Love, kindness, forgiveness; always love. Court cases in the mid-19th century challenged the idea of British settlement at the time the rulings were in favour of the Crown. Participants in Broome identified there was a real need to have a new conversation with Government around Indigenous land and property rights and how this might translate into sustainable economic development. These skills will enable us to make better and informed decisions for maximum benefit and I look forward, as I am sure you do, to the release of IBAs investment principles, which they are currently developing in partnership with Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples and organisations across the country. In a snapshot. The Keating government gave effect to the Mabo decision by introducing the Native Title Act 1993, which facilitated the process of recognising native title. The theme of this years conference is Leadership, Legacy and Opportunity. The Roundtable included a diverse range of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people, with nearly 50 people in total from as far and wide as the Torres Straits, the Gulf of Carpentaria, Cape York, Sydney, the Kimberley and Darwin. Today I want to talk about how Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples can be the leaders to grasp new opportunities that will leave a legacy for generations to come. It was through his association with JCU humanities and education staff, Professor Henry Reynolds and Associate Professor Noel Loos, that Eddie became interested in who owned the land on which his people lived, and in Native Title. (2012 lecture transcript), 2011 Presentation by Mr Mick Gooda, Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Social Justice Commissioner. Eddie Mabo of Mer island in the Torres Strait spent a decade seeking official recognition of his people's ownership of Mer and on 3 June 1992, the High Court of Australia agreed, rejecting the doctrine that Australia was terra nullius (land belonging to no-one) at the time of European settlement. Eddie Mabo was heartbroken and never forgave government authorities. HOST: Today is Mabo Day. I have heard it at dawn as the earth crackles, the river waters run, and the animals stir as the Sun peers above the hills and the light strikes the trees on my beloved Wiradjuri country. At: http://hdr.undp.org/en/content/table-1-human-development-index-and-its-components#a (viewed 9 June 2015). Several cabinet papers from the time of the Mabo decision reflect on its likely ramifications, including: The National Archives of Australia acknowledges the traditional owners and custodians of Country throughout Australia and acknowledges their continuing connection to land, sea and community. To sign treaties. Words. The Mabo decision What is the Mabo decision? The great polish poetCzeslawMilosz said perhaps all memory is the memory of wounds. In 2014, Australia ranked second after Norway, in the United Nations Human Development Index,[9] a position that would seem to indicate that we all enjoy a quality of life superior to most others in the world. Words speak across tongues. At: http://www.ohchr.org/EN/Issues/Development/Pages/RealizingaVisionforTransformativeDevelopment.aspx (viewed 9 June 2015), [8] N Collings, Native title, economic development and the environment, Australian Law Reform Commission Journal 15, 2009. In 1981, Eddie Mabo made a speech at James Cook University in Queensland, where he explained his people's beliefs about the ownership and inheritance of land on Mer. We cross rivers and we are changed like the water itself. Mabo and his fellow plaintiff's fought for land on Mer - their ancestral gardens and home. Mabo - as in Eddie Mabo, who famously fought a winning fight against the legal doctrine of terra nullius to enshrine Aboriginal land rights in law - is referenced on two occasions. It was on 3 June 1992 that the Australian High Court overturned more than 200 years of white domination of land ownership. It contains just 10 articles on what the instrument describes as an, inalienable right, by which every human person and all peoples are entitled to participate in, contribute to and enjoy economic, social, cultural and political development, in which all human rights and fundamental freedoms can be fully realised.