The decision of the High Court in Mabo v Queensland (No.2) was a major development in Australian law, a historic wrong was righted. The judgment received a wide ranging national response, while some have suggested that decision should be legislated away and others suggested it should be ignored, the Commonwealth saw the decision as providing an opportunity to rebuild on fair and just foundations the relationship between our nation and its indigenous people. The Commonwealth's Native Title Act 1993(Cth) is a beginning to that process.
Native Title Act 1993 (Cth) accepts and confirms the Mabo decision, in particular the fundamental propositions on which the decision rested, namely to provides for the recognition and protection of native title rights based on the traditions of the indigenous people of Australia, and the rejection of the myth that Australia was terra nullius (land belonging to no-one).
…
