This is not a birding-aus subject, but David McDonald raised the subject of
Native Title, so a quick comment.
The main problem with Native Title is that most people (including
unfortunately the traditional owners) view Native Title as being the same
as ownership (i.e. Land Rights). This was never the case. Land rights was
never intended to be the case. Native Title is the recognition of the
traditional owners existing rights to their area of claim. i.e. hunting,
sacred sites, ceremonial traditions, access to land, land management,
etc. In the case of the Murray Islands (the Mabo case) this included
habitation and so effectively ownership or a form of land rights. Native
Title can (and should) coexist with pastoral and mining leases. The Native
Title legislation also included the right to compensation where these
native title rights are affected or removed, and a fund for 'traditional
owners' who had lost all contact with their traditional areas.
A continuing relationship with the areas was always going to be next to
impossible to prove for traditional owners in the south east such as the
Yorta Yorta people. The legal system did not fail here. The court ruled
as the legislation was intended. So blame the politicians (and all of us),
not the legal system.
Don't get me wrong. I strongly support the Native Title legislation, and
more. And I feel that the government should fund test cases such as the
Yorta Yorta claim. But I feel that the Yorta Yorta got some very bad legal
advice if they seriously thought that they had a chance of winning their case.
Land rights is a separate issue to Native Title. This had progressed some
way, until the Howard government was elected. This is one area where
Howard has buried his head in the sand and pretends that the issue no
longer exists. This issue must be addressed before reconciliation has a
chance of succeeding.
___________________________________________________________________
Frank O'Connor Birding WA http://members.iinet.net.au/~foconnor
Phone : (08) 9386 5694 Email :
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