Submission on Compulsory Acquisition of Alice Springs Town Camps
In a submission to the Indigenous Affairs Minister, the Hon Jenny Macklin MP, the Human Rights Law Resource Centre has strongly urged the Minister not to exercise her discretionary power to compulsorily acquire Aboriginal town camps in Alice Springs. In August this year, the Minister wrote to Alice Springs town camp residents giving notice of her proposal to compulsorily acquire their land. For over 12 months the Minister has been seeking to acquire 40-year subleases over the town camps. When these negotiations broke down, the Minister threatened the exercise of her compulsory acquisition power. Under the Minister’s power, if the Commonwealth acquires the land of the town camps then all existing rights over the land held by Aboriginal people will end.