Aboriginal Victorians have long called for treaty. Victoria is leading the country through its work toward a treaty or treaties with Traditional Owners and Aboriginal Victorians. We are working together to create a better future for all Victorians and enable true self-determination for Victoria's First Peoples.
What is a treaty?
A treaty is an agreement between states, nations or governments. This can include an agreement between First Peoples and governments.
There is no set form for what a treaty with First Peoples should contain. Each treaty is shaped by the history between the parties and the social and political context in which it is made. In Victoria, there could be one statewide treaty or multiple treaties with individual Aboriginal groups.
The State of Victoria will work with Traditional Owners and Aboriginal Victorians as equal partners on this journey. It is important for government not to pre-empt what may be in a treaty ― instead it must listen to the aspirations of Traditional Owners and Aboriginal Victorians expressed through the treaty process and work together to deliver a treaty or treaties that will benefit all Victorians.
Treaty is an opportunity to recognise and celebrate the unique status, rights, cultures and histories of Traditional Owners and Aboriginal Victorians.
Following generations of advocacy by Aboriginal Victorians and months of work in partnership with the First Peoples’ Assembly of Victoria, the Victorian Government also established the Yoo-rrook Justice Commission (Commission) as the nation’s first truth-telling process to embark on a truth and justice process into past and ongoing injustices committed against Aboriginal Victorians since colonisation. Establishment of the Commission has taken place in parallel with the treaty process to ensure that treaty is underpinned by a commitment to truth-telling.
The Victorian Government is committed to acknowledging the truth of Victoria’s history and laying the foundations for new, positive relationships between the State, Aboriginal Victorians, and non-Aboriginal Victorians.
For further information on the Commission, please visit the Commission's or the Truth and Justice in page.
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Reviewed 05 October 2021