Australian Prime Minister Tony Abbott has come under fire over his recent remark that living in remote Aboriginal communities is a “lifestyle choice.”

Indigenous Australians and activists strongly criticized Abbott’s remarks on Wednesday, saying he is unfit to be the country’s leader.

On Tuesday, during an interview with state broadcaster ABC, Abbott supported plans to close 100 indigenous communities in the remote parts of western Australia and relocate more than 12,000 people.

“What we can’t do is endlessly subsidize lifestyle choices if those lifestyle choices are not conducive to the kind of full participation in Australian society that everyone should have,” Abbott said in the interview.

The head of Abbott’s Indigenous Advisory Council, Warren Mundine (pictured above), criticized the plans, saying Aborigines, who have lived in Australia for at least 40,000 years, had a cultural connection to their land, adding that it was not simply a matter of going to “live in the bush.”

“It’s about their life, it’s about their very essence, it’s about their very culture,” said Mundine, adding, “These people are actually living on their homelands and it affects a lot of things, it affects their cultural activities, it affects their native title, it affects a number of areas.”

One aboriginal leader, Noel Pearson, called Abbott’s comments “very disappointing and hopeless,” saying those affected by the plans deserved an “extensive” explanation rather than “off-the-cuff” remarks.

An acclaimed filmmaker Rolf de Heer, who has produced movies on indigenous people, said Abbott’s remarks were “so inappropriate that it’s laughable,” adding, “It shows such ignorance that he has no right to be the prime minister of Australia.”

In response to the outrage, Abbott defended his remarks, saying he was being realistic, as it is difficult to, for example, get teachers to work in the remote areas.

“If you or I chose to live in a very remote place, to what extent is the taxpayer obliged to subsidize our services?” Abbott said.

The Aboriginal population is Australia’s most disadvantaged, with a much shorter life expectancy compared to the rest of the people; and at the same time, the group suffers disproportionate levels of incarceration and social problems such as unemployment.

At the time of British colonization in 1788, the Aboriginal population is believed to have been one million; however, currently, some 2.4 percent or 470,000 of Australia’s total population of 23 million are Aborigines.

CAH/HJL/HRB