The 1972 Larrakia Petition, sent by the Larrakia people, who are the traditional owners of the Darwin region in the Northern Territory, to Elizabeth II was a landmark document in the land rights movement in Australia. It was signed by over 1,000 people from Aboriginal communities around Australia and the first signatory was Bob Secretary as Larrakia Elder from Darwin and another notable signatory was Dolly Gurinyi Batcho.[1] [2] [3]
The petition opened with the Gwalwa Daraniki which means 'our land' in the Larrakiya/Gulumirrgin language and goes on to state that; the land belongs to the Larrakia people, it was taken by the British, no treaties were signed and that the Larrakia were being treated as refugees in their own country.
The petition was made in response to William McMahon's refusal to negotiate a treaty with the Larrakia following their two March 1972 petitions to him which received no response.[4] [5] This treaty sought the establishement of formal land rights for First Nations people and the recognicion of their indissoluable connection to land.[6]
After the collection of the signatures the Larrakia planned to deliver their message to the Queen via Princess Margaret during her visit to Darwin in October 1972 and they camped outside of Government House seeking to hand it to her. In response a police barricade was set up and, despite attempting to break through them, they were denied. In this attempt the petition, which was 11feet, was torn.
The petition was torn during this attempt and it was taped together and it was posted directly to Buckingham Palace alongside a letter, dated 17 October 1972, apologising for its condition and how it had occurred. The letter stated:Staff at the Palace received the letter on 3 November 1972, then returned the petition to the Australian Government, via the Paul Hasluck the then governor-general and it was placed on file.[7] A month after this Prime Minister Gough Whitlam was elected on a pledge to recognise Aboriginal land rights. The petition is now held by the National Archives of Australia and it can be viewed in full online.
The 1972 Larrakia Petition is a landmark document in the fight for land rights for Aboriginal people and helped drive momentum for the Woodward Royal Commission. As such it was a precursor for the Aboriginal Land Rights Act 1976.[8]
In 1979 the Larrakia people made their first formal land claim, the Kenbi Land Claim over the Cox Peninsula, which remain ungranted until 2006.[9] [10] [11] [12]