Gatjil Djerrkura
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Gatjil Djerrkura OAM (Yolŋu Matha:Gätjil Djerrkura) (30 June 1949 – 26 May 2004) was an Aboriginal leader and Indigenous spokesman in the Northern Territory and Australia.<ref name=":0">Template:Cite web</ref><ref name=":1">Template:Cite web</ref>
He was a senior elder of the Wangurri Aboriginal clan of the Yolngu people. He was responsible for a number of traditional and ceremonial activities on behalf of his clan and the East Arnhem Land/Yirrkala Aboriginal community. He attended school at the Yirrkala Mission School and later attended bible college in Brisbane.<ref name=":0" />
He served as Chairperson of the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Commission (ATSIC) and was appointed to this role on 6 December 1996 and held it until 2000. In this role he advocated for Australia to become a republic and for Constitutional recognition of Indigenous Australians.<ref name=":1" /> In so doing he was a core part of the republican movement in Australia and he led the push for the addition of a new preamble to the Constitution of Australia which recognised to original and continuing custodianship of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples; this was ultimately included in the 1999 Australian republic referendum.<ref name=":1" />
In 1984 he was awarded the Medal of the Order of Australia (OAM) for his services to the Aboriginal community. Later, in 2001 he also received a Centenary Medal for services to the Australian community.<ref name=":0" />
He died on 26 May 2004.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>
His son Nathan Djerrkura played for Geelong and the Western Bulldogs in the Australian Football League.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>
Positions
- Chairman of the Batchelor College Council, NT
- Director of the Board of the Indigenous Land Corporation
- Director of the Board of the Land Enterprise Australia
- Member of the Council for Aboriginal reconciliation
- General Manager of Yirrkala Business Enterprises in Nhulunbuy
- Chairperson of the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Commercial Development Corporation
- Director of the Henry Walker Group
Oral history
Djerrkura's oral history, recorded 18 July 2000 with Peter Read, is available at the National Library of Australia.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>
Further reading
References
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