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. The most important revelation arising from Eddie Mabo's claim and the High Court's decision was that an ancient title connected to the traditional occupation of the land by Aboriginal and Islander people had survived the . 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. Family gatherings were foregone. Court cases in the mid-19th century challenged the idea of British settlement at the time the rulings were in favour of the Crown. Eddie Mabo (left) and . They claimed that Murray Island (Mer) and surrounding islands and reefs had been continuously inhabited and exclusively possessed by the Meriam people . We know sadness. Of law. This is yet another reason why a development approach is so urgently needed. 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. What Exactly Is 'Mabo Day' And Why Is June 3 Such An - ELLE This needs to change. 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. Importantly, development is also a process through which other human rights can be realized and our wellbeing alongside all other populations is maximised. His mother died during childbirth and he was raised by his mother's brother, Benny Mabo . 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 a Torres Strait Islander, known for his role in campaigning for Indigenous land rights and for the landmark decision of the High Court of Australia that overturned the legal doctrine of terra nullius ('land belonging to nothing, no one') which characterised Australian law with regards to land and title. 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 . This case, I said thisman Mabo will change Australia. 1301.0 - Year Book Australia, 1995 - Australian Bureau of Statistics In-text: (Two generations talk about the impact of the 1967 Referendum and the 1992 Mabo Decision, 2019) Your Bibliography: Time Out Sydney. He married Bonita, his teenage sweetheart and with whom he had 10 children in a loving partnership that lasted 30 years. Later in 1992, Mabo was posthumously awarded the Australian Human Rights Medal. These things range from various legal and administrative barriers that are placed on us once a native title determination has been made and includes various tax and regulatory standards placed on Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander communities in the post determination phase, conflicts between individual and communal property interests and issues arising from the conversion of title. We cannot cross the same stream twice. 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. Read about our approach to external linking. HOST: Today is Mabo Day. In Torres Strait Islands called the Mabo case, for Eddie Mabo, the first-named plaintiff) brought by several individuals that was won in the High Court of Australia in 1992; subsequent cases were also settled in favour of other groups of islanders. What is this Eddie Mabo Biography Worksheet? And in 1981, Eddie was invited by the same university to make a speech about Mer's land inheritance system. The issue of compensation for unfinished business was another key theme of the Roundtable. Tenacity, fearlessness, fearsome, tireless are some of the words that come to mind when the names Rob Riley and Eddie Mabo are mentioned. Born in 1936, he grew up in the village of Las on the north bend of Mer Island. Without this foundation, there would be no opportunity for us to access these rights through this unique form of land tenure. (2013 lecture transcript), 2012 Presentation by Professor Henry Reynolds. 23 Nov 1990 - 21 Oct 1994 Library at the University College of Townsville, Queensland. 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Keating begins by discussing the moral and legal implications of the decision. A panel of judges at the High Court ruled that Aboriginal people were the rightful custodians of the land. Eddie Koiki Mabo and the Mabo Case | naa.gov.au In some ways our systems of governance is a defining feature of the oldest living culture on this planet. Mabo was a Torres Strait islander from Mer (Murray Island), off Australia's north-east coast. That is, after 20 years of operation, we finally saw the first time compensation had been awarded for the extinguishment of native title rights and interests under the Native Title Act. Help your class to explore the life of Eddie Mabo with this engaging and educational biography-writing task. Mabo footage released for the first time - Jun 2020 - JCU Australia For 50 years this embassy has stood as a reminder that we are still here. They ruled that the Mabo decision in no way challenges the legality of non-Aboriginal land tenure. As Kevin Mason divedin the ocean, a compliance officer waswatching on the cliffs above. At 31, this affrontery became his epiphany. Australian PM makes historic visit to Mabo's grave - BBC News This Declaration on the Right to Development was adopted by the General Assembly in 1986. It is sadness beyond the word sadness itself. It was during a stint as a gardener at the James Cook University at Townsville in Queensland, that his eyes were opened to the greatest injustice his people had ever been subjected to. Mabo v State of Queensland | State Library of Queensland A human rights based approach has been a key part of advocacy of all Social Justice Commissioners. Eddie Mabo - Simple English Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia Audio file Transcript About this record This is the soundtrack of an address to the nation on 15 November 1993 by the then Prime Minister Paul Keating, explaining the Australian Government's response to the High Court's Mabo decision. It remains a collection of canvas and tin, but it has grown in those years since a handful of young Aboriginal activists planted a beach umbrella and wrote the word Embassy on a manila folder, to shake a fist at the power on the hill. For the love of his family and tradition, he fights for his land on Murray Island. As the Broome Roundtable highlighted, this remains one of the key unresolved issues facing Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples and their quest for ongoing economic development. The truth: This was his land. It would most likely still be in place had it not been for Eddie Koiki Mabo. In 1994 the Torres Strait Regional Authority (TSRA) was established in response to Read More The "fallacy" that Perkins speaks of is the concept of Terra Nullius, land belonging to no-one. 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 . But he had to find words to speak a deeper truth even as he upheld the myth of terra nullius that Aboriginal people, he said, had a "subtle and elaborate system of law". Our landsings gently a song of sadness. Searching for 'Mabo' in RecordSearch brings up many results, including the files below. Birthdays, anniversaries, sports events and special schools days were missed. Mabo rejected the more militant direct action tactics of the land rights movement, seeing the most important goal as being to destroy the legal justification for what he regarded as land theft. 