10 April

TSRA News Column
10 - 17 April 2007

I wish to acknowledge the traditional owners of Kaiwalagal, on whose land I am writing from and all other traditional owners and elders throughout our region. 

Gab Titui Cultural Centre is Turning 3!

Our cultural safe keeping place is celebrating its third birthday on Monday, 16 April. The last three years have been eventful for the Centre, with numerous community activities, local art and craft displays as well as visiting exhibitions being hosted by Gab Titui.

The Centre has strived to maintain, revitalise and promote Torres Strait’s rich culture and history, through supporting our local artists and crafts-people by showcasing their creations in the Gallery and Giftshop, as well as providing workshops to assist community members to develop and refine their artistic skills.

Its work towards the preservation and increased awareness of Indigenous culture has not gone unnoticed, with the Centre being awarded Regional, State and National recognition. A High Commendation was received at the 2005 Australian Tourism Awards, followed by a runner-up award at the 2006 Tropical North Queensland Tourism Awards, and for last two years, the Centre has been named as Queensland’s best Torres Strait Islander and Aboriginal Tourism entity.

These achievements would not have been possible without the valuable contributions of community members, artists and crafts-people, and I would like to take this opportunity to thank the people of the region for their support and sharing our unique traditions and history with visitors.

I would also like to commend the Torres Strait Regional Authority (TSRA), and staff of the Gab Titui Cultural Centre, for their dedication and commitment towards preserving and promoting the Centre, our people and culture.

To coincide with this year’s birthday, a number of events have been planned for the week beginning on Monday 16 April, including some community member activities, island dancing and the launch on Friday, 20 April, of a Regional Visual Arts and Craft Exhibition.

If you happen to be on Thursday Island this month, I encourage you to visit the Centre and to take part in the birthday festivities. For more information, you can telephone the staff at Gab Titui Cultural Centre on (07) 40 902130 or fax (07) 4090 2145.

PZJA Stakeholder Engagement

From 3 to 4 April, Members of the Protected Zone Joint Authority (PZJA) conducted stakeholder engagement sessions on the islands of Masig and Badu.

This was a great opportunity for community fishers to discuss matters directly with the PZJA Members, which included the Australian and Queensland Government Ministers for Fisheries and myself, as Chairperson of the TSRA.

It was also a forum where stakeholders exchanged information, as well as clarified any uncertainties to better understand proposed arrangements for the region.

I would like to thank both the Australian and Queensland Government Ministers for taking part in the visit and also the Councils and communities of Masig and Badu for welcoming the PZJA and hosting these two forums.

Visit by Researcher

I wish to inform you that the TSRA has engaged the services of consultant, Dr Tony Hand, from Marsden Jacob Associates, to visit our islands and consult with community fisher representatives to gather feedback and data on how communities would like to see their fishing quota managed.

Information collected will assist Dr Hand to compile a Report that outlines Torres Strait’s traditional fisher aspirations. In addition, he will also formulate some recommendations on quota management structures, specifically designed for our unique fishing arrangements, that aim to produce maximum economic benefits with uncomplicated steps for implementation. The Report should be completed by the end of the year and will be provided back to our communities to consider.

The TSRA’s Fisheries Officer will keep communities informed on when Dr Hand will visit each island. If you would like more information about this project, you can contact TSRA’s Fisheries Officer, Mr Toshio Nakata, on telephone (07) 4069 0700, fax (07) 4069 1879 or email info@tsra.gov.au. Alternatively, you can also visit Mr Nakata at the TSRA Office, Level 1, 46 Victoria Parade, Thursday Island.

Any feedback for on this column can be sent to:

Mr. John T. Kris
TSRA Chairperson
PO Box 261
Thursday Island QLD 4875

Alternatively, feedback can also be sent through the TSRA website via the media contact in the ‘contact us’ segment of the site.  Until the next column, may God bless you all and keep you safe.
John T. Kris
TSRA Chairperson