South West Aboriginal Land and Sea Council

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The South West Aboriginal Land and Sea Council (SWALSC) is the organisation that represents the Noongar people, the Aboriginal Australians of the southwest corner of Western Australia. It was formed in 2001, [1] [2] and is incorporated under the Corporations (Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander) Act 2006 . [3] The Council's primary role is to assist the Noongar people with native title claims and Indigenous land use agreements. [4] It also helps support Noongar culture and heritage, [4] and publishes the Kaartdijin Noongar ("Noongar Knowledge") website. [5]

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South West Native Title Settlement

The comprehensive South West Native Title Settlement for Noongar people in Western Australia aims to resolve native title claims in exchange for statutory recognition of the Noongar people as the traditional owners of south-Western Australia. [6] As of 2020 it is the largest native title settlement in Australian history, affecting about 30,000 Noongar People and encompassing around 200,000 km2 (77,000 sq mi) in south-western Western Australia. It has been described as "Australia's first treaty". [7]

The Noongar (Koorah, Nitja, Boordahwan) (Past, Present, Future) Recognition Act 2016 recognises Noongar ownership, and the settlement includes six individual Indigenous Land Use Agreements (ILUAs). [7] On 19 December 2019, the Federal Court upheld the Native Title Registrar’s decision to register the six ILUAs, and settlement is expected to begin in the second half of 2020. [8]

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References

  1. "ABN Lookup". Current details for ABN 42 485 265 673. Australian Business Register. 31 May 2013. Retrieved 20 September 2015.
  2. Fact Sheet (PDF), South West Aboriginal Land and Sea Council, retrieved 20 September 2015
  3. 2015 Annual Report (PDF), South West Aboriginal Land and Sea Council, 21 September 2015, p. 27, retrieved 9 April 2016
  4. 1 2 "South West Aboriginal Land and Sea Council : About Us" . Retrieved 9 April 2016.
  5. "About Us". Kaartdijin Noongar. South West Aboriginal Land and Sea Council. Retrieved 20 September 2015.
  6. Cawthorn, Michael (22 November 2017). "Traditional Owner Corporations". PBC. Retrieved 30 July 2020.
  7. 1 2 "Settlement Agreement". South West Aboriginal Land and Sea Council. Retrieved 31 July 2020.
  8. "South West Native Title Settlement timeline". Western Australian Government. Dept of Premier and Cabinet. 20 April 2020. Retrieved 31 July 2020.