![Sign acknowledging Aboriginal Custodians of the land](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/9/96/Sign_acknowledging_Aboriginal_Custodians_of_the_land.JPG)
The Wurundjeri Woi Wurrung Cultural Heritage Aboriginal Corporation, previously the Wurundjeri Tribe Land and Compensation Cultural Heritage Council, is a
Registered Aboriginal Party
A Registered Aboriginal Party (RAP) is a recognised representative body of an Aboriginal Australian people per the ''Aboriginal Heritage Act 2006'' (Vic.), whose function is to protect and manage the Aboriginal cultural heritage in the state o ...
representing the
Wurundjeri
The Wurundjeri people are an Australian Aboriginal people of the Woiwurrung language group, in the Kulin nation. They are the Traditional Owners of the Birrarung (Yarra River) Valley, covering much of the present location of Narrm (Melbourne ...
people, an
Aboriginal Australian
Aboriginal Australians are the various Indigenous peoples of the Australian mainland and many of its islands, such as Tasmania, Fraser Island, Hinchinbrook Island, the Tiwi Islands, and Groote Eylandt, but excluding the Torres Strait Islands ...
people of
Victoria
Victoria most commonly refers to:
* Victoria (Australia), a state of the Commonwealth of Australia
* Victoria, British Columbia, provincial capital of British Columbia, Canada
* Victoria (mythology), Roman goddess of Victory
* Victoria, Seychelle ...
.
History
The Wurundjeri Tribe Land and Compensation Cultural Heritage Council was established in 1985 by descendants of the
Wurundjeri
The Wurundjeri people are an Australian Aboriginal people of the Woiwurrung language group, in the Kulin nation. They are the Traditional Owners of the Birrarung (Yarra River) Valley, covering much of the present location of Narrm (Melbourne ...
people, who are the
traditional custodian
Native title is the designation given to the common law doctrine of Aboriginal title in Australia, which is the recognition by Australian law that Indigenous Australians (both Aboriginal Australian and Torres Strait Islander people) have rights ...
s of the country around
Melbourne
Melbourne ( ; Boonwurrung/Woiwurrung: ''Narrm'' or ''Naarm'') is the capital and most populous city of the Australian state of Victoria, and the second-most populous city in both Australia and Oceania. Its name generally refers to a met ...
. There were three family groups represented in the Council: the Nevins, Terricks and Wandins, which included 30
elders and about 60 members. The members of the Council (later Corporation) are all descendants of a
Woiwurrung
The Woiwurrung, also spelt Woi Wurrung, Woiwurrong, Woiworung, Wuywurung, are an Aboriginal Australian people of the Woiwurrung language group, in the Kulin people, Kulin alliance.
The Woiwurrung people's territory in Central Victoria (Austral ...
/ Wurundjeri man named
Bebejan
Bebejan (birth circa 1796, died August 1836) also known as Bebejern or Jerum Jerum, was a Ngurungaeta (Leader -pronounced ung-uh-rung-eye-tuh) of the Wurundjeri people of the Woiwurung language group in the present day Australian state of Victor ...
, through his daughter Annie Borate (Boorat), and in turn, her son Robert Wandin (Wandoon). Bebejan was a
Ngurungaeta
An Ngurungaeta is a Woiwurrung head man or tribal leader of clans of the Woiwurrung tribes and Taungurung Ngurai-illum Wurrung. Ngurungaeta held the same tribal standing as an Arweet of the Bunurong and Wathaurong people. The current Ngurungaeta is ...
of the Wurundjeri people and was present at
John Batman
John Batman (21 January 18016 May 1839) was an Australian grazier, entrepreneur and explorer. He is best known for his role in the founding of Melbourne.
Born and raised in the then-British colony of New South Wales, Batman settled in Van Die ...
's "treaty" signing in 1835.
[Victorian Aboriginal Heritage Council, ''Decision in relation to an Application by Wurundjeri Tribe Land and Compensation Cultural Heritage Council Inc to be a ]Registered Aboriginal Party
A Registered Aboriginal Party (RAP) is a recognised representative body of an Aboriginal Australian people per the ''Aboriginal Heritage Act 2006'' (Vic.), whose function is to protect and manage the Aboriginal cultural heritage in the state o ...