[6]. A panel of judges at the High Court ruled that Aboriginal people were the rightful custodians of the land. In going down this track we have to understand and have to get these institutions to understand that there is a fair dinkum business case for doing this because we have had enough of welfare and charity. Eternal. "The golden house of is collapses. On 8 December 1988, the High Court ruled this legislation invalid. The golden house of is of culture and connection, of blood and dreaming, of time immemorial how the golden house of is collapses. It is this issue of development that I will explore later in greater detail. This was apartheid in Australia, not South Africa. Our News One of the people who attended the conference, a lawyer, suggested they should make a case to claim land rights through the court system. The world of becoming ascends. In 1973 Mabo founded the Black Community School in Townsville, which was created to educate Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children and preserve traditional knowledge and practices. Rejected at each turn. Another key challenge that came out of the roundtable was the need to improve the capacity of our mobs to have the necessary advocacy; governance and risk management skills to successful engage in business and manage our estates in order to secure the best possible outcomes for our communities. I stand here proud to bring a message from my Elders. A clear theme from the Broome Roundtable revealed a common frustration among many Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people. Tenacity, fearlessness, fearsome, tireless are some of the words that come to mind when the names Rob Riley and Eddie Mabo are mentioned. Whilst the case did little to clarify the legal principles around calculating compensation, it is one example of the positive realization after many years, of the rights of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples to land and waters within the native title system. As this brave mans voice even as he had passed was heard by another man who is now gone and together they changed us. "Quite simply, Eddie Mabo brought an end to a two-centuries-old lie," says Rachel Perkins, director and inspiration behind the new movie, Mabo, released to coincide with the 20th anniversary of the historic High Court case. We all know about the legacy of native title left by Meriam and Murray Islanders Edward Koiki Mabo, David Passi and James Rice. Choose from the list of topics on the left and then choose 'Click to Play'. In some ways our systems of governance is a defining feature of the oldest living culture on this planet. As a nation, this is an improvement from fourth position just over ten years ago in 2003.[10]. 2006 Presentation by Professor Larissa Behrendt. 10. Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander viewers are advised that this resource and resource page may contain the image, name or voice of deceased persons. 2023 BBC. Vincent Lingiari and men and women of the Gurindji people. The Mabo decision was a legal case held in 1992. 23 Nov 1990 - 21 Oct 1994 Library at the University College of Townsville, Queensland. When voices within democracies silenced and marginalised are demanding to be heard, we are bringing oursand challenging our democracy to examine itself and for our constitution to be seeded in the first footprints, not just the first settlers. The preamble to the Native Title Act makes it clear that the objectives of the legislation are to: rectify the consequences of past injustices by the special measures contained in the Act to ensure that Aboriginal peoples and Torres Strait Islanders receive the full recognition and status within the Australian nation to which history, their prior rights and interests, and their rich and diverse culture, fully entitle them to aspire.[11]. On 3 June 1992 the High Court of Australia ruled that a group of Torres Strait Islander people, led by Eddie Mabo, owned the island of Mer (Murray Island). . But we know that these scales do not capture the social disadvantage experienced by Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples. Read about our approach to external linking. Here we are 30 years later, still on that journey. "The High Court, which is not elected by anybody, not accountable to anybody, had presumed to move into the legislative area to make a whole new law," he said. While he believed the Murray Island belonged to the Torres Strait Islander people, Australian law stated that the Government owned the land. [12] Native Title Act 1993 (Cth), preamble. We are currently not sharing in the developmental prosperity for which Australia is known. I must say though, that beyond economic development, effective governance is critical to ensuring that our organisations are transparent and accountable to our communities and this is one challenge to which we must rise. Across language itself. These are the traditional lands and waters of the Meriam people, and the final resting place of Eddie Mabo in Las Village. Mabo Day occurs annually in Australia on 3rd June. These legal challenges continued into the 20th century rulings maintained the legitimacy of the Crown but could not extinguish completely the Aboriginal claims. Words makaratta. According to accounts of the conversation, the two scholarly figures looked at each other and then, delicately, told Mabo that he didn't own the land and that it was Crown land. I was there as a young associate working for a judge, and saw the jubilation and relief of . (Transcript), 2014 Presentation byMs Shannan Dodson, Digital Campaign Manager, Recognise Australia. He knew about suffering. Two words showed something was wrong with the system, After centuries of Murdaugh rule in the Deep South, the family's power ends with a