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<v Speaker 1>Welcome to Spotlight Advanced.

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<v Speaker 2>I'm Bruce Gulland and I'm Liz Wadde. Spotlight uses a

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<v Speaker 2>special English method of broadcasting. It is easier for people

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<v Speaker 2>to understand no matter where in the world they live.

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<v Speaker 1>This is a story that Australia's native people tell.

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<v Speaker 3>Many years ago. The earth was very different. There were

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<v Speaker 3>no mountains or hills. There was no sea. Then life

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<v Speaker 3>came suddenly. These were the ancestors. They were spirits in

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<v Speaker 3>the form of animals, plants, and people. The ancestors traveled

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<v Speaker 3>across the earth. Because of them, the seas filled with water.

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<v Speaker 3>Where they stepped, hills and mountains appeared. One of these

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<v Speaker 3>mountains grew in the middle of the desert. Many of

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<v Speaker 3>the ancestors lived on this mountain. The local people were

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<v Speaker 3>called the Ananu. They discovered the place and lived by

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<v Speaker 3>it too. Today they call this special place Uluru.

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<v Speaker 1>Today's Spotlight is on this special place, Oolaroo.

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<v Speaker 2>What you have just heard is a story about the

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<v Speaker 2>beginning of the world, told by the Onagnu people. The

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<v Speaker 2>Onagnu are one of Australia's native people. They have lived

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<v Speaker 2>in Australia for almost sixty five thousand years. The land

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<v Speaker 2>is very important to the Onagnu. It is filled with

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<v Speaker 2>their history. They even talk about the land as if

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<v Speaker 2>it were a person. They call it my grandmother or

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<v Speaker 2>my grandfather. For the Onagnu, the place they live is

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<v Speaker 2>not just a place, it is part of who they are.

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<v Speaker 1>Oolaroo is one of the most important places for the Unagnw.

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<v Speaker 1>It is a huge sandstone rock in the middle of

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<v Speaker 1>a flat desert. From the ground to the top, it

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<v Speaker 1>is three hundred and forty eight meters high and it

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<v Speaker 1>is nine point four kilometers around. There are no other

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<v Speaker 1>rocks or mountains around it. It has a dark red color,

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<v Speaker 1>but when the sun shines on Ularu, the rock seems

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<v Speaker 1>to change color. It is beautiful to see. It may

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<v Speaker 1>even seem like magic. The Unagnu believe Ularu is sacred

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<v Speaker 1>or holy. For them, it shows how the world was

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<v Speaker 1>created and it is a part of their beliefs.

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<v Speaker 2>But Oolaroo is not just important to the Onagnu. In

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<v Speaker 2>the sixteen hundreds, European settlers sailed to Australia. After a

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<v Speaker 2>long time, they found Oolaroo. They did not know about

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<v Speaker 2>the Anagnu people and they did not understand the Onagnu religion.

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<v Speaker 2>The Europeans believed Oolaroo was just another very beautiful place.

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<v Speaker 2>Over time European settlers conquered Australia, they called Oolaroo by

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<v Speaker 2>a different name. They called it Ayer's Rock, and many

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<v Speaker 2>of them came to the place so that they could

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<v Speaker 2>see it.

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<v Speaker 1>In nineteen thirty six, people began traveling to Ularu to

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<v Speaker 1>see it. They were tourists. Many of these people wanted

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<v Speaker 1>to climb the rock. At this time, Oolarou was in

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<v Speaker 1>a national park and climbing it became part of visiting.

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<v Speaker 1>Many Australians were very proud of Oolooroo. It was one

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<v Speaker 1>of the most well known places in their country. It

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<v Speaker 1>became one of Australia's national symbols. It was an example

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<v Speaker 1>of what made their country beautiful and special.

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<v Speaker 2>But watching tourists climb Oolaroo was painful for the on Agnew.

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<v Speaker 2>By Australian law, the on Agnew did not own the land,

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<v Speaker 2>but they still believed in their own law. When tourists

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<v Speaker 2>came to climb Oolaroo, they were walking on places special

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<v Speaker 2>to the on Agnew. In a way, the tourists were

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<v Speaker 2>even breaking on Agnew law, and tourists were destroying part

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<v Speaker 2>of the rock. Pamela Taylor is on Agnew. She told

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<v Speaker 2>the BBC.

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<v Speaker 4>Tourists are like insects, like ants. They climb up and

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<v Speaker 4>down every day. Their shoes are scraping away at the rock.

