Dunghutti Elders Council (Aboriginal Corporation) RNTBC

THE Dunghutti Elders Council (DEC) is investigating the possibility of a ‘blanket land claim’ over all traditional Dunghutti tribal land.

A group of NSW Aboriginal people who won the first native title claim on the Australian mainland following the historic Mabo decision yesterday celebrated a $6.1 million compensation payout which the state government has made 14 years later.

On October 9, the Dunghutti people of northern NSW became the first Aboriginal nation to win land under native title legislation on mainland Australia. The announcement came just one day after the federal government declared its intention to effectively dismember the legislation.

In Australia, the Dunghutti Aboriginal People are made up of eight tribal groups that reside in the continent’s Macleay Valley region. Their way of life was disrupted by White settlers, and they eventually lost rights to their land. However, the Native Title Act of 1993 gave way to the Dunghutti people to become the first group of aboriginals to lay claim to lands on this day in 1997.

Tribunal President Justice Robert French today congratulated the Dunghutti people on gaining a place in Australian history as the first determined holders of native title on the Australian mainland.