Just a day before the 10th annual Maitreya Festival was set to kick off, reports have emerged the beloved bush doof has been cancelled following weeks of controversy, with emergency services, rival promoters, Indigenous leaders, and vendors warning punters from attending.
As Tone Deaf reported yesterday, after Maitreya was denied a permit to host the festival at its usual site, organisers opted to go ahead with the festival anyway at a secret and unsanctioned location, despite warnings from Victoria Police and fire services.
“If the event is unsanctioned, and uninsured, and one thing goes wrong, the organisers are pretty much finished,” Darren Sanicki of GI & Sanicki Lawyers told Tone Deaf. “They’re going to be wiped out financially, because they won’t be covered by insurance.”
“So anything that happens — someone slips and hurts themselves, or needs urgent medical assistance and there are no paramedics on site, or any event involving property damage, these guys aren’t covered.”
Despite a slew of media coverage and just about everyone in the industry advising against it, organisers have shown no indication that they will not be proceeding with the festival, sharing images of their on-site amenities via Facebook.
However, Pulse Radio is now reporting that the event has been cancelled, citing a “reliable” though unnamed source “close to the situation”. On Facebook, Pulse claimed that the festival site is “bogged” and there is an Aboriginal Heritage Stop Order on the site.
“We’ve got very solid information from someone close to the situation that the promoters have given up and canned it,” Pulse wrote. However, if the event is indeed cancelled, no one’s told the headliners.
“I am playing at Maitreya. Just waiting for confirmation if it is happening. So far it seems it is still happening,” veteran DJ Sebastian Leger told a concerned fan on Facebook after he was asked whether he would indeed be appearing at Maitreya.
There has so far been no official word from Maitreya organisers.
Victoria Police recently reiterated their stance on the event. Swan Hill Local Area Commander Inspector Dan Davison said in a press release that “there’s no accountability to ensure the environment is safe for patrons and free from hazards”.
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“We’re looking at a situation that involves the gathering of potentially thousands of people in an area that has not been declared safe, with a lack of basic services such as water, toilets, medical care and emergency response,” Inspector Davison said.
“Add to this the potential fire risk that comes with humid and hot weather – it’s a recipe for disaster. We’re simply telling people it’s not safe to attend. If you have a loved one or friend attending, don’t’ let them put their safety at risk.”
“We’ll be stepping up our resources in the local community to respond if an emergency occurs. Victoria Police has well established arrangements for providing police support to major events. This includes ensuring the environment is safe for emergency service personnel attending.”
The Country Fire Authority issued their own statement, echoing Vic Police’s, saying, “It’s simply irresponsible to hold such a large event without even the most basic services including water, toilets, showers, medical care or fire management services.”
According to The Age, the Office of Aboriginal Affairs Victoria have indeed issued Maitreya with a Stop Order on all building and infrastructure work at Wooroonook Lakes over fears works could damage Aboriginal heritage artefacts.
Vendors have also begun pulling out of the festival, with audio equipment providers Full Throttle Entertainment issuing a statement via Facebook in which they confirm they will not be involved with the event.
“It is with heavy hearts that Full Throttle Entertainment have withdrawn from providing sound systems for the three stages at this years Maitreya festival,” they write. “This is a result of a multitude of reasons.”
“Despite claims by random individuals on social media platforms that our ‘F1 and new Vero are on site at the festival’, we can assure you that this is not the case, the trucks have returned to Sydney.”
“We are however confident that the organisers have secured other sound systems through alternate vendors. We wish the organisers the best success with their event, as Maitreya has, and always will be very close to our hearts.”
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The controversy surrounding the festival has even caught the attention of Maitreya’s fellow promoters. Speaking to The Music, Richie McNeill and Frank Cotela of dance festival giant Stereosonic called Maitreya “incredibly arrogant, disgraceful and endangering”.
“My opinion is they’re not coming back next year, they’re doing this as a cash grab,” said McNeill. “Because to go against the police, the ambulance, the fire brigade, the indigenous people, the council…there will be repercussions.
“I can’t believe the stance that they’re taking. If I was a supplier I wouldn’t be going out there if I was paid in full because it just feels and smells like a set up.”
“They just think they’ve got carte blanche to do whatever they want,” added Cotela. “From a promoter point of view, this is just wrong. It’s not the right thing to do if you don’t have the right tools and the right permit to go out and put a festival together.”
Tone Deaf will update as more details emerge.