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. 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. . "If ever a system could be called a government of laws," he said, "it is shown in the evidence before me.". Mabo vs QLD - Stories from the Archives 2019. Promoting Indigenous peoples right to development. We will adapt, we will take advantage of these opportunities and we will leave a great legacy. 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. We need to work alongside government to equip ourselves with the knowledge and skills to turn the economic and commercial aspirations into reality. 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. I walked into the news meeting at the ABC with words. Mabo : Working with Indigenous Australians Edward Koiki Mabo ( n Sambo; 29 June 1936 - 21 January 1992) was an Indigenous Australian man from the Torres Strait Islands known for his role in campaigning for Indigenous land rights in Australia, in particular the landmark decision of the High Court of Australia that recognised that indigenous rights to land had continued after the British Following his speech, he was approached by a lawyer, who asked if he'd be interested in taking the Australian Government to court to finally decide who owned the land. Eddie's daughter, Gail Mabo remembers that day well. 1h 43m. Here we are 30 years later, still on that journey. Love, suffering, hope, justice and truth Eddie Mabo knew about love too. What's the least amount of exercise we can get away with? In the context of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples, Governments have committed themselves to the economic development of our communities. 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. Mabo: Life of an Island Man - Wikipedia A clear theme from the Broome Roundtable revealed a common frustration among many Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people. 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.". Winanghanha is to return to knowing: to know what we have always known. The victory was largely down to one indigenous man called Eddie Mabo. Biography - Edward Koiki (Eddie) Mabo - Indigenous Australia - ANU For significant service to the community as a cultural leader and public sector executive in the field of Indigenous affairs.. Reynolds writes: Nor did the judges intend that it should. Please join with me in acknowledging the life long accomplishments of Russell Taylor. 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. He was a Meriam man and grew up on Mer, part of the Murray Island Group in the Torres Strait. The legal decision was made by the High Court on 3 June 1992. It was on 3 June 1992 that the Australian High Court overturned more than 200 years of white domination of land ownership. Stan Grant is the ABC's international affairs analyst and presents China Tonight on Monday at 9:35pm on ABC TV, and Tuesday at 8pm on the ABC News Channel, anda co-presenter of Q+A on Thursday at 8:30pm. 2008 Presentation by The Hon. On 3 June 1992, the High Court of Australia ruled in favour of limited native title. The Mabo case Records relating to the Mabo case About Eddie Mabo Edward Koiki Mabo was born on 29 June 1936. Mabo/The Man/Justice Moynihan's Findings This will always be our land. The Declaration incorporates four fundamental human rights principles that can be categorised as: However, the UN Declaration on the Right to Development has been a lesser-known cousin to the Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples. Watch all your favourite ABC programs on ABC iview. There was scepticism, even cynicism, but I was able to report the story. I'd also like to thank AIATSIS for the invitation to speak today and in doing that can I congratulate you Russell on receiving your recent Member of the Order of Australia award. I have been honoured in the last six weeks by being asked to deliver both the Eddie Koiki Mabo Lecture here today and the Rob Riley Memorial Lecture on Friday the 8 th of May in Perth. 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. My people are the Gangulu from the Dawson Valley in Central Queensland. It is clear that we have seen a change in momentum as far as this space is concerned. Judged by any civilised standard, such a law is unjust ". This was apartheid in Australia, not South Africa. 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. With support from legal experts, Mabo, along with fellow plaintiffs and Murray Islanders Reverend David Passi, Celuia Mapoo Salee, Sam Passi and James Rice, brought a case against the Queensland Government in the High Court. The assumptions were quite erroneous, of course, but Terra Nullius was set in unshakeable motion and stayed rooted in place for two hundred years, even though Aborigines had been in Australia for at least 40,000 years. In his book Why Weren't We Told?, Reynolds describes the talks they had regarding Mabo's people's rights to their lands, on Murray Island, in the Torres Strait. The remarkable life story of Eddie 'Koiki' Mabo; a Torres Strait Islander who left school at the age of 15, yet spearheaded the High Court challenge that overthrew the fiction of terra nullius. 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 . Eddie Mabo was a staff member at JCU, working as a groundsman from 1967 to 1971. While working as a gardener at James Cook University, he found out through two historians that, by law, he and his family did not own their land on Mer. We acknowledge Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples as the First Australians and Traditional Custodians of the lands where we live, learn, and work. In 1959, he moved to mainland Queensland, working on pearling vessels and as a labourer. Eddie Mabo Facts for Kids - Kiddle I believe that it is this framework that has the power to elevate the aspirations that we have as Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples in relation to land. When democracy is teetering and autocracy is rising. The decision. Rejected at each turn. In the Shire of . - Behind the News Behind the News 133K subscribers Subscribe 483 106K views 3 years ago Mabo Day on June 3rd, celebrates. Suggested answer: While working as a grounds keeper at James Cook University in Townsville, Eddie learnt about Australian land ownership laws. The commitment to a land fund; and importantly, participation in decision-making underpinned by the concept of free, prior and informed consent and good faith. 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. Eddie Mabo would not live to see his final victory, but in that judgement he became immortal.