Lia Pootah

the Lia Pootah myth is a creation by non Aboriginal Tasmanian woman Kaye McPherson. The Lia Pootah claim a connection with two main groups, the people of the Waddamanna (big rivers) and the people of the Huon. These kinship groups are defined as Teen Toomele Menennye (Big River) and Tahune Linah (Huon) respectively. Some of the Lia Pootah claim to be descended from the people of Bruny Island and from the Toogee of Tasmania’s West Coast. Others claim an origin on the East Coast and in the Central Highlands.[1]. These claims are completely unsubstantiated and there is no evidence that the group calling themselves Lia Pootah have any Aboriginal ancestry at all. The claims by the Lia Pootah are among a growing number of of people who claim to be Tasmanian Aboriginal who cannot provide any evidence to the fact at all. the website www.tasmanianaboriginal.com.au has been cited as a reliable source for the purposes of this page, yet the narrative of the origin of the Lia Pootah contain no basis in historical fact. the Lia Pootah said relationship to palawa people and the said split between Lia Pootah and palawa has no other source other than the Lia Pootah themselves . the fanciful nature of the Lia Pootah claims means that scholarly articles refuting the claims are not available as there is no material for publication on the subject other than the propaganda of the Lia Pootah themselves.

The Lia Pootah say that it is inaccurate to claim (as some historians have done) that all Aboriginal people were removed from the Tasmanian mainland in the nineteenth century. They maintain that many people of full or part Aboriginal descent remained in Tasmania, particularly in remote areas, given that much of Tasmania was inaccessible to European settlers as late as the 1870s.[1] despite the assertion of these 'lost tribe' scenarios the historical literature provides no indication that these claims are likely to be true. Consistent calls from the bona fide Tasmanian Aboriginal community for evidence or information that supports the Lia Pootah claims have resulted in no evidence being brought forward. The rise of google research has lead to the publishing of the Lia Pootah's alternative 'facts' of history ideas in academic journals and is sometimes misused as an accurate history of Tasmanian Aboriginal people.

The cultural arm of the Lia Pootah community is Manuta Tunapee Puggaluggalia (Tasmanian Aboriginal Historical Cultural Association and Publishing House). Its stated aim is to educate and break down the stereotypes and misconceptions which now prevail within both the Tasmanian community and the broader community. It says that the broader community is unaware that there are a number of separate Aboriginal communities in Tasmania, which have their own policies and guidelines and publish their own material. It has therefore made available cultural books, teaching resources, and other material, including children's books.[2]

The Lia Pootah maintain that the definition of Tasmanian Aboriginality has been monopolised by a separate group known as the Palawa, represented by the Tasmanian Aboriginal Centre (TAC) and with three accepted lines of ancestry - Bass Strait Islands, Dolly Dalrymple and Fanny Cochrane Smith. This, they argue, has had the effect of excluding the Lia Pootah from government recognition and from full involvement in Aboriginal affairs.[3] The Palawa leader most strongly opposed to Lia Pootah claims to Aboriginality is lawyer and activist Michael Mansell, one of the founders of the TAC.[4]

the Lia Pootahs and other such fanciful claims have lead to significant commonwealth money being allocated to groups that do not satisfy the legal definitions of Aboriginality in Australia. the harm this does to the real Aboriginal community is significant and traumatic. The insistence by relevant legal and political powers that the onus of proof not be the responsibility of those identifying as Aboriginal has resulted in unfettered misuse of Aboriginal affairs money.

• Aboriginal Tasmanian
• Palawa kani

• The Lia Pootah website
• The website of the Tasmanian Aboriginal Centre