However, most importantly of all, we are now faced with the challenge of how to make the most of our rights to land and native title once we have them, for our prosperity and sustainability. Milosz wrote into the horror of the 20th century as he saw war all around him. We acknowledge Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples as the First Australians and Traditional Custodians of the lands where we live, learn, and work. On 3 June 1992, six of seven Australian High Court judges ruled: The Meriam people are entitled as against the whole world to possession, occupation, use and enjoyment of the lands of the Murray Islands [in Torres Strait]. 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. It was awarded Best Documentary at the Australian Film Institute Awards and the Sydney Film Festival.It also received the Script Writing Award at the New South Wales Premier's Literary Awards. 1992 High Court Mabo Case Decision No. 2 | Australia's migration Older articles are being reviewed with a view to bringing them into line with contemporary values but the original text will remain available for historical context. These organisations could assist in under-writing costs, insurance and risk as well as helping explore options for Indigenous specific loan products. 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.". The courts had previously found that the Nguraritja had non-exclusive native title over certain parcels of land, but not over those where native title had already been extinguished. Transcript 40979 | PM Transcripts Eddie Mabo was a staff member at JCU, working as a groundsman from 1967 to 1971. The case presented by Eddie Mabo and the people of Mer successfully proved that Meriam custom and laws are fundamental to their traditional system of ownership and underpin their traditional rights and obligations in relation to land. We invite you to walk with us in a movement of the Australian people for a better future.. When I looked over the lives of these two great Australians I was struck by the similarities of their struggles and the qualities they each share. 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. Eddie Koiki Mabo was an advocate of the 1967 Referendum, fighting for equal rights including education. The words are carefully chosen to sit alongside each other withjust the right length and the right tone, each one setting up the other and chosen for both meaning and music. [10] UN Development Programme, Human Development Index, UN Human Development Report, p237. And these were the costs borne by the whole family. That nearly a third of our land mass is Indigenous owned is testament to this. Rejected at each turn. Then, in June 1992, the years of sacrifice and persuasion came to fruition. Overwhelmingly, Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people have indicated that it is time for a new process of engagement to occur with the government on the topic of our rights after native title. The nation remained diminished. I am sure that these issues will resonate with many of you here today. However, it also raised equally relevant issues around the many state and local government land taxes and rates that apply once conversion has taken place. Promoting Indigenous peoples right to development. These are the traditional lands and waters of the Meriam people, and the final resting place of Eddie Mabo in Las Village. 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. Truth. It is clear that we have seen a change in momentum as far as this space is concerned. (2010 lecture transcript). My people are the Gangulu from the Dawson Valley in Central Queensland. Eddie Koiki Mabo: A Meriam man, husband to Bonita Mabo and father to 10 children. Towards Reconciliation: The 1967 Referendum and Mabo He was another victim of Terra Nullius, like so many of his fellow indigenous people had been before him. But that's just 11% of Australia's land mass. We acknowledge Aboriginal People and Torres Strait Islander People as the first inhabitants of the nation, and acknowledge Traditional Custodians of the Australian lands where our staff and students live, learn and work. The Mabo Case Eddie Mabo is widely known for his plight to regain land rights for both Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people. Mabo Day & Native Title: Who was Eddie Mabo & what is his legacy? For Indigenous peoples around the world, the Declaration has been a means by which they can free themselves from the shackles of colonialism and share equitably in the benefits of development.[8]. British law under a British flag. But it was a bittersweet moment for the indigenous population. 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. active, free and meaningful participation in development; self-determination and full sovereignty over natural wealth and resources. Commemorating Mabo Day - Reconciliation Australia To build a world worth living in. Searching for 'Mabo' in RecordSearch brings up many results, including the files below. Choose from the list of topics on the left and then choose 'Click to Play'. The judge's four hundred page report presented Mabo and his barristers with a bombshell which threatened to sink their case. As Eddie Mabo sketched out his plans to shake the foundations of Australian law, he told his daughter his prophecy: "One day, all of Australia will know my name." Drama Biopic Inspiring. The second key theme that was raised at the roundtable was the issue of financing economic development within the Indigenous estate. Words makaratta. 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. Later in 1992, Mabo was posthumously awarded the Australian Human Rights Medal. Eddie Mabo's heritage and culture were major influencers in his rise to prominence. Eddie Mabo Facts for Kids - Kiddle Husband, father, grandfather, mate, advocate, achiever, Principal and mentor. Participants identified that we need to start considering the role of the financial services industry, as well as agencies such as Indigenous Business Australia and the Indigenous Land Corporation in the context of our economic development. Vincent Lingiari and men and women of the Gurindji people. The 50-minute recording shows Koiki Mabo talking about the history of the Torres Strait Islander community, both in the Torres Strait and on the Australian mainland, and the long term impact on his culture of the coming of Europeans, from the first missionaries to current government administrators. At the 1981 James Cook University Land Rights Conference Eddie Mabo made a passionate speech about land ownership and ancestral inheritance in the Murray Islands. 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. 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 legal decision was made by the High Court on 3 June 1992. And that is the cost to both men and their families. SPEECH - THURSDAY, 3 JUNE . 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. His mother passed away shortly after his birth and he was adopted by his Uncle Benny and Aunty Maigo Mabo in line with Islander custom. He was right. It does not create any new rights, but rather reaffirms the rights that exist in many other international treaties and conventions. 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]. This case, I said thisman Mabo will change Australia. Mabo expressed disbelief and shock. Mabo vs QLD - Stories from the Archives Mabo's love for his homeland drove the proud Torres Strait Islander to undertake a 10- year legal battle that rewrote Australia's history. 