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Editorial

Bishop's Easter Message

From the Office of Justice, Ecology & Peace

Fr. Anscar's Column

Visit in Support of Clergy

KCP Magazine

FROM THE OFFICE OF JUSTICE, ECOLOGY & PEACE
By Br Shane Wood, CFC

Native Title - the ongoing battle for recognition on an unequal playing field

I recently read an article by Jennifer Clarke, an Indigenous law expert andlecturer within the Australian National University’s Faculty of Law. The title of the article was ‘Why it's (almost) not worth lodging a native title claim’. It is an interesting case she makes about the obstacles that are put in the way of the success of these claims and the unfortunate consequences that can sometimes attend them.

It can be found on the internet at http://www.onlineopinion.com.au/
2003/Jan03/Clarke.htm for those interested in reading the full text.

She gives four main reasons for not bothering to make claims: even if you have the claim recognised, the law will allow interference ‘not permitted for other private land’ ownership; many potential claims have been ‘diminished or extinguished’ by land use inconsistent with native title; a great deal of money and emotional energy are used up by people trying to prove their ‘connections’ to land and family, which often leads to ‘irreconcilable disputes’ amongst family and long-time friends; and finally, not all aspects of traditional Aboriginal ‘legal systems’ will necessarily be recognised by the courts nor will the outcomes necessarily provide ‘meaningful land rights’.

The recent events in the Kimberley necessitating the withdrawal of the support of the Kimberley Land Council (KLC) from some ongoing land claims, is a sign that not all is well in the area of Native Title. The lack of sufficient funding to expert groups supporting claimants (amounting to the equivalent of legal aid in other jurisdictions) shows a serious deficiency in the system. All parties in a legal ‘battle’ must be enabled to ‘stand on level ground’ if the outcome is to be a matter purely of judgement before the law and not the result of inequality of access to good advice, good preparation and good representation.

When we in the Kimberley come to make choices in the near future between candidates and parties in both State and Federal arenas, it might not be an inappropriate question to put to each of them about what they are going to offer those who are currently not able to adequately fund their court cases for native title. What are they going to do to make the process of application for native title less onerous on all parties? What practical steps are they going to take to encourage more mediation, negotiated settlement and registered agreements in the Kimberley on Native Title claims?

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