Tenure in North Queensland: The Autonomy Myth
Kate Galloway | JCUTASA Conference
Cairns, 26 November 2015
For Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander communities in North Queensland, the discourse around tenure promises economic growth and opportunity for autonomy. However these claims occur within neoliberal discourse that privileges the individualism of private property as the sole determinant of value. Claims of autonomy in ‘secure and tradeable’ tenure ignore the real mechanisms by which land has been marketised. An idealised or ideological understanding of land and development ignores diverse values of land with two implications. Tenure changes are unlikely to yield the desired economic outcomes; and they will likely perpetuate the historical colonialism of the north.
The context: Northern Australia
Open for business!
Assumption: ‘secure and tradeable’ land tenure
The ‘problem’…
Tenures have terms (40 years)
Government constrains land dealings
Land dealings are complex
The proposed solution?
Cut red tape
Privatise individual property
See that sweet, sweet
capital $$
Case study: Qld Indigenous tenures
Aboriginal freehold
Native title
DoGiTs
Indigenous tenures recognise first possession, culture, connection to land
Where is the red tape?Native title
State Indigenous tenures
Limits on ownership
No mortgages
Few survey plans
Govt permission processes
Fitzroy River, 29/5/14
From Indigenous to ‘regular’ freehold [freedom to choose]
Choose to freehold
Community consultatio
nApply for
declaration
‘Regular’ freehold means (in government language)
Economic development
Autonomy: ‘can use the land as they
choose’
Entry to the market
‘Regular’ freehold also means
Myth-busting
Tenure ≠ growth
‘Limits’ are govt-imposed
Where is the market?
History tells a different
story
The reality of development
Land never paid for
Heavy govt subsidies
Historical NT Pastoral leases
Stolen wagesGurindji strikers, 1967
Autonomy? Free market?
HistoryNeolibera
l discourse
Looks a lot like colonisation: déjà vu all over again
The binaryCommunity Market
Global resource markets
Growth
Capital value
Individual title
Development
Cultural value
Communal title
Lessons for Northern Australia
‘Free and tradeable title’ excludes community interests Community interests have value, including to support community developmentTenure is not a panacea for economic growthGovernment has power to grant tenure that supports Indigenous interests
Slide Reference
3 Our North, Our Future: White Paper on Developing Northern Australia (Australian Government, 2015), 3 http://industry.gov.au/ONA/whitePaper/Paper/index.html
4 Our North, Our Future: Trade and Investment in the North (Australian Government, 2015) http://industry.gov.au/ONA/WhitePaper/Paper/index.html#videos
7 http://undead-llama.com/comic/red-tape-hulk/9 Image Chris Johnston
http://www.eurekastreet.com.au/article.aspx?aeid=26586#.VkUqDsp9ZBw 10 Image: AGNSW Mervyn Bishop
http://www.abc.net.au/news/2014-10-21/mervyn-bishop/5829892 11 Image: Ben Collins, ABC
http://www.abc.net.au/local/photos/2014/05/30/4015731.htm 13 Cartoon: Nicholson
http://nicholsoncartoons.com.au/home-ownership-for-aborigines-226.html 14 Cartoon: Nicholson http://nicholsoncartoons.com.au/ 15 Cartoon: Nicholson
http://nicholsoncartoons.com.au/private-home-ownership-aborigines-226-2.html 16a Image: Melbourne Sun, 1968 http://indigenousrights.net.au/land_rights/campaigning_for_land_rights,_1963-68 16b http://www.doug-and-dusty.id.au/bundy/Mt_Bundy_Station/History/Old_Pastoral_Leases.jpg 16c http://www.abc.net.au/site-archive/rural/telegraph/speeches/whitlam.htm