Fairfield Mayor wants to keep monuments private
06 Jan 10 @ 10:05am by CARLEEN FROST
Related: Monument show’s Fairfield’s ugly side
MAYOR Nick Lalich has admitted that cultural monuments should not be built on public land, less than a month after approving plans for a controversial Assyrian genocide memorial at a council-owned reserve.
Cr Lalich is now trying to change Fairfield Council’s plaques and memorial policy to stop other ethnic groups from erecting plaques and monuments on public land.
``I will be asking council to consider that all proposed plaques and memorials which relate to specific community groups and organisations must be placed on private land, not public land,’’ he said.
``For council to commit ratepayers’ money to the potentially thousands of significant events in history important to our many migrant communities is set to put us on an unsustainable path of expense and controversy.’’
Councillors unanimously approved the Assyrian genocide monument at the council’s monthly meeting in December.
The monument, honouring the Assyrian people who were slaughtered during World War I, is expected to be built at the corner of Smithfield Rd and Elizabeth Drive in May.
The plans were opposed by Fowler Federal Labor MP Julia Irwin who said the monument would open a Pandora’s box for other ethnic communities.
``There are difficulties in supporting memorials on public land which are dedicated to one cultural or ethnic group, no matter how worthy the cause,’’ she said.