In Australia, an Aboriginal land trust (ALT) is a type of

non-profit organisation A nonprofit organization (NPO), also known as a nonbusiness entity, nonprofit institution, not-for-profit organization, or simply a nonprofit, is a non-governmental (private) legal entity organized and operated for a collective, public, or so ...

that holds the

freehold title In English law, a fee simple or fee simple absolute is an estate in land, a form of freehold ownership. A "fee" is a vested, inheritable, present possessory interest in land. A "fee simple" is real property held without limit of time (i.e., per ...

to an area of

land Land, also known as dry land, ground, or earth, is the solid terrestrial surface of Earth not submerged by the ocean or another body of water. It makes up 29.2% of Earth's surface and includes all continents and islands. Earth's land sur ...

on behalf of a community of

Aboriginal Australians Aboriginal Australians are the various indigenous peoples of the Mainland Australia, Australian mainland and many of its islands, excluding the ethnically distinct people of the Torres Strait Islands. Humans first migrated to Australia (co ...

. The land has been legally granted to a community by the

government A government is the system or group of people governing an organized community, generally a State (polity), state. In the case of its broad associative definition, government normally consists of legislature, executive (government), execu ...

under a perpetual lease, usually after the community makes a formal claim of traditional ownership. Land granted under Aboriginal title is

inalienable Inalienable or inalienability may refer to: *Inalienable right, a type of legal right in jurisprudence **Restraint on alienation *Inalienable possession, a class of nouns in linguistics *Inalienable possessions Inalienable possessions (or imm ...

; it can not be bought, sold, traded or given away. The land trust is the organisation appointed by the community to legally hold the title deeds. The land trusts are administered by

Aboriginal land council Land councils, also known as Aboriginal land councils, or land and sea councils, are Australian community organisations, generally organised by region, that are commonly formed to represent the Indigenous Australians (both Aboriginal Australians ...

Establishment and operation of Aboriginal land trusts

Several states and territories have enacted laws to establish Aboriginal land trusts, but not all.

New South Wales

An Aboriginal Lands Trust existed in New South Wales in the 1960s and into the 1970s, a body of which Lyall Munro Snr was a member, among others. This organisation had land passed to it by the government as well as having some bequeathed to it in private individuals' wills. They were successful in winning various rights over land in various places, including hunting and fishing rights, without having to go to court. They were instrumental in the closing down of Kinchela Boys' Home (1970) and Cootamundra Girls' Home (1974). They also encouraged young people to be initiated into their peoples' cultures. The Aboriginal Lands Trust of New South Wales (or New South Wales Aboriginal Lands Trust) existed from 1974 to 1983. It was established by the ''Aborigines (Amendment) Act 1973'', and comprised all members of the Aborigines Advisory Council. The Advisory Council consisted of nine Aboriginal people who had been elected by the people to represent Aboriginal people of a particular area of the state, for a three-year term. The inaugural meeting of the Trust took place on 5 February 1974, and it continued to meet monthly in Sydney or elsewhere in NSW. The Trust reported to the Minister, and was independently funded, with its own administrator, staff, and premises. It had corporate ownership of all

Aboriginal reserve An Aboriginal reserve, also called simply reserve, was a government-sanctioned settlement for Aboriginal Australians, created under various state and federal legislation. Along with missions and other institutions, they were used from the 19th ...

s in NSW "on behalf of and for the benefit of Aboriginal people", which included

of existing reserves as well as the

mineral rights Mineral rights are property rights to exploit an area for the minerals it harbors. Mineral rights can be separate from property ownership (see Split estate). Mineral rights can refer to sedentary minerals that do not move below the Earth's surfa ...

to the land. The Trust was responsible for houses located on the reserves, and was free to do anything with the land so long as it served the community. Members in 1977–79 included George Griffiths, Bill Cohen, Charlie Leon, Lyall Munro,

Ossie Cruse Oswald "Ossie" Cruse is an Australian activist and Aboriginal elder. Cruse was born in 1933 in Orbost, Victoria. He became active in the area of Aboriginal rights after the 1967 Australian referendum, touring Africa with former prime minist ...

