Dja Dja Wurrung traditional owners group seeks to negotiate local treaty with Victorian government

The Dja Dja Wurrung people of Central Victoria are seeking to formally negotiate an Australian-first local treaty with the state government.

The Aboriginal flag is seen at the Victorian parliament building. Picture: NewsWire / Luis Enrique Ascui.

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A traditional owner group is seeking to formally negotiate an Australian-first local treaty with a state government.

The Dja Dja Wurrung people of Central Victoria on Wednesday will announce they have formally notified the Treaty Authority – the state’s independent body overseeing treaty negotiations – of their intention to negotiate a Traditional Owner Treaty with the government.

Under the state’s treaty negotiation framework, traditional owner groups can negotiate their own treaties, which aim to reflect their local aspirations and priorities. Local treaties are separate to the statewide treaty, being negotiated between the state government and the First Peoples’ Assembly of Victoria and expected to be finalised this year.

Dja Dja Wurrung man Djaran Murray-Jackson, director of the Dja Dja Wurrung Clans Aboriginal Corporation (DJAARA) board, said local treaties would enable Aboriginal communities to use local knowledge to produce practical solutions at a local level. “Local treaty will be led by our mob and focus on the issues that are important here on Dja Dja Wurrung Country,” he said.

“Country, our connection to the land, is such an important part of who we are as Aboriginal people, so there’s no doubt that initiatives around land and caring for country will be a focus for the negotiations.”

While the state government has not yet been formally invited to negotiate, Treaty and First Peoples Minister Natalie Hutchins welcomed DJAARA’s registration of its intent to negotiate a local treaty, which she said was “another historic first”.

“If you listen to the people directly affected by policies, you get better outcomes – that’s common sense – and traditional owner groups are experts in their communities, languages, cultures and caring for country,” she said. “Treaty is about making a better and fairer state for every Victorian.”

First Peoples’ Assembly of Victoria co-chair Rueben Berg, a Gunditjmara man, congratulated the Dja Dja Wurrung people and said a local treaty would allow them to develop and deliver practical solutions that worked for their community.

“When it comes to Aboriginal communities, cultures, lands and languages, the experts are of course Aboriginal people, and local treaties will allow traditional owner groups to make the most of their local expertise to improve the lives of their people,” Mr Berg said.

Treaty Authority member Thelma Austin, a Gunditjmara woman, said the Dja Dja Wurrung’s move was “an important step” for traditional owners.

“We look forward to overseeing a fair and just process with the Treaty Authority’s role in facilitating the journey towards justice, self-determination and empowerment for First Peoples, and to build a solid foundation for reconciliation for all Victorians,” Ms Austin said.

The $1.3bn Noongar deal in Western Australia is regarded by some constitutional experts as Australia’s first treaty.