Return of Indigenous Cultural Property Program
Australia's major museums hold large collections of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander ancestral remains and objects of secret and/or sacred significance. Many of these items were collected without the consent of family members or the traditional owners.
The repatriation of Australian Indigenous ancestral remains and secret sacred objects has been an ongoing and evolving process over the past 20 years. This process has occurred in large part because of the efforts of Indigenous communities and museums.
Most museums have policies and programs in place that acknowledge and support the right of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people to decide what will happen to cultural property relating to their community. The return of this cultural property is a key part of the reconciliation process.
Participating institutions
The Return of Indigenous Cultural Property (RICP) Program is an initiative of the 
Cultural Ministers' Council (CMC) - a council comprised of the federal, state, territory and New Zealand cultural ministers.
The RICP Program represents a collaborative effort between the Australian and state/territory governments and the museums sector to resolve the issues surrounding the collections of ancestral remains and sacred objects.
Total funding of $3 million was provided by the Cultural Minister’s Council for the RICP Program. The Australian Government contributed $1.5 million and the state and Northern Territory governments contributed around $1.5 million collectively. The Australian Capital Territory does not hold collections of Indigenous remains and secret sacred objects and therefore is not participating in the program.
The Department of the Environment, Water, Heritage and the Arts administers the Return of Indigenous Cultural Property Program on behalf of the Cultural Minister’s Council.
The RICP Program focuses on government funded museums and does not apply to holdings overseas. The eight museums eligible to participate in the program are:
- Australian Museum
- Museum and Art Gallery of the Northern Territory
- Museum Victoria
- National Museum of Australia
- Queensland Museum
- South Australian Museum
- Tasmanian Museum and Art Gallery
- Western Australian Museum .
Aims of the RICP Program
The aim of the RICP Program is to repatriate all ancestral remains and secret sacred objects from the eligible museums to their communities of origin. The four specific objectives of the program are to:
- identify the origins of all ancestral remains and secret sacred objects held in the museums where possible;
- notify all communities who have ancestral remains and secret sacred objects held in the museums;
- appropriately store ancestral remains and secret sacred objects held in the museums at the request of the relevant community; and
- arrange for repatriation where and when it is requested.
Structure of the RICP Program
The RICP Program consists of two funding sub-categories-the Museum Support Program and the Community Support Program.
The Museum Support Program provides funds for museums to prepare collections for return to Indigenous communities.
The Community Support Program provides funds for Indigenous communities to participate in the repatriation process. Funds are provided to Indigenous communities through the museums.
