WA Governor Chris Dawson apologises to descendants of Pinjarra Massacre, almost 200 years later

Gathering on sacred land where their ancestors were slain in one of the most brutal attacks on Aboriginal people in Western Australia, Traditional Owners heard the word it took almost 200 years to say — "sorry".

WARNING: This story contains details some readers may find distressing.

It was a word said, then repeated several times, by WA Governor Chris Dawson, apologising for the sins of his 19th-century predecessor Captain James Stirling who orchestrated the violent attacks now known as the Pinjarra Massacre.

In October 1834, scores of Bindjareb Noongar women, men and children were shot and killed by white settlers in an ambush on the banks of the Murray River, 80 kilometres south of Perth.

It was at that same spot on Tuesday morning where elders, local families and school students met