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Federal Council for Advancement of Aborigines
A federal conference of Aboriginal organisations held in Adelaide establishes the Federal Council for the Advancement of Aborigines (later the Federal Council for the Advancement of Aborigines and Torres Strait Islanders). It campaigns vigorously for the recognition and rights of Indigenous people in Australia. It rejects the assimilation policies of the federal government and seeks the integration of Indigenous people while allowing them to maintain their own culture and priorities. -
Voting Rights for Aboriginal Australians
The Commonwealth Electoral Act is amended to entitle all Indigenous Australians to enrol to vote at federal elections and referendums, although enrolment and voting is not compulsory. In Queensland, Western Australia and the Northern Territory, the voting registration of Indigenous people is not enforced. -
A White Australia - Beginning of the End
Hubert Opperman, Minister for Immigration in the Holt government, effectively spells out the end of the White Australia Policy by announcing that applications from prospective settlers will be considered on their suitability as settlers, their ability to integrate readily and whether they have qualifications useful to Australia. -
Indigenous land claims allowed
The Aboriginal Land Rights (Northern Territory) is the first Australian law that allows Indigenous title of land if claimants can provide evidence of their traditional and historical association with an area. It is the culmination of many years of struggle for formal recognition of land rights in the Northern Territory. -
First Formal Apology to Indigenous Australians
Prime Minister Kevin Rudd tables a historic motion in parliament apologising to Australia’s Indigenous people, particularly the Stolen Generations, for laws and policies that ‘inflicted profound grief, suffering and loss'.