Give us power with our land, pleads father of modern Aboriginal rights

GALARRWUY Yunupingu has marked his last appearance as Gumatj chieftain by calling for land rights to come home.

Yolngu leader, land rights activist and Gumatj chieftain Galarrwuy Yunupingu, pictured with members of his clan at Garma Festival in Arnhem Land. Picture: Amos Aikman

GALARRWUY Yunupingu has marked his last appearance as Gumatj chieftain at the annual Garma Festival of Aboriginal culture by calling for land rights to come home.

Writing exclusively in The Weekend Australian, the veteran land rights activist and Yolngu leader calls for powers conferred by land rights legislation to be transferred to northeast Arnhem Land so that the authority of the landowning clans can “come to life”.

Last year, Mr Yunupingu told two prime ministers the existing land rights system was “empty”. He argued that while land rights might be for Aborigines, the ownership and use of land was “for mining companies and white­fellas”. By returning control to Aboriginal groups, he hopes to kickstart a new era of indigenous-controlled prosperity to combat the many social problems he still sees, even in his home community. Northeast Arnhem Land could then become an example for other regions to follow.

“In the 1970s, our leaders were not ready to take full responsibility in the new era of land rights, but now the time is right to move to a new model, with political authority transferred to the ­regions,” Mr Yunupingu writes.

“The Land Rights Act enables the transfer of authority to local people — so let it be done. In northeast Arnhem Land, we will ask for a transfer of power to clan leaders with strict rules for governance and responsibility.”

Djuwalpi Marika, a senior leader with the Rirratjingu clan, with which the Gumatj have at times been rivals, said a more radical suggestion involving a breakaway land council in northeast Arnhem Land was ill-advised. “By breaking up into smaller pieces, we will break,” Mr Marika said.

He supported Mr Yunupingu’s call for powers to be transferred to the region. “It’s important that the power comes here, and that we are united,” he said. “By forming one big island, we won’t be ­destroyed by storms.”

The call opens the way for federal Indigenous Affairs Minister Nigel Scullion to rekindle his attempts to weaken the Northern Territory’s two larger land councils by allowing certain functions to be devolved to Aboriginal community organisations. A regulatory change to enable the plan was blocked by the Senate this year.

Mr Yunupingu and Senator Scullion will address an audience at Garma today.

“What Mr Yunupingu is asking for is real land rights, self-determination in every way,” Senator Scullion told The Weekend Australian. “I hope my colleagues in parliament are listening clearly to the request from the father of land rights.”

He ruled out changing the Land Rights Act (NT), but attacked the Greens and Labor for Senate obstructionism.

Tension has been building in northeast Arnhem Land for some years over perceptions the existing land rights system does not operate effectively. Pro-development groups and the Territory government want businesses to have easier access to Aboriginal land; most traditional owners want economic advancement, but fear exploitation. The government would like Aboriginal land to be able to be bought and sold. Traditional owners want to strengthen their authority.

A key sticking point is how to reconcile traditional Aboriginal notions of collective land ownership with an economy based on individual property rights.

In his report released this week, mining magnate Andrew Forrest recommended governments allow traditional owners to convert their land to freehold or hold the underlying title via long-term leases.