The Northern Territory's four land councils have joined growing calls for the federal government to impose "real consequences" on the Territory government over its failure to close the gap.
The Northern Territory remains the worst-performing jurisdiction on Closing the Gap targets, with only five measures showing improvement.
Meeting in Barunga last week — 38 years after Territory leaders issued the landmark Barunga Statement calling for a treaty — representatives from the Northern Land Council (NLC), Central Land Council (CLC), Tiwi Land Council (TLC) and Anindilyakwa Land Council (ALC) gathered to mark the 50th anniversary of the Aboriginal Land Rights Act.
While celebrating that milestone, the land councils said many of the challenges confronting Aboriginal people today remain unchanged. They pointed to issues including incarceration, overcrowded housing, rising living costs in remote communities and deaths in custody, which they said continue to be driven by structural racism.
"Almost half of the land mass in the Northern Territory and 85 per cent of our Territory coastlines are Aboriginal-owned," NLC chair Matthew Ryan said. "We have our land and sea rights, but our people are still fighting an endless battle for our very existence."
ALC chair Cherelle Wurrawilya said Aboriginal people were seeking basic rights and services.
"Safe housing, healthy communities, a justice system we can trust," she said. "The basic rights that every person in Australia should enjoy."
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Calls for federal intervention
Since coming to office in 2024, the Country Liberal Party government has introduced a range of policies which Indigenous, legal and human rights organisations have criticised as punitive and inconsistent with recommendations from previous royal commissions and inquiries.
At the same time, the Territory's Indigenous incarceration rate has continued to climb. More than 90 per cent of the prison population is Indigenous, with almost half of those prisoners being held on remand.
The government has also faced criticism for its approach to consultation on child protection, land rights and cultural heritage reforms.
The four land councils called on the Federal Government to hold the Territory accountable for what they described as a failure to spend Commonwealth funding in ways that deliver meaningful improvements for Aboriginal people.
They also urged Canberra to direct more funding to Aboriginal Community Controlled Organisations, arguing those organisations have the trust of local communities and are best placed to deliver services and programs.
"We know the solutions," TLC deputy chair Austin Wonaeamirri said. "We need a government that listens to us and respects that we know what will work for our people and communities."
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Growing calls to Canberra
The call adds to a growing chorus of organisations urging the federal government — which provides about 80 per cent of the Northern Territory's funding — to take stronger action in response to the jurisdiction's Closing the Gap performance.
Last year, the family of the late Northern Territory Supreme Court Justice James Henry Muirhead AC QC called on the Prime Minister to step in and override what they describe as the "regressive actions currently being pursued by the Northern Territory Government" regarding justice and incarceration.
Speaking in Alice Springs last month, Prime Minister Anthony Albanese said governments needed to work together to deliver systemic improvements for First Nations communities.
"Indigenous people need to be treated with respect at this time, particularly the family and local people," he said.
Addressing the Northern Territory Government's approach, the Prime Minister added: "I would say to the Northern Territory government, that you'll get better outcomes if you have an inclusive approach and you have buy-in to these issues, and that's why that consultation and engagement is so important.
"We want to see, though, outcomes which are appropriate. We do think that everything possible should be done, of course, to keep children safe. That's the No.1 priority."
