Aboriginal group opens town office

It was a proud moment for the Kuruma and Marthudunera people last week, when more than 50 members of the community joined elders and delegates to celebrate the official opening of the Kuruma Marthudunera Aboriginal Corporation office in Karratha.

Elder and founding member Cyril Lockyer said the event marked a significant milestone for KMAC, which had been operational for two years.

He said the occasion marked a turning point in a long journey towards gaining native title for the KM people, who originate from the Robe River area near Pannawonica.

"When land rights came along in the mid-1990s, my uncle and both my sisters put forward the KM claim and began negotiations with the Government and various mining companies," he said.

"After Robe River Iron started talking to us, who were then bought out by Rio Tinto, we set up a board and then became an incorporated body with a trust fund, which allowed us to set up a temporary office in Karratha and offer services to our people for hardship, health and education.

"We have come a long way since first starting negotiations, with barely enough money to scrape together a packet of biscuits for our meetings near the old tourist bureau in Roebourne.

"Now today we have moved into the corporate world, with 10-15 people working for us in areas from administration right through to project management … we are so proud of what we've achieved."

KMAC board director Josie Alec said she believed the KM people were not far away from receiving the native title recognition they had been fighting for more than two decades to gain.

"Our community has been waiting a long time to have something to call their own and having our new office open along that journey is the icing on the cake for us," she said.

"I believe if we keep on pushing boundaries with Government and keep our heads up high, we will gain native title very soon.

"To know we've got something for our mob, that would be the best feeling in the world."