WA: Parliament to debate amended native title bills

AAP General News (Australia)
12-23-1998
WA: Parliament to debate amended native title bills

PERTH, Dec 23 AAP - Western Australia's Legislative Assembly tonight will debate two native
title bills, passed through the upper house in a marathon sitting last night.

The government's Titles Validation Amendment Bill and Native Title (State Provisions) Bill
were amended significantly by Labor, throwing into doubt the possibility of a state-based
native title tribunal.

Premier Richard Court hoped to pass the legislation before Christmas, but indicated
yesterday if the Legislative Council accepted Labor's amendments, his government would reject
the legislation as unworkable.

"If the legislation comes back to the Legislative Assembly in a format that we know we
can't make work, there's no point in us setting up a state regime which we know is going to be
unworkable," he said.

Under Labor's amendments to the Native Title (State Provisions) Bill - designed to set up a
state tribunal - Aborigines would have the right to negotiate over almost half the state.

The government is also unlikely to accept Labor's amendments to the Titles Validation
Amendment Bill, designed to retrospectively extinguish native title over 500 types of leases.

The amendments expose 1,300 leaseholders to possible court action over native title and
appear to forgo the validation of more than 9,000 titles granted in the mid-1990s.

Opposition Leader Geoff Gallop called on the government to pass the bill.

"Any political posturing on this bill will threaten the validity of thousands of titles
issued in Western Australia since the beginning of 1994," Dr Gallop said.

"The amended bill achieves the twin objectives of validating all titles issued over
pastoral and other leases since 1994 and confirming the extinguishment of native title in all
areas provided by common law."

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KEYWORD: WIK WA NIGHTLEAD

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