An Aboriginal activist has told a Hobart court she had a “cultural obligation” to protect a forest in Tasmania’s northern midlands, after being charged with trespassing at a logging site.
According to reports from the Australian Associated Press, Yorta Yorta and Dja Dja Wurrung woman Ruth Langford is fighting a charge of trespass which relates to an anti-logging protest at Snow Hill in January 2025. The National Indigenous Times reported that Ms Langford has pleaded not guilty to the charge.
In a recent hearing at the Hobart Magistrates Court, Ms Langford gave evidence explaining her actions. “I was in the forest because … of my cultural obligation that has been shown through generations,” she told the court, as reported by AAP. “I must do everything possible to protect these lands and our slaughtered kin.”
The court was reportedly shown police body-worn camera footage of Ms Langford refusing to leave the logging area. Evidence was also heard from representatives of Sustainable Timber Tasmania, the state-owned enterprise conducting the logging. According to court reporting, an operations manager for the enterprise stated that the required Aboriginal heritage assessments for the site had been undertaken.
The matter is being heard by Chief Magistrate Catherine Geason. Earlier this year, as reported by the ABC, the Magistrate had denied an application from Ms Langford to have the court hearing moved to a culturally significant location “on Country”.
The hearing has been adjourned and a decision on the charge is expected at a later date, according to media reports. It is a requirement of law that any person charged with an offence is presumed innocent until found guilty by a court.
For more background on this story, see the original report from ABC News.