Planning towns and suburbs is a significant opportunity for Traditional Owner groups to be involved in decision-making for Country, but a substantial risk their rights and interests will be ignored.
The Federation contributed a written submission on the first pillar of the 25-year Plan for Victoria framework, which envisages a state that centres self-determination and care for Country in its planning decision-making.
Our submission focused on Traditional Owners’ rights – we said the plan is an opportunity to be visionary in realising the collective right to self-determination, end damaging practices that impinge on and undermine collective rights, centre cultural obligations to Country, and fully recognise Traditional Owner Corporations’ rights and authority by providing for power-sharing partnership (in just six pages, too!).