(chairman), Ron Riley,

Essie Coffey Essie Coffey (born Essieina Shillingsworth Jibbah; – 3 January 1998), also known as Essieina Goodgabah and "Bush Queen of Brewarrina", was an Aboriginal Australian community worker, filmmaker, singer, and advocate for Indigenous Australians ...

, and Henry Bolt. This was "the first all-Aboriginal democratically elected statutory body to own freehold title to Aboriginal land in Australia", according to Sue Norman (2011). A non-statutory

NSW Aboriginal Land Council The NSW Aboriginal Land Council (NSWALC) is the peak representative body of Aboriginal Australians in New South Wales. It has the mandate, under the ''Aboriginal Land Rights Act 1983'' (NSW), to develop land rights among Aboriginal people in New ...

was created in 1977, to assist in the protests by Aboriginal people for their

land rights Land law is the form of law that deals with the rights to use, alienate, or exclude others from land. In many jurisdictions, these kinds of property are referred to as real estate or real property, as distinct from personal property. Land use ...

. In February 1982 the NSW Government informed the Aboriginal Lands Trust that the Minister for Aboriginal Affairs, Frank Walker would be responsible for matters relating to it, and that

Pat O'Shane Patricia June O'Shane (born 1941) is a retired Australian teacher, barrister, public servant, jurist, and Aboriginal activist. She was Australia's first Aboriginal magistrate, serving the Local Court in Sydney, New South Wales, between 1986 u ...

had been appointed Secretary to the Minister. Protests ensued, but ''

Aboriginal Land Rights Act 1983 The ''Aboriginal Land Rights Act 1983'' (NSW) is an Act of the Parliament of New South Wales which was enacted to return land to Aboriginal peoples through a process of lodging claims for certain Crown lands and the establishment of Aborigin ...

'' created the NSWALC as a statutory body. This was considered a backwards step by members of the Aboriginal Lands Trust, because significant lands, hunting and gathering rights, and other rights were lost in the new Act. The property of the Trust was transferred to the Minister, until its eventual transfer to relevant Aboriginal Land Councils.

Northern Territory

In the

Northern Territory The Northern Territory (abbreviated as NT; known formally as the Northern Territory of Australia and informally as the Territory) is an states and territories of Australia, Australian internal territory in the central and central-northern regi ...

, land trusts are governed under the '' Aboriginal Land Rights Act, 1976'', which also governs the way in which groups can make claims to land. The ALTs hold the title to land handed back to the traditional Aboriginal owners through the ''Land Rights Act''.

Queensland

Queensland Queensland ( , commonly abbreviated as Qld) is a States and territories of Australia, state in northeastern Australia, and is the second-largest and third-most populous state in Australia. It is bordered by the Northern Territory, South Austr ...

, there are many land trusts, holding about 5% of the land. They were created under the state's ''

Aboriginal Land Act 1991 Aborigine, aborigine or aboriginal may refer to: *Aborigines (mythology), the oldest inhabitants of central Italy in Roman mythology * Indigenous peoples, general term for ethnic groups who are the earliest known inhabitants of an area *One of sev ...

'' and the ''

Torres Strait Islander Land Act 1991 Torres may refer to: People *Torres (surname), a Spanish and Portuguese surname * Torres (musician), singer-songwriter Mackenzie Scott ** ''Torres'' (album), 2013 self-titled album by Torres Places Americas * Torres, Colorado, an unincorporated ...

''.

South Australia

South Australia South Australia (commonly abbreviated as SA) is a States and territories of Australia, state in the southern central part of Australia. With a total land area of , it is the fourth-largest of Australia's states and territories by area, which in ...

