eddie mabo speech transcript eddie mabo speech transcript

Eddie Mabo knew about love too. In May 1982, Eddie Mabo and four other Meriam people of the Murray Islands in the Torres Strait began action in the High Court of Australia seeking confirmation of their traditional land rights. AAP. Mabo 20 years on: did it change the nation? 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]. In acknowledging the traditional rights of the Meriam people to their land, the court also held that native title existed for all Indigenous people. And he was right. Friends we are the First Peoples of this country and we are the oldest living culture in the world because of our ability to adapt to ever changing environments and circumstances. The Keating government gave effect to the Mabo decision by introducing the Native Title Act 1993, which facilitated the process of recognising native title. Mabo made a speech to the audience where he explained the indigenous customary land inheritance system on Murray Island. My predecessor Dr Tom Calma explained the impact of never implementing a social justice package in 2008: this abyss is one of the underlying reasons why the native title system is under the strain it is under today[5]. This case, I said thisman Mabo will change Australia. Born on 29 June 1936 in his village of Las on the island of Mer in the Torres Strait, Eddie Koiki Mabo was the fourth child of Robert Zesou Sambo and Poipe (Sambo) Mabo. "I think that like many others, I was trying to deal with something that was new, that was undefined," Kennett told The Age newspaper. However, contemporary Indigenous governance needs recognises that we must now adjust our customary ways of governing to meet the expectations and regulations of non-indigenous laws and institutions. In that book he argued, contrary to theories of Charles Darwin, that it was not the fittest or the strongest nor the smartest that survive but those who can manage change, that is it is the most adaptable who survive. 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. Eddie Koiki Mabo: A Meriam man, husband to Bonita Mabo and father to 10 children. This service may include material from Agence France-Presse (AFP), APTN, Reuters, AAP, CNN and the BBC World Service which is copyright and cannot be reproduced. [2] Australian Human Rights Commission, Paper on Indigenous Leaders Roundtable, Property Rights, p4. You and I know all too well that we live shorter, poorer lives than our non-Aboriginal counterparts. 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 . We need to work alongside government to equip ourselves with the knowledge and skills to turn the economic and commercial aspirations into reality. We cannot cross the same stream twice. You can find it still, somewhere buried in the archives of ABC News. On Monday, he laid a wreath on Mr Mabo's grave on Mer Island. 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. "He became a driven man," says his friend and documentary maker, Trevor Graham. 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. My people are the Gangulu from the Dawson Valley in Central Queensland. Jenny Macklin MP, Minister for Housing, Community Services and Indigenous Affairs. This led to the subsequent High Court case, Mabo v Queensland (No 2), which was to determine the matter of the plaintiffs' land rights. In one, the presiding judge said the mere introduction of British law did not extinguish Aboriginal customary law. These often hamper the development and economic aspirations of the communities involved right from the start. The Mabo decision was named after Eddie Mabo, the This is yet another reason why a development approach is so urgently needed. 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.". He is hardworking and determined, but at the cost of his family life. 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. Those cases resulted in the acknowledgment that Australian Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples had the right to claim the land they and their ancestors had lived on for thousands of years. And in some cases native title had become a millstone, almost drowning people in a sea of regulation, red tape and process without any semblance of necessary support. 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 . He would later describe his time on the island as 'the best time of my life'1. [1] Cast [ edit] Jimi Bani as Eddie Mabo Gedor Zaro as Young Eddie Deborah Mailman as Bonita Mabo (ne Neehow) This independence could be realized through greater roles for Indigenous landholders through business, land management and other opportunities. 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. 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. Land claim, 1981-1992 In 1981, at a conference on indigenous land rights in Townsville, a decision was made to pursue a native land title claim for the people of the Murray Islands in the High Court of Australia. JCU websites use cookies to enhance user experience, analyse site usage, and assist with outreach and enrolment. It is this issue of development that I will explore later in greater detail. He spoke of impermanence: He knew things did not last and yet we do. In 1992 the High Court handed down its historic ruling. Make an Impact. The truth: This was his land. It clearly did not, for instance, lead to vast numbers of white Australians being forced from their homes, businesses, mines or farms. Mabo Day is an official holiday in the Torres Shire, celebrated on 3 June. 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. Eddie Mabo's dream had come true; a meeting of minds to address the issue of Aboriginal land . Typical of such awards, the citations are generally understated and this is particularly so in your case. The theme of this years conference is Leadership, Legacy and Opportunity. The judge's four hundred page report presented Mabo and his barristers with a bombshell which threatened to sink their case. 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. Yet, the first colonialists decided, for commercial reasons, to ignore all that and peddle the view that Aboriginal people were primitive, disorganised, culture-less creatures who deserved no rights over land. On 8 December 1988, the High Court ruled this legislation invalid. His mother died during childbirth and he was raised by his mother's brother, Benny Mabo . On 3 June 1992, six of the seven High Court judges upheld the claim and ruled that the lands of . Nor did the judges intend that it should. Birthdays, anniversaries, sports events and special schools days were missed. Our News Read about our approach to external linking. Han is Korean and it is more than a word. It is clear that the current system has not delivered what had initially been intended to Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples. "The High Court, which is not elected by anybody, not accountable to anybody, had presumed to move into the legislative area to make a whole new law," he said. Words. He had refused to surrender his interests, or those of his people, to the domination of others. Mabo expressed disbelief and shock. The golden house of is collapses and the world of becoming ascended.". More Information .We are closed in a box. Transcript ID: 3849. 