THE AUSTRALIAN (Sydney, Australia) 02 January 07 Diving for turtles is back on (Graham Lloyd)
When the wattle trees bloom the colour of turtle fat along the riverbanks of northern NSW, it's time for young Githabul men to hit the water in search of tucker.
Before the bloom, Githabul women and children scour the trees for signs of fresh sawdust so they know where to cut the witchetty grubs from the trunks.
The "binging" - or freshwater turtles - the men dive for are fine eating. But when it comes to bush tucker, the Githabul say, nothing beats echidna.
The right to continue traditional hunting and food gathering sparked the Githabul's claim over northern NSW, which has been settled by consent after more than 10 years in court.
The claim has been going almost as long as Timothy "TJ" James Green, 14, has been alive but through it all he has mastered the art of the turtle dive.
Under the proposed native title agreement, Githabul people will be given access to the national parks and state forests to hunt and gather food. Access will be restricted to special times and certain areas and endangered animals will be off limits.
But the right of youngsters such as TJ to hunt and eat turtles and echidnas will be guaranteed.
"We are all people of the rainforest," Githabul claimant Trevor Close said. "It is a supermarket of food. The claim was lodged because our boys were sick of being pulled up (by police and forest authorities) for doing what they had always done."
Oral Williams, of the Muli Muli community near Woodenbong, two hours southwest of Brisbane, said the Githabul would hunt responsibly. "We know we have good hunting grounds, (we know) when to go there and we know when to leave the area alone to regenerate," he said.
Githabul board member Jennifer Bonner said the biggest issue with native title was recognition. "We can say we are the traditional owners," she said. "It will help us steer our young people away from drugs and alcohol."
Diving for turtles is back on