Githabul
The Githabul are an indigenous Australian tribe of New South Wales (NSW) and Queensland. In 2007, they were granted 'native title' rights over some national parks.
Legal proceedings
The Githabul Native Title claim was lodged by Native title claimant Trevor Close in 1995. Dr Close received financial and legal help from the Canadian Government to study and become an expert in International Native Title Law at the University of Technology in Sydney, Australia. Dr Close then used his legal training as a Native Title lawyer to defeat the NSW Crown in the Federal Court of Australia. It was the first time in NSW history that the NSW Government had been forced to settle a Native title claim for traditional Aboriginal owners.
In Australia, an Aboriginal treaty is called an Indigenous Land Use Agreement and must be signed by a Federal Court Justice. In this case, Justice Catherine Branson signed the Githabul Treaty at the Woodenbong Common on 29 November 2007. The Githabul Native title claim made SBS World News with newsreader Stan Grant. As it was the first time Tribal Natives in the State of NSW had been able to prove to the Federal Court that they still openly practiced their Githabul language, Tribal laws and ancient culture through increase sites named Djurabils.
References
- Aborigines in big land claim win, BBC News Online
- Australian Tribe Gets Rights to Parks, Guardian Unlimited
- Tribe on high as heartland won back - The Australian - 11 September 2007
External links
- Bibliography of Githabul people and language resources, at the Australian Institute of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Studies
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