We are coming home: Wanggajarli Burugun immersive exhibition officially opened for Reconciliation Week

An immersive exhibition sharing the journey of Yawuru people seeking the remains of their ancestors has officially launched to the public, opening between Reconciliation Day and NAIDOC week. The Wanggajarli Burugun experience, launched by Nyamba Buru Yawuru, is an interactive exhibition sharing the journey of Yawuru elders discovering and investigating the truths of their ancestors, and their efforts to bring their remains back home. Crowds gathered at the Liyan-ngan Nyirrwa Centre on May 29 for the official launch, opening with a smoking ceremony and welcome to country delivered by Dianne Appleby and addressed by Yawuru Corporate Group chair Clinton Benjamin. Mc’d by Bart Pigram, speeches by NBY chief executive Nini Mills, Yawuru Law Boss Neil McKenzie and Yawuru woman Dalisa Pigram on behalf of Yawuru elder Patrick Dodson, delivered emotional and powerful messages to commemorate the importance of the exhibition. A powerful acoustic song, dedicated to Wanggajarli Burugun, was then sung by AJ Moore, Mr Pigram and Ms Appleby to the audience. The evening concluded with a Nurlu performance by Yawuru men, women and children led by Mr McKenzie, before opening the experience to the audience with Ms Appleby. The experience, presented in documentary film and audio-visual components, hopes to raise awareness around the atrocities taken place in the 18th and 19th centuries against Yawuru people and aims to bring back all ancestors removed from their country. Wanggajarli Burugun project manager, researcher and curator Sarah Yu said the delivery of the immersive exhibition through audio visual production was to draw out the emotional journey of the individual while confronted by the stories discussed throughout the experience. “We’re trying to create a dialogue between the community and the people who have been involved in the whole repatriation project,” she said. “It’s self guided, but you have these people with you along the way telling you what’s going on and how they share their feelings, their emotions and how they felt, “The whole thing is about acknowledging what has happened and moving on in a cooperative, companionable kind of way. “We don’t want people leaving angry, we want them to be resolved - and that resolution has been giving support to getting the whole thing in so we can bring those remains back.” Funds raised will go towards a purpose-built mememorial-resting place within Broome cemetery for the remains to be laid at rest after more than a century in different parts of the world. Wanggajarli Burugun working group member and Yawuru woman Naomi Appleby said the sensitive journey began in 2018 to repatriate her ancestors from domestic and international museums which came to light through the Return, Reconcile and Renew project team lead by the Australian National University and the Kimberley Law and Cultural Centre. “Part of the repariation process is undertaking archival research to provide evidence of the provenance of ancestral remains, to show they belong to this Country,” she said. “What the research team discovered in the archives was presented to the community working group and although the details were disturbing and upsetting, it was the decision of our community to get to the bottom of the story and share it with the wider community for the purposes of healing, education and reconciliation.” The Wanggajarli Burugun exhibition will be open to the public Tuesday to Saturday at the Liyan-ngan Nyirrwa Centre in Broome from May 30 till July 7. Bookings are required at yawuru@yawuru.org.au.