An Aboriginal woman put a curse on Prime Minister John Howard as he visited the regional Victorian town of Colac today.

Clad in possum skin and traditional tribal makeup, the woman stood silently outside Colac Performing Arts Centre while Mr Howard got into his waiting vehicle after addressing a crowd of more than 500 members of the local community.

Embattled Aboriginal leader Geoff Clark and his supporters watched as the woman known as Moopor pointed a bone at Mr Howard, who just smiled and waved.

The silent protest comes as Mr Howard last week announced the scrapping of the peak Aboriginal organisation ATSIC.

Mr Clark today said the curse was a message to Mr Howard to listen to the Aboriginal community.