In this article we discuss the Victorian Government's new independent authority which is tasked with treaty negotiations with the state's First Nations peoples.
In an effort to continue its ongoing commitment to treaty, the Victorian Government is set to establish an independent authority tasked with treaty negotiations with the state’s First Nations peoples.
Minister for Aboriginal Affairs, Prevention of Family Violence, and Women, the Hon. Gabrielle Williams, introduced the Treaty Authority and Other Treaty Elements Bill 2022 (the Bill) on 7 June 2022.
The Bill, if enacted, will establish a Treaty Authority as an independent umpire to oversee negotiations between the Victorian Government and First Nations peoples of Victoria and gives the Treaty Authority the legal powers necessary to facilitate treaty negotiations and resolve any disputes between parties.
The Treaty Authority
The Victorian Government first commenced discussions with First Nations peoples of Victoria in 2016 and established the Aboriginal Treaty Working Group (the Working Group). From July 2016 to December 2016, the Working Group engaged with the First Nations community on the potential functions of this representative body and to design principles to inform its creation. The Working Group also supported the First Nations community to hold ‘treaty circles’ – smaller community-led consultations – and have their say through an online ‘message stick’.
Further consultations were held in March 2017 to ask the First Nations peoples of Victoria what structure the Aboriginal Representative Body should take and how it should represent the community.
The Working Group has since established the Victorian Treaty Advancement Commission and passed the Advancing the Treaty Process with Aboriginal Victorians Act 2018, facilitating and recognising a historic agreement reached between the Victorian Government and the First Peoples’ Assembly of Victoria (the Assembly), a body elected by First Nations peoples to aid in developing a treaty framework.
The Treaty Authority will be led by First Nations peoples, independent from Government, and grounded in traditional culture, lore, and law. Assembly co-chair, Aunty Geraldine Atkinson, has indicated that the Treaty Authority will focus on respect and dialogue in negotiations.
The Treaty Authority will be the first of its kind in Australia and is intended to ensure that the treaty making process is facilitated and informed by Traditional Owners.
Next Steps
The Bill was moved to a second reading on 8 June 2022.
A public call for nominations to be appointed to the Treaty Authority will be issued in the coming months. All First Nations peoples in Victoria have been urged to enrol with the Assembly.
Treaty progress in other States and Territories
A number of other Australian States and Territories are also set on their Pathways to Treaty. The Queensland Government started the Path to Treaty conversation with all Queenslanders in 2019. The Queensland Treaty Advancement Committee Report was submitted to the Government in October 2021 and though it is yet to be released, the Queensland Government did announce today the release of its Local Thriving Communities Action Plan to support “self-determination, equality and culture” for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples, which Hon Craig Crawford said is a significant and long-term reform. The Northern Territory Government’s consultations are coming to an end, with the Treaty Commissioner, Tony McAvoy SC, working towards a final report (including a proposed negotiation framework for trading).
The Tasmanian Government has also begun a Path to Treaty, with representatives of all registered Aboriginals community organisations being invited to provide advice on the establishment of the Aboriginal Advisory Body (including membership and terms of reference). New South Wales and South Australia have committed to begin Aboriginal community consultations to work out the best Path to Treaty. Western Australia and the Australian Capital Territory are not yet engaged in formal Path to Treaty discussions.
Pathways to Treaty and the Uluru Statement from the Heart
Treaty reform forms part of the Voice, Treaty, Truth reforms sought by the Uluru Statement from the Heart (the Uluru Statement).
The Uluru Statement was issued to Australian people in May 2017, following almost two years of work and decades of First Nations advocacy. It is an invitation that asks Australians to walk together to build a better future by establishing a First Nations Voice to Parliament enshrined in the Constitution, and the establishment of a Makarrata Commission for the purpose of treaty making and truth-telling.
Voice, Treaty and Truth, provide a clear and practical path forward for First Nations’ self-determination in accordance with the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples.
HopgoodGanim Lawyers
HopgoodGanim Lawyers acknowledge the Traditional Custodians of country throughout Australia and their connections to land, sea and community. We pay our respect to their Elders past and present and extend that respect to all Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples today.