| The National Native Title Tribunal says conditions are improving for the settlement of the nation's six hundred native title applications by agreement rather than Court action.
Marking the first anniversary of the introduction of amended Federal native title laws today, Registrar Chris Doepel said the combination, withdrawal and amendment of hundreds of native title applications had greatly improved the climate for negotiation.
He said while there were 80 new applications in the past year, withdrawals and combinations resulted in a 21 per cent reduction in the total number of native title applications nationwide, with a 45 per cent drop in Western Australia.
"There are now 606 applications nationwide. WA has dropped to 179 and for the first time in five years is second to Queensland as the State with the greatest number of applications."
"Indigenous people around Australia have responded to the requirements of the new laws and are now better placed for mediation towards the final settlement of their applications," he said.
Mr Doepel said widespread community misconceptions about native title, and the policy positions of State and Territory Governments, would continue to have a significant effect on whether mediated outcomes were achieved.
"But there are emerging signs that the message is getting through that native title is here to stay and is best settled by negotiation," he said.
"In the last year, the new laws have been used to register four indigenous land use agreements and there are more in the pipeline. These agreements are flexible, secure and can allow developments to proceed while protecting the native title rights of indigenous people."
He said the environment for miners and developers was improving with the stringent new registration test determining which applicants had a right to have a say over mining, exploration and some other developments while their native title application was awaiting settlement.
"The registration test has been applied to most existing claims and is automatically applied to all new claims. To date, the registration test has been applied to more than half - or 282- of applications to be tested."
"Nationally, 50 per cent of applications are passing the registration test and gaining the right to negotiate. This means that miners and developers have fewer applicants who they must negotiate with, and they can negotiate with confidence that the applicants have demonstrated their credentials by passing all criteria in the test."
Mr Doepel said some industry groups, and State and Territory governments had held back from using the new Federal laws to the fullest effect because they were waiting to establish local native title schemes to process mining, exploration and some other development applications. Only the Western Australian Government had proposed a scheme to take over the mediation of native title applications as well.
"Most States envisage the National Native Title Tribunal continuing to mediate native title applications. But the Federal laws also contain a scheme for the processing of mining and exploration applications if States and Territories want to use those laws rather than passing their own."
"With goodwill and perseverance - ingredients which cannot be legislated for - there is every prospect that native title agreements will become commonplace rather than exceptional." |