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This is my third Native Title Report as the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Social Justice Commissioner. This year I continue the theme from my previous Reports by focusing on land tenure and economic reform on Indigenous communal lands.1

Native title agreements are emerging as an important tool in defining the rights of native title holders over their land. As Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Social Justice Commissioner I welcome negotiation and agreement-making as a way of establishing a stable and enduring basis for a dynamic and long term relationship between Indigenous and non-Indigenous people over land. However I am concerned that throughout this process there are currently no mechanisms to ensure that the human rights of Indigenous people are being respected.

For Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples, agreement-making can be an expression of free, prior and informed consent and the beginning of cooperative relationships with governments and other parties.

During the reporting period, Australian governments continued to develop tenure reform policies for Indigenous land. Governments frequently describe these policies as a means of promoting home ownership and economic development on Indigenous land. The reality is not so simple.

This report is my second as the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Social Justice Commissioner and marks a transition from a calendar year reporting period to a financial year to comply with s.46(1)(a) of the Human Rights and Equal Opportunity Commission Act (1986) (Cth). As the Native Title Report 2004 reported on the period January to December 2004, this report covers the period January to June 2005.

This Annual Report identifies important milestones as well as challenges that remain in human rights protection in Australia. It provides an annual reflection on Australia’s progress in addressing commitments that the Government has made to protect human rights, as well as identifying emerging concerns. The Report is the second in a series of annual reports that are being developed in the lead up ...

During 2005, the Prime Minister, the Attorney-General, and the Minister for Immigration and Multicultural and Indigenous Affairs, made statements to the effect that the Australian Government was interested in supporting Indigenous Australians to explore opportunities to lease or buy communal lands for private or personal use. The government's premise was that if Indigenous people were encouraged into private ownership of communal lands they would be able to build economic independence and wealth, and in doing so alleviate poverty.

The current mandatory detention policy of the Commonwealth of Australia breaches the fundamental principle of the rights of the child which is that children should be able to develop to their full potential. The policy breaches every article of the Convention on the Rights of the Child. The policy violates the right to health as established by international law.