The Girramay People have completed the last and necessary step required for the recognition of their native title rights — the registration of four indigenous land use agreements (ILUAs) negotiated with parties to their claim in Far North Queensland.
National Native Title Tribunal Member Graham Fletcher, who mediated between the parties, said the registration of the ILUAs brought into effect the native title determination made by the Federal Court of Australia on 10 December 2009.
The determination recognised the Girramay People’s non-exclusive rights over 16 parcels of unallocated state land from Cardwell to Bilyana and Murray Upper area, 185 km south of Cairns.
Parties to the claim, including the Queensland Government, Cassowary Coast Regional Council, Cardwell Shire River Improvement Trust and Ergon Energy, agreed the Girramay People were the native title holders of the area on the condition that the four ILUAs, which establish how the respective rights will be carried out on the ground, were finalised.
“ILUAs are finalised through registration with the Tribunal, which is the last step in the agreement-making process,” Mr Fletcher said. “Once an ILUA is registered it is placed on the Tribunal’s Register of Indigenous Land Use Agreements.
“ILUAs are broad and flexible agreements made under the Native Title Act about the use and management of land. ILUAs can be stepping stones on the way to a native title determination, or parties can choose to develop ILUAs instead of seeking a consent determination in the Federal Court.
“In this case the ILUAs were developed to accompany the determination and establish how the parties’ rights and interests would be carried out on the ground.”
Mr Fletcher said parties to native title claims around Australia were increasingly resolving land issues through broader agreements, such as ILUAs.
To date 429 ILUAs have been registered with the Tribunal Australia-wide, including 225 in Queensland.