Dawesville MP Zak Kirkup, who has previously spoken out about his Aboriginal heritage, has opposed a plan backed by Murray-Wellington MP Robyn Clarke to change the name of the Peel region.
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Ms Clarke advocated renaming the area the Bindjareb region after a call from local traditional owner Karrie-Anne Kearing to drop the reference to Thomas Peel, who organised and took part in the 1834 Pinjarra massacre.
But Mr Kirkup, who spoke of his Aboriginal grandfather in his maiden speech in parliament, said he personally opposed dropping the Peel moniker from the region.
“From a personal perspective, I do not support changing the name of the Peel region,” he said.
“When I think of Peel as an region, I don't think of it’s namesake – I think of the amazing people in our community who have taken that term and made it their own.
“These days I think ‘Peel’ is more of a reflection of the inclusive, warm community that I am proud to represent rather than any colonial history.”
Mr Kirkup said he would welcome the conversation despite his personal opinion on the name change.
“I will always listen to my community and work hard to represent their views,” he said.
“I have to say there are far more significant issues facing the Western Australian people which I think we should focus our attention on before we start changing names.
“Let’s focus our collective energy on trying to fix those issues first.”
It is understood changing the name of the Peel region would require an act of parliament to amend the regional development commission legislation.
Nathan Hondros
Senior Journalist for the Mandurah Mail, Australian Community Media, and Fairfax Media.
Senior Journalist for the Mandurah Mail, Australian Community Media, and Fairfax Media.