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<v Speaker 4>Little by little, their path is now clear from far away.

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<v Speaker 4>It was not supposed to be like that.

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<v Speaker 1>For many years, the UNAGNU asked people not to climb Oolaroo.

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<v Speaker 1>They put signs at the bottom of the rock to

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<v Speaker 1>tell tourists why it was important, but people continued to climb. Finally,

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<v Speaker 1>the UNIGNW decided that their law should govern Oolaroo. It

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<v Speaker 1>was too important to them. The UNAGNU talked with the

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<v Speaker 1>Australian government. They wanted their land back. In nineteen eighty five,

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<v Speaker 1>they received their land, but they agreed to manage the

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<v Speaker 1>land with the government.

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<v Speaker 2>But the honorednew also wanted to stop people climbing Oolaroo.

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<v Speaker 2>The government did not know what to do. Many people

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<v Speaker 2>did not want to stop the climbing on the rock,

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<v Speaker 2>and tourism brought in a lot of money. Some people

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<v Speaker 2>believed the Unagnew could even benefit. Maria Blias is a

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<v Speaker 2>reporter for Northern Territory News. She writes that it is

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<v Speaker 2>difficult to make money in that area.

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<v Speaker 5>She says, creating jobs for the an Annu can only

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<v Speaker 5>be positive. It would bring a lot of money to

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<v Speaker 5>people who need it. We could address safety issues from

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<v Speaker 5>the climb, and we could employ more guides so that

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<v Speaker 5>people obey an annew law. I can only see a

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<v Speaker 5>chance to make a lot of money that we should explore.

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<v Speaker 1>But the Unagnew believe closing the climb will not drive

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<v Speaker 1>people away. They say it will make Ularu more interesting.

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<v Speaker 1>They plan to teach people about their culture. They want

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<v Speaker 1>to tell tourists stories about Ularoo. Sammy Wilson is the

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<v Speaker 1>board chairman of the Uluru Katajuta National Park. He told

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<v Speaker 1>the Conversation.

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<v Speaker 6>Visitors do not need to worry that there will be

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<v Speaker 6>nothing for them with the climb closed. There is so

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<v Speaker 6>much else in the culture here. We have a lot

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<v Speaker 6>to offer in this country. There are so many other

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<v Speaker 6>smaller places that are culturally interesting that we can share.

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<v Speaker 6>Instead of feeling disappointed, tourists can experience the place with

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<v Speaker 6>the Anangu. They can enjoy that they learned so much

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<v Speaker 6>about our culture.

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<v Speaker 2>And telling people about their culture has done a lot

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<v Speaker 2>for the Aignu. The Onagnu could not close the Oolarou

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<v Speaker 2>climb at first, but they began telling people about their

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<v Speaker 2>culture and this started to change people's minds. Tourists began

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<v Speaker 2>to respect the Onignu and they stopped climbing Oolaroo when asked. Then,

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<v Speaker 2>in twenty seventeen, the Onignu asked to close Oolaroo again.

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<v Speaker 2>They argued powerfully for their rights. Many other people joined

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<v Speaker 2>the Onagnu, and this time the national park where Oolarou

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<v Speaker 2>sits agreed. The decision made some people angry, but Oolarou

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<v Speaker 2>closed the climb in twenty nineteen.

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<v Speaker 1>Do you think it was right to close Oolaru to

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<v Speaker 1>climbing or do places like this belong to everyone? You

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<v Speaker 1>can leave a comment on our website or email us

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<v Speaker 1>at Radio at Radio English dot net. Can also comment

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<v Speaker 1>on Facebook at Facebook dot com slash Spotlight Radio.

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<v Speaker 2>The writer of this program was Dan Chrisman. The producer

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<v Speaker 2>was Michio Ozaki. The voices you heard were from the

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<v Speaker 2>United Kingdom, the United States, and New Zealand. All quotes

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<v Speaker 2>were adapted for this program and devoiced by Spotlight. You

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<v Speaker 2>can listen to this program again and read it on

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<v Speaker 2>the internet at www dot Radio English dot net. This

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<v Speaker 2>program is called Oolaroo, a special.

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<v Speaker 1>Rock visit our website to download our free app for

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<v Speaker 1>Android or Apple devices. We hope you can join us

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<v Speaker 1>again for the next Spotlight program. Goodbye that