'', date of Decision: 22 August 2008. Accessed 2 November 2008
In 2003 questions were raised over claims of missing funds, after the organisation had not complied with its obligations to hold annual general meetings and lodge annual statements. Wurundjeri Land Council revenue was at that time predominantly from rental of buildings on the former Army School of Health site in
Healesville
Healesville is a town in Victoria, Australia, 52 km north-east from Melbourne's central business district, located within the Shire of Yarra Ranges local government area. Healesville recorded a population of 7,589 in the 2021 census.
He ...
and fees paid by developers for cultural site monitoring, to obtain approval for work on
culturally sensitive
Cultural sensitivity, also referred to as cross-cultural sensitivity or cultural awareness, is the knowledge, awareness, and acceptance of other cultures and others' cultural identities. It is related to cultural competence (the skills needed for ...
areas.
[Larry Schwartz, ]
Police inquiry into claims of missing funds
', The Age
''The Age'' is a daily newspaper in Melbourne, Australia, that has been published since 1854. Owned and published by Nine Entertainment, ''The Age'' primarily serves Victoria (Australia), Victoria, but copies also sell in Tasmania, the Austral ...
, 12 October 2003. Accessed 2 November 2008
The council had a statutory role under Commonwealth legislation that gave it the power to grant or refuse consent to disturb Aboriginal sites. This gave the Council members a significant say in how their important cultural places were managed.
[ In 2006 the Victorian state government introduced the '']Aboriginal Heritage Act 2006
The ''Aboriginal Heritage Act 2006'' (AHA) of the state of Victoria, Australia was enacted "to provide for the protection of Aboriginal cultural heritage in Victoria". It established Registered Aboriginal Parties to act as the "primary guardians ...
'', under which the council became approved as a Registered Aboriginal Party, which allows the council to continue to make decisions about its cultural places. However the decision recognised only the area not under dispute with other parties.[
]
Roles
The Corporation has a number of different roles:
* to raise awareness of Wurundjeri culture and history within the wider community.
* actively managing archaeological sites and sites of cultural significance
* benefiting the lives of present-day Wurundjeri people and families.
* Welcome to Country
A Welcome to Country is a ritual or formal ceremony performed as a land acknowledgement at many events held in Australia. It is intended to highlight the cultural significance of the surrounding area to the descendants of a particular Aborigina ...
ceremonies that can include speaking in language, traditional dancing, gum leaf and smoking rituals.
The Victorian Government has granted land of cultural significance for the Land Council to manage. These sites include:
* the Sunbury earth rings
The Sunbury Earth Rings (Bora Rings) are prehistoric Aboriginal sites located on the hills to the west of Jacksons Creek near Sunbury, Victoria, Australia.
Description and identification
Sometimes referred to as Bora rings, they were formed b ...
, an important ceremonial place
* Coranderrk
Coranderrk was an Aboriginal reserve run by the Victorian government between 1863 and 1924, located around north-east of Melbourne. The residents were mainly of the Woiwurrung, Bunurong and Taungurong peoples, and the first inhabitants chose ...
Aboriginal Station Cemetery in Healesville (1991)
Territorial disputes
Boundary disputes have existed among a number of parties, including the Wathaurong
The Wathaurong nation, also called the Wathaurung, Wadawurrung and Wadda Wurrung, are an Aboriginal Australian people living in the area near Melbourne, Geelong and the Bellarine Peninsula in the state of Victoria. They are part of the Kulin all ...
people to the west, the Dja Dja Wurrung
Dja Dja Wurrung (Pronounced Ja-Ja-war-rung), also known as the Djaara or Jajowrong people and Loddon River tribe, are an Aboriginal Australian people who are the Traditional owners of lands including the watersheds of the Loddon and Avoca rive ...
to the north-west, the Taungurong
The Taungurung people, also spelt ''Daung Wurrung'', are an Aboriginal people who are one of the Kulin nations in present-day Victoria, Australia. They consist of nine clans whose traditional language is the Taungurung language.
Their Country ...
people to the north, the Gunai/Kurnai to the east and the Boon wurrung/Bunurong people to the south. The dispute over territorial boundaries continued to be challenged even after being set down in 1984 legislation.[Larry Schwarz, ]
Aborigines seek law change over land row
', The Age
''The Age'' is a daily newspaper in Melbourne, Australia, that has been published since 1854. Owned and published by Nine Entertainment, ''The Age'' primarily serves Victoria (Australia), Victoria, but copies also sell in Tasmania, the Austral ...