life sentence for murder, Flooding in southern Malaysia forces 40,000 people to flee homes, When Daniel picked up a dropped box on a busy road, he had no idea it would lead to the 'best present ever', Plans to redevelop 'eyesore' on prime riverside land fall apart as billionaires exit, Labor's pledge for mega koala park in south-west Sydney welcomed by conservation groups, Tom Sizemore, Saving Private Ryan actor, dies aged 61. Topics are usually less than 2 minutes long. Please join with me in acknowledging the life long accomplishments of Russell Taylor. The truth: This was his land. What's the least amount of exercise we can get away with? eddie began his Journey on changing the rights by Making a speech at a land rights conference at the James Cook University his speech explained the traditional land owners and the inheritance system that . He petitioned, campaigned, cajoled and questioned Terra Nullius for 18 years. Eddie Mabo (left) and . Eddie Koiki Mabo died of cancer on 21 January 1991, before the case was resolved. This activity encourages children to write down their knowledge in a structured report . Eddie Mabo's dream had come true; a meeting of minds to address the issue of Aboriginal land . In May 1982, Eddie Mabo and four other Meriam people of the Murray Islands in the Torres Strait began action in the High Court of Australia seeking confirmation of their traditional land rights. Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Social Justice, Copyright Australian Human Rights Commission, http://www.austlii.edu.au/au/journals/JlIndigP/2014/33.pdf, http://www.theaustralian.com.au/news/features/property-rights-will-help-economic-development-of-indigenous-australians/story-e6frg6z6-1227365821530, https://www.humanrights.gov.au/sites/default/files/document/publication/social_justice_native_title_report_2013.pdf, http://www.humanrights.gov.au/publications/native-title-report-2008, http://www.ohchr.org/EN/Issues/Development/Pages/RealizingaVisionforTransformativeDevelopment.aspx, http://www.austlii.edu.au/au/journals/ALRCRefJl/2009/15.html#FootnoteB6, http://hdr.undp.org/en/content/table-1-human-development-index-and-its-components#a, http://hdr.undp.org/sites/default/files/reports/264/hdr_2003_en_complete.pdf. Mabo 20 years on: did it change the nation? We will adapt, we will take advantage of these opportunities and we will leave a great legacy. There will be many words between now and then. "Koiki was ambitious for himself and for his people.". Mabo's credibility as the primary witness for the case was savaged . [1] And that shift is the move to the next emerging challenge; how do we maximise these rights to their full potential, now that we have our native title recognized? Eddie Koiki Mabo presents a guest lecture about the Torres Strait Islander community 2,837 views Nov 18, 2020 51 Dislike Share Save JCU Library 451 subscribers This short video is an excerpt. This needs to change. . It clearly did not, for instance, lead to vast numbers of white Australians being forced from their homes, businesses, mines or farms. But without warriors such as Eddie, David and James, Rob and countless others, we would not be in the position regarding Indigenous land tenure that we are in today. Ten years later, he conceded his fears were unfounded. Importantly, the Roundtable highlighted that despite previous promises around compensation for historical dispossession, this has not yet materialized. the Aborigines did not give up their lands peacefully; they were killed or removed forcibly from the lands by United Kingdom forces or the European colonists in what amounted to attempted (and in Tasmania almost complete) genocide.". In conversations with Commissioner Wilson and others, we are in the midst of developing what the next step in this process should look like and we will continue to engage with Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples such as yourselves in order to do this. We invite you to walk with us in a movement of the Australian people for a better future.. The "fallacy" that Perkins speaks of is the concept of Terra Nullius, land belonging to no-one. Keating begins by discussing the moral and legal implications of the decision. In 1979 Wiradjuri man and law student Paul Coewalked the path that Eddie Mabo would follow all the way to the High Court of Australia. He told them of his dream of ending his days on Murray Island, on the ancestral land that had been handed down through his family for 15 generations. Suggested answer: While working as a grounds keeper at James Cook University in Townsville, Eddie learnt about Australian land ownership laws. First, they ask me to pass on their greetings and their thanks for allowing me on your lands. In 2008, a library at James Cook University was named after him. It would most likely still be in place had it not been for Eddie Koiki Mabo. Eddie Mabo was a staff member at JCU, working as a groundsman from 1967 to 1971. On 3 June 1992, the High Court of Australia ruled in favour of limited native title. Other forms of recognition have been added. More Information .We are closed in a box. "If ever a system could be called a government of laws," he said, "it is shown in the evidence before me.". 