Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
Figure 120
Dawn breaks in an Arnhem Land tree fern forest. The fi rst migrants to Australia
encountered similar landscapes.
and the broken promises made by dozens of successive national and state
governments. Now there are some signs that the territorial confl ict might
fi nally be resolved. In 1992 the Australian High Court admitted that Aborig-
inals have a right to their tribal lands. The court also admitted, startlingly,
that Australia had never actually been an “empty land,” totally open to
European colonization and exploitation, as the fi rst European settlers had
proclaimed. But even after the court's decision, argument continues over
the extent of tribal lands and about who is entitled to live in them. The result
has been a menagerie of government commissions that continue to spar
with Aboriginal tribal councils.
A small group of us, including Aboriginal guides, was headed across the
Arnhem Land tribal territory toward the shores of the Gulf of Carpentaria.
We camped along the way, cooking damper bread and bathing when we
found a stream. Our Land Cruiser encountered endless dii culty because of
the recent rains, and we were repeatedly bogged down on the muddy track.
