A GROUP of young Aboriginal women plan to file a racial discrimination complaint after they were asked to leave an Alice Springs hostel at the weekend because they had "scared" Asian tourists.
The six youth leaders from the remote community of Yuendumu were told they were "unsuitable" guests by the manager of the Haven Backpackers Resort, Englishwoman Shelly Ball.
"The manager of the hotel came out and said that we weren't suitable to stay there," said Bethany Langdon, 19.
"The other tourists were all complaining because they were scared. I was upset because it felt like I wasn't wanted by other people … I'm not wanted because of the colour of our skin."
Ms Ball allegedly offered the group a bribe after she was threatened with media coverage of the incident.
Ms Langdon and the other young women were in Alice Springs to be trained as lifesavers by the Royal Life Saving Society before the opening of their local pool. They are leaders in a community project to empower youth at the Mount Theo out-station, 300 kilometres from Alice Springs.
The women were accompanied by a Mount Theo youth worker, a lifesaving trainer, three community elders and six children. They booked into the hostel on Saturday and were leaving for dinner when they were approached.
The manager of the Mount Theo program, Susie Low, said: "(Ms Ball) said there had been some complaints from the tourists. The Asian backpackers were afraid of Aboriginal people and they would leave if the Aboriginal people did not leave."
Ms Low contacted Tony Jones, the presenter of ABC's Lateline, about the incident. "Within moments (Ms Ball has) … said (they) could stay," Ms Low said.
When the group started to organise new accommodation, Ms Ball allegedly "opened her till and tried to hand them $480, saying, 'Will there be any more backlash?"' Ms Low said.
The Royal Life Saving Society made the hostel booking and paid for the training as part of its remote indigenous pools program. Society chief executive Rob Bradley corroborated the women's story.
"Very clearly there was no reason for any complaint … It was purely, in my view, a racist action that defies belief," he said. "I was shocked and dismayed that this situation could occur in Australia today."
In a statement issued to The Age, Ms Ball said: "Haven Hostels is a backpacker hostel catering for international backpacking tourists, which this group was not." She said the hostel offered to pay for alternative accommodation.
Topic: NT women cast out as 'scary' (Read 966 times)