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. Judged by any civilised standard, such a law is unjust ". Words speak across tongues. 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. and in 2008 James Cook University named its Townsville campus library the Eddie Koiki Mabo Library. Drama Biopic Inspiring. He knew about suffering. He knew about hope and he knew about justice. But he was wrong. Reynolds struck up a friendship with Eddie Mabo, who was then a groundsman and gardener at James Cook University. Mabo Day occurs annually in Australia on 3rd June. We know sadness. I also acknowledge the Minister for Indigenous Affairs, Nigel Scullion who is here today and my colleague Tim Wilson, our Australian Human Rights Commissioner. Rachel Perkins, director of the new film, says Mabo's is "an iconic story in the tradition of great Australian tales, how a man, his wife and his mates profoundly changed the nation". . These adjustments are key if we are to translate our inherent legal rights under native title into sustainable opportunities for our people. Court cases in the mid-19th century challenged the idea of British settlement at the time the rulings were in favour of the Crown. 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." 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. No transcript available, 2016 Lecture Presentation by Professor N M Nakata, Pro-Vice Chancellor for Indigenous Education and Strategy, James Cook University (Transcript), 2016 Lecture Presentation by Professor N M Nakata, Pro-Vice Chancellor for Indigenous Education and Strategy, James Cook University (2016 Lecture Transcript), 2015 Presentation by The Hon. Today in the midst of winter there is still smoke from a campfire, framing a word spelled out on the lawn: Sovereignty. I like how the words create a rhythm. 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. Eddie Mabo (left) and . Eddie's daughter, Gail Mabo remembers that day well. It was also a flagrant disregard of Britain's own existing laws, which stated that the Aboriginal people did have title rights over their own land. "For two centuries, the British and then white Australians operated under a fallacy, that somehow Aboriginal people did not exist or have land rights before the first settlers arrived in 1788.". Australia owes you a great debt. 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. They claimed that Murray Island (Mer) and surrounding islands and reefs had been continuously inhabited and exclusively possessed by the Meriam people . SPEECH - THURSDAY, 3 JUNE . Aunty Clara Ogleby, I begin by acknowledging and paying my respects to the Kuku Yalanji people, Traditional Owners of the place upon which we sit and talk today. Up to April 2010, 84 native title cases had been dealt with by the courts, and 854,000 sq km (330,000 sq miles) is now covered by native title determinations. 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. Mabo and others: products or agents of progress? Only land such as vacant crown land, national parks and some leased land, can be subject to claims by the Aboriginal owners. It was suggested that we, as Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples, needed to think outside of the box when it comes to this issue. These are the traditional lands and waters of the Meriam people, and the final resting place of Eddie Mabo in Las Village. 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. Help your class to explore the life of Eddie Mabo with this engaging and educational biography-writing task. We acknowledge Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples as the First Australians and Traditional Custodians of the lands where we live, learn, and work. The decision. This was apartheid in Australia, not South Africa. Together yindyamarra winanghanha means to live with respect in a world worth living in. He told them of his dream of ending his days on Murray Island, on the ancestral land that had been handed down through his family for 15 generations. A discussion of Mabo Day (June 3), which commemorates Torres Strait Islander activist Eddie Koiki Mabo and the historic Mabo decision, in which the High Court of Australia acknowledged Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples' land rights. [11]Native Title Act 1993 (Cth), preamble. This will always be our land. Other forms of recognition have been added. As a nation, this is an improvement from fourth position just over ten years ago in 2003.[10]. Of law. Friendship with Eddie Mabo. This Declaration on the Right to Development was adopted by the General Assembly in 1986. 2019. Love, suffering, hope, justice and truth Eddie Mabo knew about love too. But despite the success of the '67 campaign, in 1972 Eddie Mabo still had to get permission from the Queensland authorities to visit his dying father on Mer Island. In a snapshot. He was another victim of Terra Nullius, like so many of his fellow indigenous people had been before him. The debate about Mabo's legacy still goes on today, Many indigenous Australians still live in poverty, Bakhmut attacks still being repelled, says Ukraine, AOC under investigation for Met Gala dress, Mother who killed her five children euthanised, Canadian grandma helps police snag phone scammer, The children left behind in Cuba's exodus, Zoom boss Greg Tomb fired without cause. Les Malezer, chairman of the Foundation for Aboriginal and Islander Research Action, is critical of the native title system for its failure to deliver for indigenous people. This dispossession occurred largely without compensation, and successive governments have failed to reach a lasting and equitable agreement with Aboriginal peoples and Torres Strait Islanders concerning the use of their lands.[12]. From 1973-1983 he established and became director of the Black Community School in Townsville. Rejected at each turn. The Mabo decision was a legal case held in 1992. - Behind the News Behind the News 133K subscribers Subscribe 483 106K views 3 years ago Mabo Day on June 3rd, celebrates. It would most likely still be in place had it not been for Eddie Koiki Mabo. Text 1936 A case was made, and took 10 years to reach a decision. They both endured early hard lives that steeled them for the struggles that would eventually come their way. It commemoratesEdward (Eddie) Koiki Mabo (1936-1992), a Torres Strait Islander whose campaign for Australian Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander land rights led to a landmark decision in the High Court of Australia on 3rd June 1992 that overturned the legal fiction of terra nullius, which had characterised Australian law with respect to land and title since the voyage of Captain James Cook in 1770. Here we are 30 years later, still on that journey. Mabo died five months earlier from cancer in January 1992, at the age of 55. At http://www.humanrights.gov.au/publications/native-title-report-2008 (viewed 5 June 2015). More information. In August 1981 Mabo attended a conference on land rights at James Cook University.