The Nyangumarta People are today celebrating the recognition of their native title rights and interests over more than 33,843sq km of land which borders about 110km of coastline along Eighty Mile Beach in Western Australia’s Pilbara region.

At a Federal Court hearing near the beach at Nyiyamarri Pukurl, on Wallal Downs Station, Justice Tony North made two consent determinations for applications from the Nyangumarta People. Pastoralists, fishing and mining companies, the WA and Commonwealth governments and Telstra were among parties to the two Nyangumarta native title applications.

The National Native Title Tribunal registered the applications and provided mediation to resolve these applications by consent. Tribunal Member John Catlin and staff managed 18 mediation conferences, with about a third of these held in or near the claim area and the remainder in Perth.

Mr Catlin said the mediation had been exemplary for the willingness of the parties to consider each other’s interests: “This was a conflict-free mediation to the extent that it was conducted with the greatest harmony between the parties at all times. No single issue turned into a tug-of-war.”

However Mr Catlin said the mediation still took two-and-half years to conclude after parties reached an  in-principle agreement on the existence of the Nyangumarta native title rights and interests.

“This relatively straightforward claim over unallocated crown land and pastoral leases has taken 11 years to reach an outcome, with some of the claim group no longer alive to see a result. The clear message is that more effort is needed to speed up the native title claims process.”

Nyangumarta traditional owner Nyaparu Rose, said the recognition of her people’s rights to their traditional country was not only important to her community but to all Aboriginal people.

“Connection to country and the ties we have to our land is as important to us today as it was to our ancestors,” she said.

Mr Catlin said the original Nyangumarta claim had been split into two applications and he hoped the remaining area to the north would be resolved as soon as possible.