, there is a single statutory body known as the Aboriginal Lands Trust, also known as the South Australian Aboriginal Lands Trust (SAALT). It was created under the ''

Aboriginal Lands Trust Act 1966 The ''Aboriginal Lands Trust Act 1966'' is the short title of an Act of the Parliament of South Australia, assented to on 8 December 1966, with the long title "An Act to establish an Aboriginal Lands Trust, to define the powers and functions ...

''. This Bill was introduced by

Don Dunstan Donald Allan Dunstan (21 September 1926 – 6 February 1999) was an Australian politician who served as the 35th premier of South Australia from 1967 to 1968, and again from 1970 to 1979. He was a member of the House of Assembly (MHA) for th ...

, who was then South Australia's Attorney-General and Minister for Aboriginal Affairs, and who later became Premier. It holds title to Aboriginal land in South Australia and oversees the management and control of those lands including the ability to issue a lease over lands for 99 years to an "incorporated community body". The

Government of South Australia The Government of South Australia, also referred to as the South Australian Government or the SA Government, is the executive branch of the state government, state of South Australia. It is modelled on the Westminster system, meaning that the h ...

is also able to transfer other

crown land Crown land, also known as royal domain, is a territorial area belonging to the monarch, who personifies the Crown. It is the equivalent of an entailed estate and passes with the monarchy, being inseparable from it. Today, in Commonwealth realm ...

to the control of the Trust.Aboriginal Lands Trust Act 1966
South Australian Acts (Point-in-Time). Retrieved on 29 January 2012. The ''Lands Trust Act 1966'' was the first land rights law in modern times and predated the

1967 Referendum Events January * January 1 – Canada begins a year-long celebration of the 100th anniversary of Canadian Confederation, Confederation, featuring the Expo 67 World's Fair. * January 6 – Vietnam War: United States Marine Corps and Army of ...

. It allowed for parcels of Aboriginal land previously held by the

South Australian Government The Government of South Australia, also referred to as the South Australian Government or the SA Government, is the executive branch of the state of South Australia. It is modelled on the Westminster system, meaning that the highest ranking mem ...

to be handed to the Aboriginal Lands Trust of SA under the Act. It was held in perpetuity for the benefit of Aboriginal South Australians. The Trust was governed by a Board composed solely of Aboriginal people. In the 2013 Review of the Act, the powers of the Trust were reviewed and changed to modernise the Trust and the '' Aboriginal Lands Trust of South Australia Act 2013'' (SA) was passed. The other two Aboriginal landholding authorities in the state are Anangu Pitjantjatjara Yankunytjatjara (APY) and

Maralinga Tjarutja The Maralinga Tjarutja, or Maralinga Tjarutja Council, is the corporation representing the traditional Anangu owners of the remote western areas of South Australia known as the Maralinga Tjarutja lands. The council was established by the ''Mara ...

, also statutory bodies. Text may have been copied from this source, which is available under
Attribution 3.0 Australia (CC BY 3.0 AU)
licence.

Western Australia

The Aboriginal Lands Trust in

Western Australia Western Australia (WA) is the westernmost state of Australia. It is bounded by the Indian Ocean to the north and west, the Southern Ocean to the south, the Northern Territory to the north-east, and South Australia to the south-east. Western Aust ...

was created by the ''Aboriginal Affairs Planning Authority Act 1972''. It acquires and holds land and manages it for the benefit of Aboriginal communities. It holds about (11%) of the state's land, most of which was previously held by the state government.

References

External links

*Legal documents by state, from the ''Agreements, Treaties and Negotiated Settlements Project'':
Aboriginal Lands Trust, Western Australia

Aboriginal Lands Trust, South Australia

Aboriginal Land Trusts in Queensland

Aboriginal Land Trusts in the Northern Territory
{{Webarchive, url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130409184331/http://atns.net.au/subcategory.asp?subcategoryID=138 , date=9 April 2013 Organisations serving Indigenous Australians Native title in Australia Land trusts