Tunnerminnerwait and Maulboyheener: Freedom fighters remembered

January 21, 2016
Issue 
A memorial on January 20 for two First Nations freedom fighters, Tunnerminnerwait and Maulboyheener.

A memorial was held on January 20 for two First Nations freedom fighters, Tunnerminnerwait and Maulboyheener.

They were executed in 1842, the first two people executed in Victoria. Their deaths form part of the genocide that accompanied the dispossession of the First Nations people.

The gathering marched to lay flowers at the Victoria Markets north wall carpark, where their remains and those of 9000 others lie in an unmarked grave.

First Nations activist Robbie Thorpe said: "I would like to pay my respects to all those who died in this undeclared war and secret invasion. There was an intent to destroy our people. There were no treaties and no consent. People don't realise the full scale of crime-scene Australia. Nearly every town in Victoria had a hanging tree for killing First Nations people. I hope this monument is a part of telling the true history of this country."

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