Land and sea management history

Traditional owners of the Laynhapuy Homelands have long been active in land and sea management. The Yolngu were at the forefront of politically advocating for land rights in the Northern Territory and have long fought to have their ownership of their sea country acknowledged under Australian law. This continuing struggle is recognised in the recent decision of the High Court of Australia, in the Blue Mud Bay case, where the majority (five to two) held that Aboriginal land in the Northern Territory includes exclusive rights regarding commercial and recreational fishing in the tidal waters (from the mean high tide to the mean low tide marks) overlying Aboriginal land.

The homeland movement, a Yolngu initiative, began in north east Arnhem Land in 1972. This saw many Yolngu families move back to their country, where they could take charge of their lives and country. Yolngu built many of the first houses on the homelands using local timber and labour under supervision of qualified builders.

The establishment of Yirralka land and sea management represents the Laynhapuy Homelands Association Incorporated's (LHAI) ongoing commitment to supporting traditional owners in cultural and natural resource management in its area of operation. The Yirralka ranger program includes both the Dirramu (men's) and Miyalk (women's) groups. Within this caring for country program there are currently 34 men and women formally participating in the program as rangers. Of these, 24 men have paid positions funded under the Department of Environment, Water, Heritage and the Arts (DEWHA) Working on Country (WoC) program, and 10 women rangers are funded by the Indigenous Land Corporation (ILC). The ILC also fund the coordinator positions for both the Dirramu and Miyalk programs. The WoC and ILC funding ensures full-time wages along with employment conditions that have not been available to Aboriginal land and sea mangers (rangers) in the past under Community Development and Employment Program (CDEP).

Operational costs to compliment the wages from WoC are being sought from grant funding and fee for service work as well as the Healthy People Healthy Country Bilateral schedule.

The Yirralka land and sea management program is unique when compared to many other caring for country programs across the Northern Territory in that the outstations within the homelands are permanently occupied.