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WA Governor to apologise for Pinjarra massacre nearly 200 years on
WA Governor Chris Dawson will today apologise for his predecessor James Stirling’s actions almost 200 years ago after he led the massacre of between 15 and 80 Bindjareb Noongar people in Pinjarra.
The massacre occurred on the banks of the Murray River in 1834.
A plaque in the Battle of Pinjarra Memorial Park.Credit: ABC
Dawson, who is also the state’s former Police Commissioner, retraced Stirling’s steps and stopped at a spot near Ravenswood where the former governor camped the night before the killings took place.
Historical diaries from the time showed Stirling told the Colonial Office in London that the slaughtered tribe had threatened to “destroy all the whites in the district”, however, historians found his group of 25 men ambushed the group on horseback, shooting men, women and children.
Dawson says he hopes today’s memorial service and apology, marking 191 years since the brutality occurred, will be a significant step along the pathway to meaningful reconciliation.
An olive tree that Stirling planted a year after the massacre will be presented to traditional owners, while a local jarrah tree from the region will be planted at Government House in a symbolic tree exchange.
Descendants of the people murdered will be in attendance at the service.
The Gay Games are coming to Perth
By Hannah Murphy
It’s the world’s largest LGBTQ+ sporting and cultural event, and is held every four years – much in the same way as the Olympics.
Founded in 1982, the games is a 10-day event that features athletes of all sexual orientations, gender identity, and any skill set.
Game organisers.Credit: The Gay Games
Like the Olympics, it features an opening and closing ceremony, a festival village and workshops throughout that cover activism, allyship and of course, voguing.
The organisation behind the event has revealed Perth will play host to the event in 2030, after a tight 20-month competition between our city and Denver in the USA.
Laurie Butterly is the co-chair of the Perth bid team, and said the team were “delighted with the result”.
“Perth is so incredibly honoured to be named the presumptive host for Gay Games XIII 2030,” they said.
“This is for our LGBTQIA+ community who have worked tirelessly to support this bid. We can’t wait to bring the world to Perth in 2030.”
The organisation said it will now move into formal contract negotiations, so it can lock in the city for 2030.
The event, expected to bring thousands to Perth, is about to be held in Spain for its 2026 games.
Education minister ‘gutted’ after Kununurra teachers targeted by vandals
By Hamish Hastie
Education Minister Sabine Winton says she was “gutted” to see the photos of trashed and ransacked homes of teachers working in Kununurra, but suggested they were only a small number of cases.
“I’ve worked in the Kimberley I know that any person, whether they’re a teacher or a nurse or policeman or people working in community-based organisations, put their hearts and souls in those communities,” she said.
“Every staff member has the right to feel safe, not only in their workplace, but importantly their home and so it is distressing when those incidents occur.
“I’ve made it a focus of mine since becoming minister to promote the benefits of going and teaching in the bush, and that doesn’t change.
“I acknowledge, in particular individual circumstances, these incidents are distressing, but can I stress that overwhelmingly, there are thousands of teachers in the bush, living in the bush, each and every day, who are having a fantastic experience.”
More WA schools added to free breakfast program
By Holly Thompson
Education Minister Sabine Winton has just announced that more WA schools will be able to join in on the School Breakfast Program – providing free meals five days of the week – after a $28 million boost.
Under the expansion, more than 680 schools will be eligible to join the program, delivered by Foodbank, up from 550.
Education and Preventative health Minister Sabine Winton.Credit: Hamish Hastie
Many of those currently running the program only provide free breakfasts to students two days a week.
Available from Term 1, 2026, the new program will provide eligible public and non-government schools with food and funding for supervision for the additional days.
Education Minister Sabine Winton said more students would be able to access a healthy breakfast more often, giving them the best possible start to their school day.
“It is vital that young people have regular access to a healthy breakfast so they can have the best possible start to their school day and are ready to learn,” she said.
“This not only supports students’ health, social wellbeing and learning, but also benefits staff and the wider school community.”
WA Governor to apologise for Pinjarra massacre nearly 200 years on
WA Governor Chris Dawson will today apologise for his predecessor James Stirling’s actions almost 200 years ago after he led the massacre of between 15 and 80 Bindjareb Noongar people in Pinjarra.
The massacre occurred on the banks of the Murray River in 1834.
A plaque in the Battle of Pinjarra Memorial Park.Credit: ABC
Dawson, who is also the state’s former Police Commissioner, retraced Stirling’s steps and stopped at a spot near Ravenswood where the former governor camped the night before the killings took place.
Historical diaries from the time showed Stirling told the Colonial Office in London that the slaughtered tribe had threatened to “destroy all the whites in the district”, however, historians found his group of 25 men ambushed the group on horseback, shooting men, women and children.
Dawson says he hopes today’s memorial service and apology, marking 191 years since the brutality occurred, will be a significant step along the pathway to meaningful reconciliation.
An olive tree that Stirling planted a year after the massacre will be presented to traditional owners, while a local jarrah tree from the region will be planted at Government House in a symbolic tree exchange.
Descendants of the people murdered will be in attendance at the service.
Across the country and around the world
Here’s what’s making news across the country and around the world:
US President Donald Trump speaks to the media aboard Air Force One this week.Credit: Getty Images
Today’s weather
Welcome to our live blog
Good morning and welcome to our live news blog for Tuesday, October 28.
Making headlines this morning, teachers in Western Australia’s far north are living in fear as the community they aim to help targets them in violent break-ins.
WAtoday has seen a series of photos from inside Catholic education and state government-tenanted properties in Kununurra, which is experiencing another wave of youth crime.
Teacher accommodation destroyed in Kununurra.
At least three teachers in the town and its surrounding remote communities have recently been targeted in burglaries while they are at work during the day, helping educate some of the town’s most vulnerable children.
Meanwhile, WA Liberal MP Andrew Hastie has launched a defence of “so-called populist” movements and renewed his push against Australia’s net zero target as Coalition MPs warn their colleagues about the costs of entirely dumping climate goals and consider sticking with Labor’s pledge by a different name.
And with the price of gold surging to a record high of US$4000 per ounce earlier this month, WAtoday looks at the vital role the precious metal plays in the WA economy.
Stay with us as we bring you the local news of the day, as it happens.
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Disclaimer : This story is auto aggregated by a computer programme and has not been created or edited by DOWNTHENEWS. Publisher: www.smh.com.au
