Yolŋu Elder Announces First New NT Land Council in 35 Years at Garma

At the Garma Festival on Yolŋu country, Gumatj elder Djawa Yunupiŋu delivered a keynote speech announcing plans for the Dilak Land Council, the first new land council established in the Northern Territory since 1991. He timed the reveal to coincide with the 50th anniversary of the Aboriginal Land Rights Act (NT), legislation that emerged after decades of protest and the pivotal Milirrpum v Nabalco case. Since that act, four councils—Northern, Central, Tiwi Islands and Anindilyakwa—have been created to manage royalties from projects such as the former Ranger uranium mine.

Yunupiŋu argued that a dedicated Yolŋu council would give the Gove Peninsula’s 13 clans direct control over future mining negotiations and a forthcoming Commonwealth native-title payout, especially as the Rio Tinto bauxite operation is set to close in 2029. While the Rirratjiŋu clan has so far declined to join, they remain open to future talks. Final establishment will depend on a formal application and sign-off by Indigenous Australians Minister Malarndirri McCarthy, who has pledged support for self-determination initiatives.