In late 1994 the senior lawmen of north east Arnhem Land prepared a document to persuade the Australian people and governments that their law and traditions about management of the seas should be the publicly endorsed and a legally sanctioned marine protection strategy for the seas they call Manbuynga ga Rulyapa established.

"Manbuynga ga Rulyapa are two currents that come together to form the seas off our homelands. In the course of their journey through and under the water they separate and then come together again. Within these waters are our sacred totems, song cycles, ceremonies and the pathways of creation beings. Responsibility for them is apportioned throughout our community."

Terry Yumbulul and Keith Djiniyini of the Manbuynga ga Rulyapa Steering Committee, talk here about why they are calling for a joint management strategy for the Arafura Sea.

The Manbuynga ga Rulyapa Steering Committee, which speaks for the Yolngu people of north-east Arnhem Land, has been for some time now offering itself to both the Federal and Territory governments to work together in establishing a marine protection strategy for the Arafura Sea.

As the Arafura Sea surrounds our traditional islands and coastline, we are saying that the strategy should be largely based on traditional Yolngu management principles, with Yolngu people at the heart of the management structure.

The establishment of a formal strategy is essential to counter the degradation of the marine environment that is currently occurring along the Territory coast, as indeed it is across the planet.

The structure would involve Yolngu as well as considerable government and scientific input, a truly joint approach which no one should be frightened of.

The Arafura Sea, or as Yolngu call it, Manbuynga ga Rulyapa, dominates our lives. More of our totems come from the sea than from the land; sacred sites, although they have been underwater for thousands of years now, are still sung about; our ceremonial dances are about the sea and many of our creation spirits began in the sea.


Manbuynga ga Rulyapa Commitee member George Banyalil inspects two of dozens of dead whales beached on Elcho Island in April.
Cause of death is unknown.

Dhimurru ranger Djawa Yunupingu releasing a Hawksbill Turtle found trapped in fishing net at Nanydjaka in north east Arnhem Land.

Yolngu are pushing for a joint management strategy for the Arafura Sea to better protect marine stocks in the region.

Next - Full Strategy document


And as most of our food traditionally comes from the sea, both spiritually and physically the well-being of the sea has always been and remains crucial to our well-being.

The reasons for the degradation of the sea are obvious. This year alone the public has witnessed vision of hundreds of dead beached whales; of endangered species of turtles, dugong and crocodiles trapped in nets; of marine pollution; and of illegal fishing by foreign boats, many of which are never spotted. There is much more that we Yolngu see as well.

As with the coming of land rights a couple of decades ago there has been substantial misinformation being spread recently about what so-called sea rights would mean to both Aboriginal and non-Aboriginal Australians.

Industry, to protect its current monopoly rights over the sea, is using scare tactics to frighten amateurs and other non-Aborigines by misrepresenting our intentions. But amateur fishermen should not be concerned about our approach as we have no problem with them. Amateurs use lines, catch relatively small amounts and often release fish.

What we are concerned about is proper management of commercial fishing. And if as with the prawning industry - where current out-moded methods means a by-catch rate of up to 21 times the amount of prawns caught, and where turtles, rays and other fish are killed and wasted - management could be improved then we will argue for those improvements to be made.

We would not exclude mackerel line-fishing but we are concerned about types of net-fishing where many other species are killed and wasted as a by-product. For example, barramundi fishing has caused the deaths of many crocodiles, dugong and other species.

It is time Government and industry listened to our call because what Yolngu are talking about is true conciliation, not about waging war through the courts for control of the sea. Other indigenous people are already in the Federal Court over their claims largely because of the position taken by the Federal Government (during the mediation process the Northern Territory Government to its credit was willing to talk) which says that because of technical and legal reasons native title can't exist in the sea.

In the case of Croker Island mediation under the Act hasn't worked and faced with such intransigence Croker people cannot be blamed for testing their case before the courts.


"Got that big barra?"

Justice French of the Native Title Tribunal recently said it was impossible for government to ignore native title over the sea as the issue was not going to go away. The Seafood Council recently acknowledged our Committee's approach of negotiation rather than pursuing protracted court battles as a more reasonable one.

Certainly negotiation is the preferred option, and as the issue is not about to go away Government and other user groups do now need to sit down and discuss our offer.