2017 presentation by Professor Megan Davis, Pro Vice Chancellor Indigenous, University of New South Wales. He was a Meriam man and grew up on Mer, part of the Murray Island Group in the Torres Strait. Ten years before, Eddie Koiki Mabo and his comrades started the legal battle for the recognition of the Meriam people and the ownership of Mer Island. This led to the subsequent High Court case, Mabo v Queensland (No 2), which was to determine the matter of the plaintiffs' land rights. Some records include terms and views that are not appropriate today. However, whilst the right to development is about improvements in economic and material outcomes, it is also about our rights as Indigenous peoples to self-determination and our rights to control our natural wealth and resources. In 1981, Eddie Mabo delivered a speech at James Cook University in Queensland, where he challenged the widely accepted belief of ownership and inheritance of land on Murray Island. In that book he argued, contrary to theories of Charles Darwin, that it was not the fittest or the strongest nor the smartest that survive but those who can manage change, that is it is the most adaptable who survive. And he knew truth. I walked into the news meeting at the ABC with words. British law under a British flag. Edward 'Koiki' Mabo (1936-1992), Torres Strait Islander community leader and land rights campaigner, was born on 29 June 1936 at Las, on Mer, in the Murray group of islands, Queensland, the fourth surviving child of Murray Islands-born parents 'Robert' Zesou Sambo, seaman, and his wife 'Annie' Poipe, ne Mabo. He was a Meriam man and grew up on Mer, part of the Murray Island Group in the Torres Strait. He was right. We are still trying to find the words to equal the full measure of Eddie Mabo's devotion. [1] J Altman., (2014) Scullion Peddles pipedream reforms, Journal of Indigenous Policy, At: http://www.austlii.edu.au/au/journals/JlIndigP/2014/33.pdf (viewed 5 June 2015). On 3 June 1992, six of the seven High Court judges upheld the claim and ruled that the lands of . Land claim, 1981-1992 In 1981, at a conference on indigenous land rights in Townsville, a decision was made to pursue a native land title claim for the people of the Murray Islands in the High Court of Australia. It is sadness beyond the word sadness itself. Then, in June 1992, the years of sacrifice and persuasion came to fruition. 1h 43m. You and I know all too well that we live shorter, poorer lives than our non-Aboriginal counterparts. There was something of destiny in the air. Eddie Koiki Mabo at Las, Murray Island, 1989 On 3 June 1992 the High Court of Australia recognised that a group of Torres Strait Islanders, led by Eddie Mabo, held ownership of Mer (Murray Island). Can I also acknowledge all you here today who have come together to work out how we can access our land, seas and waters easier and quicker, but who have also come to talk to each other about how we can make better use of our estates to make life a little better for the rest of our mob out there. There were three key components to this: As you will know, the first two of these three components have been implemented, with varying degrees of success and impact on our communities over the years. In the context of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples, Governments have committed themselves to the economic development of our communities. Words like han. A decade later, I was a young reporter still in my early 20s, finding my way into the foreign world of journalism when I saw a listing for a case at the High Court. Bryan Keon-Cohen was one of Eddie Mabo's barristers, and he gave a speech at Mabo's funderal in Townsville in Feb 1992 - he said: 'I confine myself here . "The rights he won in the High Court have been eroded away by government, courts and socio-economic pressure.". To seek justice we had to speak the words of British law. Hide message. A Yolngu word meaning to come together after a struggle. In 1982, along with four other Meriam people from Murray Island, he initiated legal proceedings in the Queensland Supreme Court claiming customary ownership of their lands on Murray Island. A lawyer heard the speech and asked . In 1981, Eddie Mabo made a speech at James Cook University in Queensland, where he explained his people's beliefs about the ownership and inheritance of land on Mer. And he was right. The judge's four hundred page report presented Mabo and his barristers with a bombshell which threatened to sink their case. Aboriginal Australians are celebrating the 20th anniversary of their landmark victory over land rights. 