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In the last 18th century Britain claimed the lands of Australia because they assumed nobody owned them. Some Torres Strait Islanders, led by Eddie Mabo, challenged this. Their people inhabited Murray Island for thousands of years and so were the rightful owners -
On Australia day a meeting of Aboriginal people was held, a document call 'Aborigines claim citizen rights' was circulated. -
A group led by Aboriginal activist Charles Perkins made a bus tour through New South Wales. They protested about discrimination in shops, theatres, bars, clubs and swimming pools. -
After a 90% 'yes' vote the government gave indigenous Australians the right to vote and be counted in censuses, and ended the protection policies.
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200 workers walked off the Wave Hill cattle station in the Northern Territory. They wanted better wages and conditions, and their traditional lands back. The Gurindji eventually gained ownership of the area in 1985. -
The embassy said that blacks were now going to get up and fight back on the issues of education, heath, police victimization, locking people up. Bobby Sykes, Aboriginal activist.
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A government commission recommended that Aboriginals should get back the land where they now lived and had traditionally lived. -
However this Northern Territory law only gave the indigenous people some areas of arid and largely useless land. Other land claims were often thrown out by the courts.
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In May 2000, 250 000 people walked across Sydney Harbour Bridge and up to 400 000 marched in Melbourne in December. Many marchers carried signs and banners critical of the Prime Minster's refusal to say 'sorry' to indigenous Australians for past wrongs.