The Quandamooka people were today recognised as the native title custodians of "4,408 hectares of land and water on and surrounding North Stradbroke Island, including areas of national parks, reserves, unallocated State land and other leases." The Native Title Tribunal (NNT) has additional information on the determination in a media release on their website. According to the NNT, this determination recognises the Quandamooka peoples' exclusive rights to 2,264 hectares and non-exclusive rights to 22,639 hectares. The recognition of Native Title rights to the Quandamooka people does not however extend onto freehold land or many types of leasehold tenures.
The Native Title claim was over the Quandamooka people's traditional land and seas, known as Minjerribah on North Stradbroke Island. The recognition of the "rights" to these lands is an amazing step forward and one that has been a long-time coming.
The determination also extends to the inclusion of an Indigenous Land Use Agreement, which provides the Quandamooka with economic and employment opportunities. Overall, the agreement recognises the Quandamooka's rights as custodians and managers and protects environmental and cultural values. The Queensland Department of Environment and Resource Management (DERM) has additional information about the agreement and the custodian role that the Quandamooka people on their website.
Congratulations to all those that participated in the negotiation of this outcome and I am so glad that there is finally recognition of the Quandamooka peoples' land rights.
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