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Eddie Koiki Mabo: Land Rights in the Torres Strait I would like to first of all express my sincere thanks to the organizers of this conference: in particular the James Cook University Student Union and the Aboriginal Treaty Committee in Townsville for allowing me to speak at this very important conference. Birthdays, anniversaries, sports events and special schools days were missed. So, in many ways, the victory has been more symbolic than practical. Transcript notes - MABO, Eddie, RICE, James v State of Queensland and Commonwealth of Australia, ITM1641344 The memory of wounds. He knew about hope and he knew about justice. The debate about Mabo's legacy still goes on today, Many indigenous Australians still live in poverty, Bakhmut attacks still being repelled, says Ukraine, AOC under investigation for Met Gala dress, Mother who killed her five children euthanised, Canadian grandma helps police snag phone scammer, The children left behind in Cuba's exodus, Zoom boss Greg Tomb fired without cause. But despite the success of the '67 campaign, in 1972 Eddie Mabo still had to get permission from the Queensland authorities to visit his dying father on Mer Island. For the love of his family and tradition, he fights for his land on Murray Island. The Murray Islands Mabo v Queensland (No 2) (commonly known as the Mabo case or simply Mabo) is a landmark decision of the High Court of Australia that recognised the existence of Native Title in Australia. Two generations talk about the impact of the 1967 Referendum and the 1992 Mabo Decision . At http://hdr.undp.org/sites/default/files/reports/264/hdr_2003_en_complete.pdf (viewed 9 June 2015). : he world to possession and I emfphasise Opossessions Promoting Indigenous peoples right to development. A lawyer heard the speech and asked Eddie if he would like to challenge the Australian Government in the court system, to decide who the true owner of the land on Mer was, his . The Mabo verdict was arguably the most significant court ruling in the history of Indigenous Australia, overturning the concept of terra nullius and paving the way for native title. So today it is indeed an honour for both my people and myself to be presenting this year's Edward Koiki Mabo Lecture. Until that day, the legal fiction of terra nullius, the land belonging to no-one, had characterised Australian law and land titles since the voyage of Captain Cook. This could also be translated as greater Indigenous control over our lands and resources more generally, and a decrease in the burden placed on Indigenous landholders as I have mentioned earlier today by government and other industries. 3. Business development support and succession planning. This is our land. Mabo tells the story of one of Australia's national heroes - Eddie Koiki Mabo, the Torres Strait Islander man who left school at age 15, yet spearheaded the High Court challenge that overthrew the fiction of terra nullius. 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That is the view most widely endorsed by history. Bonita 'Netta' Mabo: Eddie's wife and is a resourceful, supportive and loving woman. As much as Australias law tried to tell him he was wrong, he knew his law and he knew that even the law of Britain that had stolen this land had to admit finally admit what we all knew, what Eddie Mabo knew. The nation remained diminished. Reynolds writes: AAP. At http://www.humanrights.gov.au/publications/native-title-report-2008 (viewed 5 June 2015). The Mabo case Records relating to the Mabo case About Eddie Mabo Edward Koiki Mabo was born on 29 June 1936. I like words. I want to begin by honouring and quoting the words of the now late chief justice of the High Court of Australia, Sir Gerard Brennan,the words he wrote in his lead judgement in the Mabo case: The common law itself took from Indigenous inhabitants any right to occupy their traditional land, exposed them to deprivation of the religious, cultural and economic sustenance which the land provides, vested the land effectively in the control of the imperial authorities without any right to compensation and made the Indigenous inhabitants intruders in their own homes and mendicants for a place to live. A number of key challenges that face Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people were explored, particularly when it comes to the full realization of our rights under land rights and native title. Our people know han. Only land such as vacant crown land, national parks and some leased land, can be subject to claims by the Aboriginal owners. On this great day, I, Prime Minister of Australia, speak to you on behalf of the Australian people all those who honour and love this land we live in. It was also a flagrant disregard of Britain's own existing laws, which stated that the Aboriginal people did have title rights over their own land. Eddie Mabo wanted to change the law of Terra Nullius and claim the Aboriginal people as the original owners of the land this would change social and political views of the aboriginal people. What did Eddie Mabo say in his speech? According to accounts of the conversation, the two scholarly figures looked at each other and then, delicately, told Mabo that he didn't own the land and that it was Crown land.