Premier of Western Australia Roger Cook has noted the terrorism charge against the suspect in the Boorloo/Perth Invasion Day attempted bombing "alleges the attack on Aboriginal people and other peaceful protesters was motivated by a hateful, racist ideology".
The organisers of the rally wrote to the Premier on 5 February urging a series of measures and reforms in the wake of the attack. The letter is published in full below.
Dear Hon. Premier Roger Cook MLA,
We write as the organisers of the Invasion Day Boorloo rally on 26 January 2026, where we experienced what has now been declared as a terrorist attack on our people. We welcome this important and historic finding and the charges laid against the bomber. We also thank you for the invitation to receive a briefing from you today.
After today's meeting, we would like an opportunity to meet with you urgently to discuss immediate change that we would like to see as a result.
We call for the Western Australian Government and the Federal Government (as relevant) to:
- The incident must be formally investigated and publicly treated as a hate crime.
- Expand the terms of reference for the Royal Commission into anti-semitism to cover all forms of racism and far right extremism;
- Urgently endorse and implement the Australian Human Rights Commission's National Anti-Racism Framework;
- Establish an independent mechanism with diverse representation to conduct investigations into government department's decisions, actions and policies, similar to the model recently passed in the ACT with the Public Sector (Closing the Gap) Legislation Amendment Bill 2025 (ACT);
- Support and fund truth-telling and Aboriginal language revitalisation (including in education curriculums) across Western Australia in consultation with communities, as a precursor to negotiating a Treaty;
- Establish a dedicated phone number for mental health support for anyone affected by this terror attack, including funding culturally safe counselling for Aboriginal people.
Most of all, this terror attack reinforces the importance of our Invasion Day rally's demands for the WA State Government to:
- Implement all of the recommendations of the Royal Commission into Aboriginal Deaths in Custody, UN Mandela Prison Rules, and the Help Way Earlier Report 2025 on child justice reforms, including immediately closing Unit 18.
- Establish an independent investigation into deaths in custody based on the International Red Cross and UN Minnesota Guidelines.
- Immediately address health and well-being in prisons through implementation of the Royal Commission into Aboriginal Deaths in Custody recommendation 150 and the provision of PBS, Medicare, and culturally comprehensive trauma-informed mental health care and addiction treatment.
- End the long ongoing lockdowns in justice institutions based in accordance with the UN Mandela rules and international law.
- Immediately address the housing affordability crisis and end homelessness without delay.
We would welcome the opportunity to discuss these with you further.
We look forward to your response and to working with you on this matter of critical national importance.
Yours sincerely,
Uncle Herbert Bropho
Uncle Hedley Hayward
Fabian Yarran
Roxanne Moore
