A tribunal should be established to remove power from Parliament to handle land hand backs to the Aboriginal community, state representative groups say.
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A feedback report on the model of land returns to Tasmanian Aboriginals was recently released which included suggestions on how the system could better work for the community.
The Flinders Council, among other organisations, said the land return process should be assessed by an independent tribunal.
Council general manager Bill Boehm said there also needed to be a clear set of criteria against which a land claim was initiated and assessed with acknowledgement of historical connection and cultural significance. He said other organisations besides the Aboriginal Land Council of Tasmania should be allowed to have acquired land declared Aboriginal land.
Mr Boehm said Aboriginal country should not include freshwater and sea areas.
Six submissions, however, said fresh and sea water should be added to the definition of country as it would provide economic development opportunities for the community and make it consistent with the state's Constitution.
Other submissions said the Aboriginal Land Council should still remain the sole entity which could declare Aboriginal land.
The Central Highlands Council submitted that a change to this might create divisions between Aboriginal corporations.
Circular Head Aboriginal Corporation chief executive Dianne Baldock said the current situation was discriminatory. "The returned land is currently considered only for the ALCT to participate and manage," she said.
"This is not a transparent process."
She said land council members were made up of accepted members by the Tasmanian Aboriginal Corporation and the eligibility process needed to change to allow members of other Aboriginal communities to apply. Land council manager Graeme Gardner said land management would no longer be co-ordinated if land was returned to individual organisations.
He said there was insufficient government funds made available to these groups to allow for local land management.
Aboriginal Affairs Minister Roger Jaensch said land returns were an important part to ensuring a brighter future of Aboriginal Tasmanians.
He said a draft report to improve the land return model was underway which would be followed by more targeted consultation before a final report was prepared for consideration by the government.