
The latest discovery will require additional archaeological investigation before the potential burial sites can be confirmed.
Rottnest – located about 19 kilometres off the coast from Fremantle – is home to the quokka, a small wallaby-like marsupial, and is one of Western Australia’s most popular holiday spots.
Also known as Wadjemup, it is renowned for its white-sand beaches, shipwrecks and secluded bays where holidaymakers sunbake, swim and snorkel.
However, Rottnest, which measures 11 kilometres long by 4.5 kilometres wide, has a dark history as a prison island where about 3700 Aboriginal men and boys from around WA were held between 1838 and 1931.
According to the Rottnest Island Authority, many of the prisoners died from epidemics and illness over the years the prison was operating, and the bodies were buried in unmarked graves.
Testing confirmed the bones found earlier this month were human, but further examination is required to determine their age.
WA Police Minister Reece Whitby said the bones were brought back to Perth for further analysis by a forensic pathologist.
“It’s confirmed that they are human remains … so what we need to do now is to work out how old they are, whether they are historical or recent,” he said.
“That’s a very important matter to confirm, but that work is happening now.”
Whitby said he wasn’t certain when that testing would be completed, but he was “sure that we’ll get an answer soon”.
Specialist advice indicated the remains are consistent with Indigenous ancestry.
In a statement, WAC said it and the island authority recognised the profound cultural and spiritual significance of Wadhemup to Whadjuk Noongar people and the broader Aboriginal community.
“We acknowledge and express our deep regret for the significant distress this incident and subsequent investigations has caused Aboriginal people,” the statement read.
“WAC encourages Aboriginal community members to reach out to their office or their local Aboriginal Corporation for support and information.”
with AAP
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