, 14 December 2003. Accessed 2 November 2008
In June 2021, the boundaries between the land of two of the traditional owner
Native title is the designation given to the common law doctrine of Aboriginal title in Australia, which is the recognition by Australian law that Indigenous Australians (both Aboriginal Australian and Torres Strait Islander people) have rights ...
groups in greater Melbourne
Melbourne ( ; Boonwurrung/Woiwurrung: ''Narrm'' or ''Naarm'') is the capital and most populous city of the Australian state of Victoria, and the second-most populous city in both Australia and Oceania. Its name generally refers to a metrop ...
, the Wurundjeri and Boonwurrung, were agreed between the two groups, after being drawn up by the Victorian Aboriginal Heritage Council
The ''Aboriginal Heritage Act 2006'' (AHA) of the state of Victoria, Australia was enacted "to provide for the protection of Aboriginal cultural heritage in Victoria". It established Registered Aboriginal Parties to act as the "primary guardians ...
. The new borderline runs across the city from west to east, with the CBD, Richmond
Richmond most often refers to:
* Richmond, Virginia, the capital of Virginia, United States
* Richmond, London, a part of London
* Richmond, North Yorkshire, a town in England
* Richmond, British Columbia, a city in Canada
* Richmond, California, ...
and Hawthorn
Hawthorn or Hawthorns may refer to:
Plants
* '' Crataegus'' (hawthorn), a large genus of shrubs and trees in the family Rosaceae
* ''Rhaphiolepis'' (hawthorn), a genus of about 15 species of evergreen shrubs and small trees in the family Rosace ...
included in Wurundjeri land, and Albert Park, St Kilda and Caulfield on Bunurong land. It was agreed that Mount Cottrell
Mount Cottrell is a town in Victoria, Australia, west of Melbourne's Central Business District, located within the Cities of Melton and Wyndham local government areas. Mount Cottrell recorded a population of 496 at the 2021 census.
It is n ...
, the site of a massacre in 1836 with at least 10 Wathaurong victims, would be jointly managed above the line. The two Registered Aboriginal Parties representing the groups were the Bunurong Land Council Aboriginal Corporation
The Bunurong Land Council Aboriginal Corporation is a Registered Aboriginal Party and incorporated association representing the Bunurong (Boon wurrung) community in the state of Victoria, Australia, particularly in matters relating to the Victori ...
and the Wurundjeri Woi Wurrung Cultural Heritage Aboriginal Corporation.
Office location
In 2007 the Land Council
Land councils, also known as Aboriginal land councils, or land and sea councils, are Australian community organisations, generally organised by region, that are commonly formed to represent the Indigenous Australians (both Aboriginal Australians ...
opened an office at the refurbished Abbotsford Convent
The Abbotsford Convent is located in Abbotsford, Victoria, an inner city suburb of Melbourne, Australia. The Convent is in a bend of the Yarra River west of Yarra Bend Park, with the Collingwood Children's Farm to its north and east, the river a ...
to engage with members of the wider community and provide community space for members. The site is on the Yarra River Dreaming Trail, an important part of the bigger creation story of the Wurundjeri people and their country. There are important Wurundjeri camping sites located nearby which have been used for thousands of years. A little way north is the confluence of the Merri Creek
The Merri Creek is a waterway in southern parts of Victoria, Australia, which flows through the northern suburbs of Northcote. It begins near Wallan north of Melbourne and flows south for 70 km until it joins the Yarra River at Dights Fa ...
and Yarra River
The Yarra River or historically, the Yarra Yarra River, (Kulin languages: ''Berrern'', ''Birr-arrung'', ''Bay-ray-rung'', ''Birarang'', ''Birrarung'', and ''Wongete'') is a perennial river in south-central Victoria, Australia.
The lower stre ...
near Dights Falls
Dights Falls is a rapid and weir on the Yarra River in Melbourne, Victoria, just downstream of the junction with the Merri Creek. At this point the river narrows and is constricted between 800,000-year-old volcanic, basaltic lava flow and a mu ...
; the burial site of Billibellary
Billibellary (c. 1799–10 August 1846) was a song maker and influential ngurungaeta of the Wurundjeri-willam clan during the early years of European settlement of Melbourne. He was known by various names including Billi-billeri, Billibellary, Jik ...
; the location of the Aboriginal Protectorate, Native Police Corps
Australian native police units, consisting of Aboriginal troopers under the command (usually) of at least one white officer, existed in various forms in all Australian mainland colonies during the nineteenth and, in some cases, into the twentie ...
headquarters and Merri Creek Aboriginal School.
References
External links
*
{{Indigenous Australians
Organisations serving Indigenous Australians
Organisations based in Melbourne
Wurundjeri