The long awaited handover of the 456,324 hectare Mungkan Kandju National Park on central Cape York Peninsula this week redresses a shameful injustice from Queensland’s history, the Australian Conservation Foundation’s CEO Don Henry said.

When the Queensland Government of 1977 declared the Archer Bend pastoral lease a National Park, it effectively blocked the Traditional Owners’ attempt to purchase the pastoral lease and gain formal ownership of their land.

“ACF warmly congratulates the Traditional Owners on the return of important parts of their country and the new Queensland Government for the return of these lands and the establishment of the 381,560 hectare Aboriginal-owned Oyala Thumotang National Park,” said ACF’s CEO Don Henry.

The return of the land to its Traditional Owners was made possible by the Cape York Tenure Resolution Implementation Process, of which ACF’s Cape York Officer Leah Talbot and CEO Don Henry are members.

Central Cape York is known for its extensive savannah, riparian forest and monsoonal rainforest, and is an area of cultural significance.  It is home to palm cockatoos and spotted cuscus and many other endemic species.

The handover will see a change in tenure from state-held land to ‘National Park (Cape York Peninsula Aboriginal Land)’ – a tenure that is unique to Cape York. A further 75,074 hectares of land will be returned as Aboriginal freehold, providing economic opportunities for the Wik Mungkan people.

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