Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Resources

These petitions from the Yolngu people of Yirrkala were the first traditional documents recognised by the Commonwealth Parliament and are thus the documentary recognition of Indigenous people in Australian law.

The Larrakia petition is one of the most important documents of Aboriginal peoples’ struggle for land rights in the early 1970s.

The Barunga Statement, a painted declaration that included the aspirations of ‘the Indigenous owners and occupiers of Australia’ and a request to the Australian Government and people to ‘recognise our rights’.

Prime Minister Bob Hawke's Barunga speech.

The Uluru Statement from the Heart is a call for constitutional change and structural reform in the relationship between Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Peoples and Australia.

The Torres Strait Treaty was signed in December 1978 and entered into force in February 1985. It defines the border between Australia and Papua New Guinea and provides a framework for the management of the common border area.