NORTHERN TERRITORY

The 'Northern Territory' is a federal territory of Australia. The capital city is Darwin; the other two sizable settlements are Alice Springs (in the desert interior, 1,500 kilometres (930 mi) to the south) and Katherine (near the base of the Top End). Residents of the Northern Territory are often known simply as 'Territorians'. It is the largest territory in Australia by area.

History

Main articles: History of the Northern Territory

Indigenous Australians have lived in the present area of the Northern Territory for an estimated 40,000 years, and extensive seasonal trade links existed between them and the peoples of what is now Indonesia for at least five centuries.
With the coming of the British, there were four early attempts to settle the harsh environment of the northern coast, of which three failed in starvation and despair. The Northern Territory was part of New South Wales from 1825 to 1863, except for a brief time from February 1846 until December 1846 when it was part of the short lived colony of North Australia, and part of South Australia as The Northern Territory of South Australia from 1863 to 1911. Under the administration of South Australia, the overland telegraph was constructed by Charles Todd between 1870 and 1872. A railway was also built between Palmerston and Pine Creek between 1883 and 1889. The economic pattern of cattle raising and mining was established so that by 1911 there were 513 000 cattle. Victoria River Downs was at one time the largest cattle station in the world. Gold was found at Grove Hill in 1872 and at Pine Creek, Brocks Creek, Burrundi and copper was found at Daly River. Many of the miners were Chinese and subsequently deported under the White Australia Policy.
On 1 January 1911, a decade after federation, the Northern Territory was separated from South Australia and transferred to Commonwealth control. Alfred Deakin opined at this time "To me the question has been not so much commercial as national, first, second, third and last. Either we must accomplish the peopling of the northern territory or submit to its transfer to some other nation."
For a brief time between 1927 and 1931 the Northern Territory was divided into North Australia and Central Australia at the 20th parallel of South latitude. See A Brief History of the Administration in the Northern Territory Soon after this time, parts of the Northern Territory were considered in the Kimberley Scheme as a possible site for the establishment of a Jewish Homeland, understandably considered the "''Unpromised Land''".
During World War II, most of the Top End was placed under military government. This is the only time since Federation that an Australian state or territory has been under military control. After the war, control for the entire area was handed back to the Commonwealth.
Indigenous Australians had struggled for rights to fair wages and land. An important event in this struggle was the strike and walk off by the Gurindji people at Wave Hill Cattle Station in 1966. The Commonwealth Government of Gough Whitlam set up the Woodward Royal Commission in February 1973 set to inquire into how land rights might be achieved in the Northern Territory. Justice Woodward's first report in July 1973 recommended that a Central Land Council and a Northern Land Council be established in order to present to him the views of Aboriginal people. In response to the report of the Royal Commission a Land Rights Bill was drafted, but the Whitlam Government was dismissed before it was passed.
The Aboriginal Land Rights (Northern Territory) Act 1976 was eventually passed by the Fraser Government on 16 December 1976 and began operation on the following Australia Day (26 January 1977).
In 1978 the Territory was granted responsible government, with a Legislative Assembly headed by a Chief Minister.
During 1996 the Northern Territory was briefly one of the few places in the world with legal voluntary euthanasia, until the Federal Parliament overturned the legislation [1]. Before the overriding legislation was enacted, three people committed suicide through voluntary euthanasia, a practice orchestrated by Dr Philip Nitschke.

Politics

The legislative assembly building in Darwin.

The territory has a legislative assembly. Whilst this assembly exercises roughly the same powers as the governments of the states of Australia, it does so by delegation of powers from the commonwealth government, rather than by any constitutional right.
For several years there has been agitation for full statehood. A referendum was held on the issue in 1998, which failed. This was a shock to both the Northern Territory and Commonwealth governments, for opinion polls showed most Territorians supported statehood. However, under the Australian Constitution, the Federal government may set the terms of entry to full statehood. The Northern Territory was offered three Senators, rather than the twelve guaranteed to original states. (Because of the difference in populations, equal numbers of Senate seats would mean a Territorian's vote for a Senator would have been worth more than 30 votes in New South Wales or Victoria.) Alongside what was cited as an arrogant approach adopted by then Chief Minister Shane Stone, it is believed that most Territorians, regardless of their general views on statehood, were reluctant to adopt the particular offer that was made.^[1]
The current head of government is Chief Minister Clare Martin who led the Australian Labor Party to their first Northern Territory electoral victory in August 2001, and to a second victory in June 2005. The leader of the opposition was Denis Burke, head of the Country Liberal Party, until the Territory elections of June 2005, where Burke lost his seat. The party then chose Jodeen Carney as the new Opposition Leader.
The territory is represented in the Commonwealth parliament by two members in the House of Representatives, currently Warren Snowdon for the Australian Labor Party (ALP) and David Tollner for the Country Liberal Party (CLP), and two members in the Senate, currently Trish Crossin for the ALP and Nigel Scullion for the CLP.
At the local government level, there are 6 incorporated municipalities (3 town councils, 1 shire and 2 cities), 30 'community government councils' and 26 other bodies. See: Local Government Areas of the Northern Territory

Aboriginal Australians

Aboriginal rock art in Kakadu National Park

Almost one third of the population of the Northern Territory are Indigenous Australians, a far greater proportion than in any other state or territory in Australia. The life expectancy of Aboriginal Australians is well below that of non-Indigenous Australians in the Northern Territory, a fact that is mirrored elsewhere in Australia. ABS statistics suggest that Indigenous Australians die about 20 years earlier than the average Australian.
There are Aboriginal communities in many parts of the territory, the largest ones being the Pitjantjatjara near Uluru, the Arrernte near Alice Springs, the Luritja between those two, the Warlpiri further north, and the Yolngu in eastern Arnhem Land.
See also: Australian Aboriginal Prehistoric Sites.

