The common law crisis of perception and the Wik people’s tender for Cape York mining

Abstract

This article presents for discussion a case study of the Wik Waya people’s as yet unsuccessful attempt to secure the lease for the mining of bauxite on their country at Aurukun in Far North Queensland. The author proposes that the reason for the refusal of the Queensland government to grant mining lease RA315 to the Wik consortium is found in the present crisis of perception that engulfs legal history and the very common law itself. The author challenges the reader to embrace the results of recent scientific revelations and to extrapolate those discoveries to the legal discourse, and therein to reimagine solutions that invite greatness into the discourse.