The Aboriginal Land Rights (Northern Territory) Act

The Aboriginal Land Rights (Northern Territory) Act 1976 (Cth) transferred all reserves and land held by missions in the Northern Territory to Aboriginal freehold title - over a quarter of a million square kilometres, or 19 per cent of the Northern Territory. As well, the land claim process, beginning in 1978, has resulted in a further 23 per cent of the Northern Territory being granted freehold to numerous Aboriginal Land Trusts set up as title holding bodies. By the end of the 1990s, there were still over one hundred land claims outstanding. Were they all to be successful, a total of 52 per cent of the Northern Territory would be owned by Aboriginal Land Trusts.

Keywords: Aboriginal Land Rights Act (Northern Territory)(1976), Fraser, Malcolm, land rights, Northern Territory, The Northern Territory Land Rights Act, 1976

Author: Rowse, Tim and Graham, Trevor