Fake letter with police

An Indigenous leader has condemned a letter distributed in the Buloke and Loddon shires, which was falsely attributed to him and the First Peoples’ Assembly of Victoria.

Wotjobaluk man Dylan Clarke, who is an assembly member and the chairperson of Barengi Gadjin Land Council, said the contents of the fake letter written in his name were concerning.

“We’re trying to have constructive conversations in the community and someone is going to extraordinary lengths to poison the goodwill and scare people about all the positive things we can achieve together on the journey to Treaty,” Mr Clarke said.

“It’s terribly sad and extremely frustrating.”

The First People’s Assembly of Victoria comprises 32 Traditional Owner groups, with a second cohort of representatives elected in June.

The group is designed to negotiate a Treaty with the state government and Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples.

“Treaty is about finding better ways to work together and making sure Aboriginal knowledge and culture can be respected and shared and used to care for country and help our communities thrive,” Mr Clarke said.

“But the lies in this letter are designed to depict us as something to be afraid of.”

The assembly’s co-chair, Ngarra Murray, said the letter had been referred to the police.

“This is what we are up against — outright lies and deception. You have to think about why the people against the idea of Treaty or listening to First People feel the need to stoop to such low levels. It’s shameful,” she said.

“These are illegal tactics designed to confuse people, when in reality Treaty is going to benefit everyone who calls Victoria home.”

Ms Murray said the assembly would support Mr Clarke and work with him to write genuine letters to the community explaining the facts for Treaty.

She urged people to seek information directly from the Assembly’s website firstpeoplesvic.org