THE decision by the Senate to hold hearings into the nuclear waste dump in Canberra and Darwin but not Tennant Creek is an act of political cowardice.

Muckaty Station, 120km north of the Outback town, may - or may not be - as good a place as any to build the depository.

But the people who live in Tennant and nearby surely have a right to have their say.

Some of those in favour of the nuclear waste dump were flown to Darwin at the Northern Land Council's expense to meet federal Resources Minister Martin Ferguson two weeks ago.

Those opposing the dump were offered no such help.

The Senate must know that the protesters are not an organised, highly sophisticated mob and are unlikely to tender a written, cross-referenced submission to the inquiry.

Of course, the NLC will do just that, possibly by flying an army of lawyers to Canberra, rather than face the possibility of being heckled at the Darwin hearing.

The protesters would undoubtedly turn up to a public hearing in Tennant. And it would no doubt be a stormy affair, most uncomfortable for the Senators and the NLC.

But that's one of the hazards of public life - having to listen to the other side of the story.

The Senate's decision to, in effect, silence the indigenous protesters will have along-term effect.

When people are not allowed to put their point of view, when they are denied a hearing, they tend to feel disenfranchised.

They become embittered - and that bitterness can last a lifetime.