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. [1] Cast [ edit] Jimi Bani as Eddie Mabo Gedor Zaro as Young Eddie Deborah Mailman as Bonita Mabo (ne Neehow) This is our land. This was apartheid in Australia, not South Africa. Words speak across tongues. His mother passed away shortly after his birth and he was adopted by his maternal Uncle and Aunt, Benny and Maiga Mabo in line with Islander . Eddie Koiki Mabo | AIATSIS The Roundtable was held after there was significant interest on this issue when Commissioner Wilson and I undertook some consultations around the country last year. He had refused to surrender his interests, or those of his people, to the domination of others. This is yet another reason why a development approach is so urgently needed. Even though these rights have been watered down over the years, they have enabled us to reach a point where we now own nearly a third of the entire Australian continent and I am told approximately 54% of places like the Northern Territory. I have heard many stories from Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander communities and Traditional Owners about the many barriers they face in reaching their potential benefits under land rights and native title. Mabo/Eddie Mabo's address to Land Rights Conference, 1981 They reflect the period in which they were created and are not the views of the National Archives. To strengthen our democracy as Eddie Mabo strengthened our law. Justice John Willis said: "In Australia it is the colonists not the Aborigines are the foreigners.". This effectively overturned the doctrine of terra nullius, which held that Australia didn't belong to anybody before European colonisation. Our News First, they ask me to pass on their greetings and their thanks for allowing me on your lands. 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. Another similarity is something that sometimes we do not acknowledge enough. I like how the words create a rhythm. This is an edited extract of the 2022 Mabo Lecture, delivered by Stan Grant on June 3, 2022, to commemorate 30 years since the Mabo decision. 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. When the decision overturning Terra Nullius eventually came, the judges referred to the policy as "the darkest aspect of (our) national history" and one that left "a legacy of unutterable shame". Mabo v State of Queensland | State Library of Queensland Why Alex Murdaugh was spared the death penalty, Why Trudeau is facing calls for a public inquiry, The shocking legacy of the Dutch 'Hunger Winter', Why half of India's urban women stay at home. Eddie Mabo - Kids | Britannica Kids | Homework Help This will always be our land. The truth: This was his land. The golden house of is of culture and connection, of blood and dreaming, of time immemorial how the golden house of is collapses. The tools to guide us with a new conversation with Government around the full realization of our rights in relation to land and native title can be found in the UN Declarations on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples and the Right to Development. He was a Meriam man and grew up on Mer, part of the Murray Island Group in the Torres Strait. "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. Eddie Mabo was a man of courage and principle who fought for the inherent rights of the Meriam people, and ultimately for the rights of all Torres Strait Islanders and Aboriginal peoples. So today it is indeed an honour for both my people and myself to be presenting this year's Edward Koiki Mabo Lecture. Finally, the remaining key theme of the meeting was the issue of our right as Indigenous peoples to development. This was our land. Few Australians then knew the name Eddie Mabo. They claimed that Murray Island (Mer) and surrounding islands and reefs had been continuously inhabited and exclusively possessed by the Meriam people . I stand here proud to bring a message from my Elders. Words like the Uluru Statement from the Heart: We, gathered at the 2017 National Constitutional Convention, coming from all points of the southern sky, make this statement from the heart: Our Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander tribes were the first sovereign Nations of the Australian continent and its adjacent islands, and possessed it under our own laws and customs. And he was right. You may have heard that Tim Wilson, Human Rights Commissioner and I recently co-convened a roundtable on Yawuru country on the issue of Indigenous property rights. Our people know han. Until Mabo, we had been a forgotten people, even though we knew that we were in the right.". And in 1981, Eddie was invited by the same university to make a speech about Mer's land inheritance system. Barrister Ron Castan, Eddie Mabo and barrister Bryan Keon-Cohen at . Others, while acknowledging the shortcomings of Mabo's long-term legacy, still regard it as a watershed moment in Australian political, cultural and economic life. (No. We know sadness. In 1982, Eddie Mabo and four others began action seeking a legal declaratcion of their traditional land rights in the Murray islands of the Torres Strait, Tvn years later onL 3 June 1992, the High Court decided that his people were entitled as against the whole of ! Winanghanha is to return to knowing: to know what we have always known. Others, mainly white opponents, regarded the judgement as a mistake. Words like han. Rob was at the forefront of the fight for land in Western Australia, particularly at Nookanbah and when the WA Government led the resistance to national land rights legislation. And he knew truth. They ruled that the Mabo decision in no way challenges the legality of non-Aboriginal land tenure. I also acknowledge the Minister for Indigenous Affairs, Nigel Scullion who is here today and my colleague Tim Wilson, our Australian Human Rights Commissioner. You Murray Islanders have won that court case. Mabo Collection | National Library of Australia "Koiki was ambitious for himself and for his people." The conference, 'Land Rights and the Future of Australian Race Relations', was sponsored by the Townsville Treaty Committee and the James Cook University's Student Union. In particular, this was raised as a way that Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander communities might be able to leverage finances in order to support economic development opportunities and to improve the capacity of our mobs to best manage these prospects in the future. 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. 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. Text 1936 Our landsings gently a song of sadness. The issue of compensation goes to the core of the initial intent of addressing the historical dispossession of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples from their lands and waters. Across language itself. Some key principles underpinning this right are: This Declaration centralizes the role of both the individual and government in the development process, arguing for the State to create national policies to properly ensure the development of all individuals. Eddie Mabo's dream had come true; a meeting of minds to address the issue of Aboriginal land . It was on 3 June 1992 that the Australian High Court overturned more than 200 years of white domination of land ownership. The fall of the golden house of is but not the end. 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 . Indigenous Education and Research Centre He also co-operated with members of the Communist Party, the only white political party to support Aboriginal campaigns at the time. 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. Eddie Mabo | Australian activist | Britannica