Community consultations held in June 2017 found that a representative body needs to be:
- democratic
- independent from government
- able to authorise treaty or treaties
The reports below provide a detailed analysis of the Aboriginal Treaty Working Group’s preferred legal structure - a company limited by guarantee - along with the other legal structures.
Find the online summary of the report.
Download the report summary:
Download the full report:
A summary of the results from community consultations during February to April 2017 is provided below. This was also provided in hardcopy at the Victorian Treaty Forum on 28 April 2017.
Following these consultations, the Aboriginal Treaty Working Group established the Aboriginal Community Assembly to provide recommendations on the remaining design elements of the representative body.
An open letter from the Aboriginal Treaty Working Group to the Aboriginal community on the March – April 2017
Community Consultations Report
We would like to start by acknowledging the traditional custodians of the land on which we gather. We would like to pay our respects to Elders past, present and emerging - for they hold the memories, the traditions, the culture and hopes of Aboriginal people across the nation.
The Aboriginal Treaty Working Group (the Working Group) is pleased to release the report from the latest round of community consultations on treaty.
The report, authored by Ernst & Young, provides a detailed analysis of the results from the latest round of community consultations along with an overview of the major entity design elements that are being worked through including next steps.
As we have previously stated, the Working Group’s role is not to negotiate treaty, it is to consult the Aboriginal community on what it would like to see in a representative structure so that government has an equal partner to work with on the pathway to treaty.
The first step in developing this representative structure was consulting the community on design principles, things that were important to the community in determining a representative structure in its cultural shape. These design principles have, and will continue to guide the approach as we move towards finalising the remaining elements of the representative structure.
The next phase of community consultations will be in the form of a Community Assembly (the Assembly) which will consist of a diverse range of Aboriginal Victorians selected through an expression of interest which will be open to all and will run across the second half of 2017. This will mean that any Aboriginal Victorian will, once again, have the chance to have their voice heard.
As soon as the details for the Assembly are finalised, all information will be posted on the Aboriginal Victoria website.
Sincerely,
Aboriginal Treaty Working Group
Updated