A Humanitarian Tradition

Australian colonial law was written as if the continent "belonged to no one" prior to 1788. This was pretence, and the colonists knew it.

Captain James Cook had detailed the existence of indigenous Australians many years before white settlement.

And once established, the practicalities of governing the colonies required authorities to address what was seen as the "native problem".

Despite the resulting cruelty, there was throughout this period, an influential humanitarian lobby, which protested against brutality and devised often misguided forms of 'welfare' for aboriginal people.

To understand the development of land rights policy in Australia, it's necessary to tell the story of this colonial, humanitarian tradition.