Historical Studies (Chinese Edition)

No.2, 2019

 

The Mabo Judgment and Land Rights Legislation for Indigenous Australians (Abstract)

 

Wang Shiming

 

Land rights have always been a central issue in the relationship between the white population and Indigenous Australians. Resisting colonization and fighting for their rights and interests, Indigenous Australians have claimed their traditional right to the land ownership through judicial procedures and other means. The definitive case is that of Eddy Mabo and his peers, who sued the State of Queensland in 1982 in the name of Murray Island residents. After ten long years of litigation, on June 3, 1992, the High Court of Australia recognized Murray Islanders’ inalienable right to ownership of their traditional lands, on the basis of Australian common law, traditional Indigenous law and custom and a large quantity of historical sources. In terms of jurisprudence, the famous “Mabo Judgment” overturned the myth that Australia was terra nullius prior to white colonization. This momentous verdict evoked a wide reaction and provided impetus for Australian government land rights legislation that responded to the claims of the parties involved. The result, in 1993, was the first Native Title Act in Australian history. The true significance of the Mabo judgment and the Native Title Act lies not in how much land Indigenous people were able to recover from the white population, but in their recognition of and respect for Indigenous history and the enduring value of recognizing Indigenous Australians as Australia’s “First Nation”.