In August 1963 members of the clan groups living in the area of Yirrkala sent these petitions to Parliament.
In 1963 the Yirrkala bark petitions were recognised by the Australian Parliament, and are thus the first documentary recognition of Indigenous people in Australian law. These are the first documents bridging Commonwealth law as it then stood, and the Indigenous laws of the land. 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.
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Each January, Aunty Jean Phillips and Brooke Prentis with the support of Common Grace invite Australian Christians to acknowledge our Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Peoples as we remember our past and find a way forward together.
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