After spending seven years as an Inaugural and twice elected North West Region First Peoples Assembly of Victoria community elected Treaty representative it gives me great pleasure to be writing my first Treaty report as the Wamba Wemba Gellung Warl Traditional Owner representative.
My term as Wamba Wemba representative became active on May 1, 2026, where all Gellung Warl members came together for 3 days of bonding and introductions in Ballarat followed by our first chamber meeting in Bendigo which was drawn out over 6 sitting days spilt over 3 days each the first as identified in Bendigo and later in Dandenong (Melbourne) Due to the fact Gellung Warl is now a new Statutory body with intended powers and functions to deliver future Treaty / Treaties much of our work in the first six months is internal as required by the Treaty legislation to design our committees and establish a Community Governance and accountability framework. The intended pillars of this framework are Community Vision, Community answerability principles, Community Charter and Strategic Plan. This framework will also need to consider Nation building principals and implications and how Gellung Warl empowers community.
Potential portfolio membership are the Elders voice , Youth voice , oversight committee, economic and self-determination committee (which I am advocating as a Traditional Owner space and where reparations would sit as part of future Treaties), member conduct , Audit and Risk , Yurpa (cultural governance as in Assembly 1 and 2) State Relations and other possible portfolios and knowledge holders.
The final Community Governance and Accountability framework must have a minimum ten-year period and must also be reviewed a minimum every four years
(after every Treaty election).
Whilst we have much to do with setting up the structure as required by the legislation (which came into effect December 2025) I have been strong in my voice highlighting that aiming the first and immediate spear back towards Government accountability and practice reform to match where there has been good policy reform but no practice scrutiny. MARRUNG Aboriginal Education Plan is one of those good policies where practices have been lacking alongside other Government Closing The Gap Initiatives under the former Victorian Aboriginal Affairs Framework.
I have reminded Gellung Warl members of the 46 Articles of the United Nations Declaration of the Rights of Indigenous Peoples and how they are minimum international policy rights and standards that are not being achieved.
As the author of the resolution that delivered Yoorook (Australia’s first Truth Commission) which delivered a final report in August 2025 I have highlighted several key recommendations that can be leveraged on immediately including recommendation 3(a) Government bodies must ensure that First Peoples related programs and policies are rigorously monitored and evaluated 3(c) where programs or policies have existing commitments to monitoring and evaluation but little or no progress has been made these must be activated within six months.
Also as stipulated in my Wamba Wemba election campaign support for our people under Yoorook recommendation 12 around child removal recommendation 32 for our prisoners and the presumption of innocence (as always required) in favour of bail (except in murder, terrorism and like cases).
I am also strongly advocating for a matrix to measure Treaty aspirations and outcomes to be measured under UNDRIP and am strong on articles 1 to 5 around self-determination, Wamba Wemba political status (and all tribes) under autonomy and self-determination.
I am strongly advocating for a Tradional owner stand-alone committee within Gellung Warl with decision making powers to support Traditional Owner aspirations.
I have attended the Traditional Owner Caucus along with the other Gellung Warl TO reserve seat holders (this was the first time reserve seat holders have participated in
this forum which is hosted by the Federation of Traditional Owners. (This does not make Wamba Wemba a member of the Federation of Traditional Owners as that decision is for the Wamba Wemba membership).
There was a cultural reserve (as in parks, reserves) status focus to support Traditional Owner self determination and what that could look like.
As part of that forum I was crystal clear that just because I am the Wamba Wemba elected reserve seat holder that does not make me the Wamba Wemba Traditional Owner treaty maker or representative it only makes me the Wamba Wemba representative in Gellung Warl and contributor under the State Wide Treaty and Wamba Wemba will determine who and how Wamba Wemba will form their own Traditional Owner Treaty negotiation team to negotiate and activate Wamba Wemba’s own Treaty or Treaties.
Cultural flows was a talking point and I made my perception clear as a Wamba Wemba representative that cultural flows is a bout restorative justice for our land our people our water ways and our animal relatives totems and all living creatures that live on Wamba Wemba country both now and before colonistation and how we bring back our plants , animals , waterways to as close as possible to conditions before colonisation.
I look forward to continuing this work as Wamba Wemba’s Gellung Warl member through further reporting, Wamba Wemba engagements and informing and seeking feedback and direction from Wamba Wemba community.
Wamba Wemba
Gellung Warl member