Land Rights

The Aboriginal Land Rights (Northern Territory) Act 1976 established the basis upon which Aboriginal people in the Northern Territory could, for the first time, claim rights to land based on traditional occupation. In effect it allowed title to be transferred for most of the Aboriginal reserve lands and the opportunity to claim other land not owned, leased or being used by someone else.
The Land Councils are representative bodies with statutory authority under the Act. They also have responsibilities under the Native Title Act 1993 and the Pastoral Land Act 1992. There are four Land Councils in the Northern Territory, they are:

★ the Anindilyakawa Land Council covering Groote Eylandt in the Gulf of Carpentaria.

★ the Central Land Council is in the southern half of the Northern Territory. The region covers 771,747 square kilometres (297,973&nbps;sq mi) of remote, rugged and often inaccessible areas. There are 18,000 Aboriginal people from 15 different Aboriginal language groups in Central Australia.

★ the Northern Land Council covering the Top End

★ the Tiwi Land Council covering Bathurst and Melville Islands north of Darwin

Geography

Northern Territory towns, settlements and road network

There are many very small settlements scattered across the Territory but the larger population centres are located on the single sealed road that links Darwin to southern Australia, the Stuart Highway, known to locals simply as "the track".
The Northern Territory is also home to two spectacular natural rock formations, Uluru (Ayers Rock) and Kata Tjuta (The Olgas), which are sacred to the local Aboriginal peoples and which have become major tourist attractions.
In the northern part of the territory lies Kakadu National Park, which features breathtaking wetlands and native wildlife. To the north of that lies the Arafura Sea, and to the east lies Arnhem Land, whose regional centre is Maningrida on the Liverpool River delta.
'Highest maximum temperature:' 48.3 °C (118.9 °F), Finke, 2 January 1960
'Lowest minimum temperature:' -7.5 °C (18.5 °F), Alice Springs, 12 July 1976 [2]
Rivers include:

★ Alligator River

★ Daly River

★ Finke River

★ McArthur River

★ Roper River

★ Todd River

★ Victoria River, which flows for until it enters Joseph Bonaparte Gulf in the Timor Sea

National Parks

:''

Mount Sonder, the second highest mountain in the Northern Territory after nearby Mount Zeil, in West MacDonnell National Park

Nourlangie Rock in Kakadu National Park

Tourism

Uluru, one of the most well known images of the Northern Territory

Tourism is one of the major industries on the Northern Territory. Iconic destinations such as Uluru and Kakadu make the Northern Territory a must see destination for domestic and international travellers. Diverse landscapes, spectacular waterfalls, wide open spaces, aboriginal culture, wild and untamed wildlife, all create a unique opportunity for the visitor to immerse themselves in the natural wonder that the Northern Territory offers. Images of Uluru (Ayers Rock) are recognised around the world ensuring that Tourism in the Northern Territory will remain a vital component of its future.

Demographics

The population of the Northern Territory was estimated at 205,000 in mid-2006 and represents about 1% of the total population of Australia. Population centres include the capital, Darwin and nearby Palmerston with 111,000 and Alice Springs with 28,000.
Indigenous Australian people make up 29 per cent of the Northern Territory's population and own some 49% of the land.
The Northern Territory's alcohol consumption rate is one of the highest in the world, and certainly the highest in Australia. In 2001 the alcohol consumption rate was estimated at 1120 standard drinks per person per year.

Economy

The Ranger Mine

The Northern Territory's economy comprises mostly primary extractive industries, together with a significant amount of tourism.
The principal mining operations are:

★ Bauxite at Gove Peninsula

★ Manganese at Groote Eylandt

★ Uranium at Ranger
Proposed mines include:

★ Manganese at Bootu Creek

★ Iron ore at Frances Creek

Transport

The Ghan, which runs aross the territory from north to south, in Alice Springs.

A new standard gauge railway connects Adelaide via Alice Springs with Darwin, replacing earlier narrow gauge railways which were never connected through.
The Northern Territory was one of the few remaining places in the world that had unlimited road speed limits. From 1 January 2007 there is a default speed limit of 110km/h on roads outside of urban areas (Inside urban areas of 40, 50 or 60km/h) - Otherwise signposted of 130km/h on some straight highways (e.g. The Stuart Highway)^[2]
As of June 2007 however road deaths are up 28.6 per cent on last year. The road toll has also increased, by 35.7 per cent.ATSB

References

1. ABC Lateline Discussion
2. Speed limit introduced

★ Hill, Ernestine. 1951. ''The Territory: The classic saga of Australia's far north''. Angus & Robertson. Reprint: 1995. ISBN 0-207-18821-1

External links

★ Northern Territory Government of Australia

★ Northern Territory Visitor's Guide

★ Northern Territory at a Glance, 2007

★ Northern Territory National Emergency Response Bill 2007

★ Intervention Program in Indigenous communities and town camps

This article provided by Wikipedia. To edit the contents of this article, click here for original source.

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