What’s behind the Land Tenure debate?
The national debate over individualised ownership of Aboriginal community land has fired up again. This time, proponent of the idea and member of the National Indigenous Council, Warren Mundine, has branded Professor Mick Dodson a hypocrite for opposing the plan, although he owns a home of his own. Professor Dodson reportedly says there are no compelling arguments for the racially discriminatory change, fearing traditional owners would be forced to relinquish collective ownership rights for individuals to pursue private interests. Meantime, former ATSIC boss, Geoff Clark, says the Howard Government-backed private ownership plan threatens the land tenure and the land base of Indigenous people in this country. Tasmanian Aboriginal Legal expert Michael Mansell says the war of words comes as no surprise. He claims the Australian newspaper’s reporting of the issue reflects the conservative views of management.