One Nation leader Pauline Hanson claims she was granted permission to climb Uluru one month after she criticised the plan to close the site to climbers.
In a post to her Facebook page, the Queensland senator said she was invited to Uluru by “the Anangu Mayatja Council of Elders” a Facebook group that appears to have no official recognition.
In a photo accompanying her posts, Ms Hanson claims to have been given permission to make the climb by Traditional Owners Reggie Uluru and Cassidy Uluru.
Currently, the Yankunytjatjara and Pitjantjatjara Traditional Owners don't prohibit visitors from climbing the rock, but after providing cultural awareness request people respect their wishes and not climb.
"I arrived yesterday afternoon and held talks with the two sons of Paddy Uluru who was the traditional owner [sic] and other family members,” Ms Hanson said in the posts.
“Today I will meet with around 15 of their Anangu Mayatja Council of Elders and attempt to climb the rock if the wind has dropped off.
“I’ll keep you posted.”
In another post to her Facebook page, Ms Hanson said she had been given permission to climb by the group.
Labor's shadow minister for Indigenous Australians Linda Burney described the event as a "stunt".
Speaking with SBS News, Ms Burney, the first Indigenous woman in the House of Representatives, accused Ms Hanson of cultural insensitivity.
"She has no appreciation whatsoever of the cultural significance of Uluru ... Uluru is a living being for Aboriginal people. It's not something that you clamber over," she said.
Uluru is considered sacred by the Traditional Owners, the Anangu people, and the ban was announced by the Uluru-Kata Tjuta National Park Board in 2017.
The ban will take effect in October.
Last month, Ms Hanson compared the ban to closing Bondi Beach.
“The fact is, it’s money-making. It’s giving jobs to indigenous [sic] communities, and you’ve got thousands of tourists who go there every year and want to climb the rock,” she said.
