Published Wednesday, 04 April, 2007 at 02:16 PM
Deputy Premier, Treasurer and Minister for Infrastructure
The Honourable Anna Bligh
GREAT KEPPEL LAND BACK WITH TRADITIONAL OWNERS
April 4, 2007
Great Keppel Island: Deputy Premier Anna Bligh and Natural Resources Minister Craig Wallace today made an historic handover of freehold title to 170ha of land on Great Keppel Island to its traditional owners, the Woppaburra people.
Deeds to five parcels of former unallocated state land were handed to 40 trustees at a ceremony on Great Keppel Island that included traditional dancing and speeches by elders, followed by the first meeting of the Woppaburra Land Trust.
The ceremony also was attended by the local state member of Parliament, Member for Keppel Paul Hoolihan.
“On behalf of the people of Queensland, I warmly congratulate the Woppaburra people. This handover returns to them a place of spiritual significance and is another step along the path to reconciliation,” Ms Bligh said.
She said the handover was an important milestone for all descendents of the traditional owners and local Indigenous people.
“It is a mark of respect for the traditions, observances, customs and beliefs of the Woppaburra people as custodians of the land. While mixed with sadness over events of the past, today we celebrate the future with the Woppaburra people,” Ms Bligh said.
Mr Wallace congratulated all who had participated in the process and said Queensland had a strong tradition of returning land to traditional owners under both State and Commonwealth laws.
“This is a great day, and also a very emotional day for the Woppaburra,” Mr Wallace said. “They have nurtured and protected Great Keppel Island for over 5000 years and they will now be able to protect it into the future.”
He said the deed of grant to the Woppaburra Land Trust was the second in the Rockhampton region this year under the Aboriginal Land Act 1991.
“The Great Keppel land transfer is the 58th, involving a total of 1.3 million hectares of land, to take place since the Aboriginal Land Act came into effect in 1991,” he said.
“Under Commonwealth law, at the end of December 2006, 138 Indigenous Land Use Agreements (ILUAs) were registered in Queensland – more than half of the total for Australia. There were 35 consent determinations of native title.”
Mr Hoolihan paid tribute to all the people involved in negotiating the deed of grant to Great Keppel over the past year, including the Woppaburra Elders.
“The Woppaburra now have the right to decide what takes place on their land and I wish them well in their future endeavours,” Mr Wallace said.
Media inquiries: Deputy Premier’s Office 3224 6900
(Minister Wallace’s Office) Caroline Kaurila 3896 3694
Great Keppel Island: Deputy Premier Anna Bligh and Natural Resources Minister Craig Wallace today made an historic handover of freehold title to 170ha of land on Great Keppel Island to its traditional owners, the Woppaburra people.
Deeds to five parcels of former unallocated state land were handed to 40 trustees at a ceremony on Great Keppel Island that included traditional dancing and speeches by elders, followed by the first meeting of the Woppaburra Land Trust.
The ceremony also was attended by the local state member of Parliament, Member for Keppel Paul Hoolihan.
“On behalf of the people of Queensland, I warmly congratulate the Woppaburra people. This handover returns to them a place of spiritual significance and is another step along the path to reconciliation,” Ms Bligh said.
She said the handover was an important milestone for all descendents of the traditional owners and local Indigenous people.
“It is a mark of respect for the traditions, observances, customs and beliefs of the Woppaburra people as custodians of the land. While mixed with sadness over events of the past, today we celebrate the future with the Woppaburra people,” Ms Bligh said.
Mr Wallace congratulated all who had participated in the process and said Queensland had a strong tradition of returning land to traditional owners under both State and Commonwealth laws.
“This is a great day, and also a very emotional day for the Woppaburra,” Mr Wallace said. “They have nurtured and protected Great Keppel Island for over 5000 years and they will now be able to protect it into the future.”
He said the deed of grant to the Woppaburra Land Trust was the second in the Rockhampton region this year under the Aboriginal Land Act 1991.
“The Great Keppel land transfer is the 58th, involving a total of 1.3 million hectares of land, to take place since the Aboriginal Land Act came into effect in 1991,” he said.
“Under Commonwealth law, at the end of December 2006, 138 Indigenous Land Use Agreements (ILUAs) were registered in Queensland – more than half of the total for Australia. There were 35 consent determinations of native title.”
Mr Hoolihan paid tribute to all the people involved in negotiating the deed of grant to Great Keppel over the past year, including the Woppaburra Elders.
“The Woppaburra now have the right to decide what takes place on their land and I wish them well in their future endeavours,” Mr Wallace said.
Media inquiries: Deputy Premier’s Office 3224 6900
(Minister Wallace’s Office) Caroline Kaurila 3896 3694